Our Scientists

Ahmad Suhaimi Bin AHMAD ISHAK

Education: Nanyang Technological University, Singapore; Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine
Contact: ahmad_suhaimi@a-star.edu.sg
Research Field: Neuroscience, Immunology, Virology
Research Interest: My research focuses on the intersection of neuroscience and virology, with a particular emphasis on arboviruses and their complex interplay with the human nervous and immune systems. I aim to unravel the mechanisms by which these viruses impact neurological function and immune responses, providing insights into their pathogenesis. Additionally, my work involves exploring potential therapeutic interventions, including drug discovery, to mitigate the effects of arboviral infections on human health. By integrating multidisciplinary approaches, I seek to advance our understanding of these viruses and contribute to the development of effective treatments.

Sakshi AGARWAL

Education: Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, India
Contact: Agarwal_Sakshi@a-star.edu.sg
Research Field: Immunology and Microbiology
Research Interest: I am interested to find novel targets that can used as host directed therapy against respiratory pathogens.

Fadi ALNAJI

Education: University of Warwick, United Kingdom 
Contact: fadi_alnaji@a-star.edu.sg
Research Field: Virology, General Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology, Biotechnology
Research Interest: The high mutation rate and the capacity to exchange genetic materials with one another (recombination) render RNA viruses incredibly efficient evolvers. Although these evolutionary aspects are the major drivers of the emergence of the pandemic and epidemic viruses, they are the exploitable ‘chink of the armor’ in fighting against the virus. I work on developing antiviral approaches based on dissecting the evolutionary dynamics of RNA viruses using Next generation Segueing and a mixture of computational and experimental approaches.  

Zi Wei CHANG 

Education: National University of Singapore, Singapore
Contact: Chang_Zi_Wei@a-star.edu.sg
Research Field: Immunology; Infectious disease; Drug discovery 
Research Interest: The complex relationship between therapeutics, host immune system and infectious agent can hinder the success in combating infectious disease. My research interest includes the investigation on how the host immune system coordinate with therapeutics in infectious disease elimination and prevention. 

Yao CHEN

Education: Nanyang Technological University, Singapore
Contact: Chen_Yao@a-star.edu.sg
Research Field: Genetics; Immunology; Infectious Diseases
Research Interest: My research interests focus on the effect of Covid infection on the epigenetic profiles of the offspring as well as the epigenetic changes followed by BCG vaccination in newborns.

Adeline CHUA 

Education: University of Otago, New Zealand
Contact: Adeline_Chua@a-star.edu.sg
Research Field: Infectious Diseases; Drug Discovery
Research Interest: My keen interest in “bench to bedside” research stems from my drug discovery experience in diverse diseases like cancer (e.g. NSCLC, pancreatic) and infectious diseases (e.g. tuberculosis, dengue, malaria). Currently, I am exploring physiologically relevant in vitro platforms to better understand the biology of diseases to facilitate the design of better diagnostics and therapeutics.

Wilson CHU

Education: National University of Singapore, Singapore
Contact: Wilson_Chu@a-star.edu.sg
Research Field: Infectious Diseases; Microbiology; Immunology
Research Interest: My current role involves examining bacterial pathogenesis in mucosal infection, with emphasis on Klebsiella pneumoniae. Using both in vitro and in vivo techniques, my research scope includes uncovering infection mechanisms and identifying factors that can be potential targets for new therapeutics against K. pneumoniae and other bacterial species.

Sher Ney CHONG

Education: National University of Singapore, Singapore
Contact: Chong_Sher_Ney@a-star.edu.sg
Research Field: Immunology, Infectious disease, Cell and Molecular Biology
Research Interest: My research focuses on developing assays for T and B cells to enhance pandemic preparedness. Leveraging my extensive background in molecular biology from my PhD and postdoctoral experience, I aim to to design robust and reliable tools that address critical challenges in immune monitoring.

Eve CHOW

Education: University of Queensland 
Contact: Eve_Chow@a-star.edu.sg
Research Field: Fungal pathogenesis, Antifungal Resistance
Research Interest: My interests lie in understanding how fungal pathogens adapt to the stresses of a human host and subsequently cause disease. This includes asking questions about host-pathogen interactions and the selective pressures driving antifungal resistance. I am using functional genomic screens to provide new insight into fungal pathogenesis and antifungal resistance.

