Northeastern University · EngineeringWang RNA Lab
Lei Wang · Boston, Massachusetts
Research Focus
Dr. Lei Wang's lab at Northeastern University focuses on developing innovative RNA-based sensors that can accurately detect specific cell types in real-time. The lab's research bridges synthetic biology and biomedical applications, aiming to improve therapeutic responses for diseases like cancer by using advanced RNA technologies. Students will learn how to engineer RNA circuits to monitor cellular signals, paving the way for more targeted medical interventions.
RNA sensorssynthetic biologycell type detectionbreast cancermRNAmiRNAtherapeutic responseslipid nanoparticlesreal-time monitoring
Research Aims
5AIM 01Develop programmable RNA-based sensors for cell type detection.
AIM 02Integrate mRNA and miRNA inputs for improved specificity.
AIM 03Evaluate sensor performance in cancer models.
AIM 04Transform disease treatment through targeted RNA delivery.
AIM 05Utilize RNA sequencing resources for enhanced tool development.
Skills the Lab Values
RNA extractioncell culturemouse model experimentationmolecular cloningquantitative PCRWestern blottingbioinformatics for RNA analysisprogramming for data analysis (Python)flow cytometrylogic gate design in synthetic biology
Output against the department
Publications951top 3% of dept.8th of 278
this lab
most publishedleast published
Citations27ktop 13% of dept.36th of 278
this lab
most citedleast cited
Career totals from OpenAlex, compared against labs that share a department. A department spans everything from one paper to tens of thousands, so bar heights are on a log scale — otherwise the largest lab would flatten every other bar to a line.