My research integrates biophysics, quantitative imaging, and data‑driven modeling to investigate how cells regulate microtubule‑based intracellular transport. Using single‑molecule assays such as optical trapping, TIRF microscopy, and DIC imaging, my lab generates high‑resolution datasets that capture the forces, kinetics, and trajectories of molecular motor proteins. We apply advanced computational approaches—including time‑series analysis, hidden Markov modeling, stochastic simulations, and machine‑learning classification—to uncover how biochemical cues, microtubule modifications, and cargo‑specific factors coordinate motor activity. Our recent work combines quantitative imaging and computational tracking to reveal how luminal pH regulates phagosomal transport in macrophages and how NHE9‑mediated pH modulation alters the intracellular trafficking of endocytosed SARS‑CoV‑2. Through this interdisciplinary program, my lab advances mechanistic understanding of intracellular transport while training students in instrument design, programming for data acquisition, and quantitative image analysis, preparing them to work at the interface of biophysics and data science.
Please describe one or two of your most interesting projects.
One of my most exciting projects investigates how luminal pH regulates microtubule‑based transport inside macrophages, with a particular focus on the Na⁺/H⁺ exchanger NHE9. Using quantitative live‑cell imaging, particle tracking, and computational trajectory analysis, my lab discovered that changes in phagosomal pH can reorganize the activity of dynein and kinesin motor ensembles, altering the directionality and efficiency of cargo transport. This work revealed a previously unrecognized mechanism by which cells tune long‑distance transport through biophysical control of the intracellular environment. Building on these findings, we recently demonstrated that NHE9‑dependent pH modulation also affects the intracellular trafficking of endocytosed SARS‑CoV‑2, suggesting a potential regulatory pathway that influences viral entry and infection dynamics. Together, these projects combine single‑molecule biophysics, quantitative imaging, and data‑driven modeling to uncover how physical and chemical cues shape the behavior of molecular motors in living cells.
What is the most significant scientific contribution you would like to make?
The most significant scientific contribution I aim to make is to establish how the physical and chemical environment inside cells regulates the collective behavior of molecular motor proteins, ultimately shaping long‑distance intracellular transport. My long‑term goal is to define the quantitative rules that link various motor regulators, cargo‑specific recruitment, and microtubule‑track modifications to the emergent dynamics of motor ensembles. By integrating single‑molecule biophysics with computational modeling, quantitative imaging, and trajectory analysis, I want to build a predictive framework that explains—and eventually allows us to control—how cargoes move inside living cells.
This contribution matters because it connects molecular‑scale mechanisms to cellular‑scale outcomes. It also opens the door to translational applications: for example, our recent discovery that NHE9‑dependent pH regulation alters SARS‑CoV‑2 intracellular trafficking suggests that manipulating the intracellular environment could become a strategy to influence viral entry and infection. Ultimately, I want my work to provide a mechanistic, data‑driven foundation for understanding how cells organize transport, how pathogens exploit it, and how we might intervene when transport goes awry.
What are 1-3 interesting facts about yourself?
- I built ultrafast lasers in graduate school to study quantum‑level quasiparticle formation, long before shifting my focus to cellular biophysics.
- I use single‑molecule tools—like optical trapping and TIRF microscopy—to watch individual motor proteins work in real time, one step at a time.
- My lab discovered that pH inside cellular organelles can regulate the transport of SARS‑CoV‑2, revealing a surprising biophysical mechanism that may influence viral entry.