Chuanwu Xi

Chuanwu Xi serves as Professor in the Department of Environmental Health Sciences and Professor of Global Public Health at the University of Michigan School of Public Health. His research program integrates environmental microbiology with public health through investigations of biofilm dynamics, water quality engineering, and pathogen transmission mechanisms across industrial and clinical environments.

His educational trajectory includes a PhD in Applied Biological Sciences from Katholieke Universiteit Leuven (Belgium, 2000), MSc in Molecular Microbiology from Guangxi University (China, 1996), and BSc in Biology from Anhui Normal University (China, 1993). Prior to joining UMich in 2005, he conducted research at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Dr. Xi's research program centers on three interconnected domains: molecular mechanisms of biofilm development, characterization of microbial communities in environmental and clinical contexts, and novel biofilm control strategies. His work spans environmental biotechnology, molecular microbial ecology, antibiotic resistance dynamics, environmental genomics, and global health applications with emphasis on water safety and infectious disease prevention. Current projects address nanobubble water treatment, nitric oxide-based antimicrobial systems, and environmental surveillance of pathogens including SARS-CoV-2 through the MDHHS SEWER Network.

Analysis of his 15 most recent publications (2022-2025) reveals dominant themes in biofilm engineering, water treatment innovation (particularly nanobubble applications), environmental pathogen surveillance, and microbiome-host interactions. Key methodological approaches include machine learning for water quality monitoring, nitric oxide delivery systems for infection control, and multi-omics analysis of microbial communities across diverse environments from plant rhizospheres to atmospheric particles.

He directs multiple NIH-funded initiatives including the U-M Minority Health and Health Disparities International Research Training Program and Michigan-Ohio Occupational Research Education (MOORE) Program, alongside MDHHS-supported SARS-CoV-2 wastewater surveillance and USDA projects on nanobubble-enhanced plant growth systems. His collaborative work with Michigan Medicine/Peking University focuses on apyrase-nanobubble combinations for root canal irrigation.

Dr. Xi maintains active laboratory operations investigating the intersection of environmental microbiology and public health solutions, with particular emphasis on translating fundamental biofilm research into practical water safety and infection control applications through novel material science and monitoring technologies.