Kun Lu

Kun Lu, PhD is a Professor in the Department of Environmental Sciences and Engineering at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, part of the Gillings School of Global Public Health. His research focuses on understanding health effects of environmental exposures, integrating microbiome analysis, exposome mapping, and omics profiling to develop biomarkers for disease susceptibility. Key areas include heavy metals, pesticides, and other environmental chemicals, with an emphasis on gut microbiome interactions and disease mechanisms.

Education: PhD in Material Sciences (UNC Chapel Hill, 2009), MS in Material Sciences (UNC Chapel Hill, 2006), and prior degrees in Polymer Chemistry and Physics from Beijing University of Chemical Technology.

Research Interests: Microbiome toxicity, exposome characterization via mass spectrometry, biomarker development for environmental chemicals (e.g., arsenic, formaldehyde), and their impacts on chronic diseases like cancer, diabetes, and neurodegenerative disorders. Techniques include metabolomics, proteomics, and systems biology approaches.

Key Contributions: Published work includes studies on arsenic-induced diabetes (via a $12.2M NIH grant), formaldehyde neurotoxicity, and microbiome interactions with environmental exposures. The Lu Lab also operates the Biomarker Mass Spectrometry Facility for high-resolution exposome analysis.

Grants: Noted for securing major funding, including the $12.2M NIH grant addressing arsenic-induced diabetes mechanisms.

Labs/Teams: Director of the Lu Lab, which collaborates on exposome mapping and microbiome research. Active in the Gillings School’s Innovation Labs network.