David M COSTA

Education: University of Porto, Portugal
Contact: David_m_costa@a-star.edu.sg
Research Field: Infectious Diseases, Microbiology; Immunology
Research Interest: My main research interests lie in studying host-pathogen interactions using animal models. During my PhD, I explored the molecular determinants of malaria sporozoite infectivity. Now at A*STAR IDL, I am tackling mycobacterial infections using the zebrafish model, with particular focus on the host.

Tianjiao DAI

Education: National University of Singapore, Singapore
Contact: Dai_Tianjiao@a-star.edu.sg
Research Field: Infectious diseases; Antimicrobial therapeutics; Antimicrobial Resistance
Research Interest: My research interests mainly focus on antimicrobial therapeutics. Currently, my research aims to develop antimicrobial compounds and materials with novel modes of action to minimize the risk of resistance development in pathogens.

Wenning FANG 

Education: University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, China
Contact: Fang_Wenning@a-star.edu.sg
Research Field: Molecular Biology; immunology; infectious diseases
Research Interest: Study the role of long non-coding RNA in Mtb infection and nucleic acid therapies.
Metabolic reprograming and epigenetic modification in Tuberculosis pathogenesis; Develop Host-targeted Therapeutic strategies for TB.

Siew Wai FONG

Education: Universiti Sains Malaysia, Malaysia 
Contact: Fong_Siew_Wai@a-star.edu.sg
Research Field: Immunology; Microbiology; Clinical biochemistry 
Research Interest: My research interests focus on characterizing human immune responses to virus infections. In particular, I am interested in bridging the knowledge gap of vector–pathogen−host interactions in arbovirus transmission, which focuses on a new approach to target mosquito saliva. I believe with substantial understanding on the immunopathogenesis, it will permit development of intervention and therapeutics to tackle viral infections.  

Yun Shan GOH 

Education: University of Cambridge, United Kingdom
Contact: Goh_Yun_Shan@a-star.edu.sg
Research Field: Immunology; Parasitology; Virology
Research Interest: The humoral immunity has a crucial role in the containment and the eventual clearance of an infection. By studying the immune responses following either natural infection or vaccination, we identify targets and potential correlates of protection. We also develop assays based on the targets for diagnostics or clinical investigation.

Wei Shen HO

Education: National University of Singapore, Singapore
Contact:  Ho_Wei_Shen@a-star.edu.sg
Research Field: Antimicrobial therapeutics, Microbiology, Biochemistry 
Research Interest: I have a keen interest in understanding the molecular mechanisms underlying effective therapeutics and drug resistance, particularly in infectious agents. My current work focuses on the use of chemical biology and biochemical approaches to design and improve antimicrobial biologics against viral and bacterial pathogens.

Cheryl LEE

Education: National University of Singapore, Singapore
Contact: Cheryl_Lee@a-star.edu.sg
Research Field: Virology; Immunology; Neurobiology; Stem cell therapy
Research Interest: My research focuses on understanding how neurotropic viruses induce or exacerbate neurological diseases, including age-related cognitive decline. I am particularly interested in exploring the mechanisms of viral-host interactions and neuroimmune dynamics that contribute to neuroinflammation and disease progression. Through this work, I aim to identify potential therapeutic strategies to mitigate the impact of virus-induced neurological disorders.

Hyeyoung LEE

Education: National University of Singapore, Singapore
Contact: Lee_Hyeyoung@a-star.edu.sg
Research Field: Infectious Diseases; Immunology; Virology
Research Interest: During my PhD, I studied platelet-neutrophil interactions in tuberculosis. Now, my research focuses on understanding host-pathogen interactions in alphavirus infections. I aim to characterize the immune responses triggered by different alphaviruses, uncover novel molecular mechanisms, and contribute to immunomodulatory drug development using multiomics, in vivo models, and 3D cell culture systems.

Stacey-Ann LEE 

Education: University College London/The Francis Crick Institute, United Kingdom
Contact: staceyann_lee@a-star.edu.sg
Research Field: Microbiology, Drug Discovery, Immunology
Research Interest: Postdoctoral research fellow in Pablo Bifani’s lab. I have extensive infection and immunology lab experience, particularly in TB work, in vitro tissue models and single-cell RNA-Seq. In my current role, I focus on industry-oriented research, developing high-quality and novel assays for antibiotic drug discovery.

Nicholas LIN

Education: National University of Singapore, Singapore
Contact: Nicholas_Lin@a-star.edu.sg
Research Field: Infectious Diseases; Antibody discovery; Microfluidics
Research Interest: I am mainly interested in developing microfluidic platforms that enable high throughput discovery of antibodies against various pathogenic viral and bacterial targets.

