Zheng Kuang

Zheng Kuang is an Assistant Professor at the Department of Biological Sciences within the Mellon College of Science at Carnegie Mellon University. His research focuses on microbiota-host interactions, circadian rhythms, and epigenetic mechanisms in metabolic and immune health. He holds advanced degrees including a Ph.D. in Molecular Biology from Johns Hopkins University and postdoctoral training at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center.

Education:

• M.S., Computer Science, Georgia Institute of Technology
• M.H.S., Biostatistics, Johns Hopkins University
• Ph.D., Molecular Biology, Johns Hopkins University
• Postdoctoral Fellow, Department of Immunology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center

Research Interests: Kuang's work explores molecular mechanisms linking gut microbiota to circadian regulation of metabolism and immunity. Key areas include HDAC3 signaling in intestinal physiology, microbiota-dependent epigenetic regulation of mucosal barriers, and the interplay between microbial metabolites and host transcriptional programs. His lab employs genomics, gnotobiotics, and laser capture microscopy to uncover these pathways.

Publications Trends: Recent work highlights microbiota's role in circadian clock modulation, epigenetic control of intestinal barrier functions, and HDAC3's dual role in histone and non-histone protein regulation. His research bridges microbiology, epigenetics, and chronobiology with applications in metabolic disease therapies.

Labs/Teams: Leads a multidisciplinary team at Carnegie Mellon investigating host-microbiota interactions, with collaborations in synthetic biology and systems biology. Ongoing projects include developing tools for tracking alternative splicing and synthetic chromosome engineering.