Hanping Feng

Dr. Hanping Feng is a Professor at the Department of Microbial Pathogenesis, University of Maryland School of Dentistry, with a secondary appointment as Associate Professor in the School of Medicine. His research focuses on host immune responses to infections, particularly Clostridium difficile pathogenesis, vaccine development, and immunotherapeutic strategies. Dr. Feng has led the creation of recombinant C. difficile toxins and animal models for studying chronic and recurrent infections.

• Yangtz River University (BAGR, 1993)
• Chinese Academy of Sciences (MS, 1996)
• University of Arizona (PhD, 2002)

Dr. Feng's work spans immunology, cell biology, and infectious diseases. His lab has developed:

• Full-length C. difficile toxins A and B
• Animal models (piglet chronic CDI, mouse recurrent CDI)
• Ultrasensitive immunocytoxicity assays
• Chimeric dual-toxin vaccines and antitoxin antibodies

His research also explores interactions between C. difficile toxins and host cells, including:

• Role of glucosyltransferase activity in pathogenesis
• Identification of cellular receptors for Toxin B
• Systemic dissemination of toxins and its link to disease severity