Ken LOH 

Education: University of Queensland, Australia
Contact: Ken_Loh_Zhixuan@a-star.edu.sg
Research Field: Fish Immunology; Infectious Diseases; Drug Discovery
Research Interest: Fishes and shellfish have been increasing in demands lately, with projected global consumption to be doubled in the next three decades. However, emerging infectious diseases are causing significant production losses, which in turn threaten food sustainability. My research interest focuses on developing vaccines against marine pathogens to combat economic impact on aquaculture farmers and to strengthen Singapore’s food security.

Haitong MAO

Education: Harvard University, USA
Contact: Mao_haitong@a-star.edu.sg
Research Field: Microbiology, Immunology
Research Interest: My main research interest lies in host-pathogen interactions. During my PhD, I studied the dendritic cell response to Chlamydia trachomatis infection. I am currently investigating the mechanisms of Plasmodium vivax invasion into red blood cells.

Andre NG 

Education: National University of Singapore, Singapore
Contact: Ng_Mong_Jie_Andre@a-star.edu.sg
Research Field: Biotechnology, Microbiology, Synthetic biology
Research Interest: I am interested in utilising the versatility of synthetic biology to address the dangers posed by emerging tropical diseases. My current work focuses on developing diagnostics and providing antiviral solutions.

Li Mei PANG

Education: Nanyang Technological University, Singapore; Doctor of Philosophy, Biological Sciences
Contact: Pang_li_mei@a-star.edu.sg
Research Field: Infectious Diseases, Molecular Biology, Biochemistry
Research Interest: My research interests include understanding the underlying mechanisms that govern the Candida biofilm formation and morphogenesis (key virulence traits). Genome-wide genetic screens are conducted to identify novel genes and mechanisms involved in these key virulence traits and antifungal drug resistance.

Henrietta PAPP

Education: University of Pécs, Hungary
Contact: henrietta_papp@a-star.edu.sg
Research Field: Virology, Vaccinology
Research Interest: Viruses have always fascinated me—despite their simplicity, they have a profound impact on human health and global systems. Since joining A*STAR IDL in 2023, my research has focused on leveraging RNA viruses for self-amplifying RNA vaccine technology. I am currently working on developing diverse self-amplifying RNAs with potential applications in medicine.

Sheetal SAINI

Education: National Institute of Technology Allahabad, India
Contact: saini_sheetal@a-star.edu.sg
Research Field: Immuno-metabolism, Infectious Diseases
Research Interest: I have always been intrigued by role of metabolic pathways  in determining the outcome of infection. I studied immunophysiology of Leishmania donovani infection during my PhD. Currently, at A*STAR IDL, my work is focused on understanding the cross-talk between immune system and metabolism in pulmonary infections

Jian Hung SAM(Ivan)

Education: Curtin University Malaysia
Contact:  sam_jian_hung@a-star.edu.sg
Research Field: Chemical Engineering, Infectious Disease
Research Interest: Developing infectious disease models and exploring the mechanisms underlying infection kinetics. Addressing key research questions in immunology and virology through an interdisciplinary approach, integrating insights from engineering. 

Samuel TONG

Education: University of Queensland, Australia
Contact: Samuel_Tong@a-star.edu.sg
Research Field: Infectious Diseases, Virology, Host-pathogen Interactions
Research Interest: My professional goal is to utilise my training in cell biology and immunology to drive clinical research that benefits society. A key step before developing any therapeutic is to first identify a draggable clinical target. Thus, I hope to channel my energies into research that uncovers novel molecular mechanisms behind host-pathogen interactions to identify these targets.

Quang-Dinh TRAN

Education: Université Paris Cité, France 
Contact: tran_quang-dinh@a-star.edu.sg
Research Field: Virology; General Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology
Research Interest: I am interested in the mechanisms and determinants of arbovirus molecular evolution. I use experimental evolution, molecular virology and high-throughput sequencing to understand how arboviruses adapt to new challenges in their dual-host life cycle. Particularly, I focus on genetic recombination as a key motor for social interactions in viral populations.

Guisheng ZENG 

Education: National University of Singapore, Singapore
Contact: Zeng_Guisheng@a-star.edu.sg
Research Field: Infectious Diseases; Fungal biology
Research Interest: After studying the organization of actin cytoskeleton in budding yeast for about 10 years, I switched my research interest to the most prevalent fungal pathogen − Candida albicans. My current focus is to reveal the molecular mechanisms underlying the hyphal morphogenesis (a key virulence factor of C. albicans) and the development of antifungal drug resistance.