Biography

2025. 07-Current Professor, TaiKang Medical School (School of Basic Medical Sciences), Wuhan University, China

2025. 07-Current Principal Investigator, TaiKang Center for Life and Medical Sciences, Wuhan University, China

2023.09-2025. 07 Postdoctoral Fellow, Stanford University School of Medicine, USA (Advisor: Dr. Thomas C. Südhof, 2013 Nobel Laureate in Physiology or Medicine)

2021.12-202 3.09 Postdoctoral Researcher, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, USA (Advisor: Dr. Hongbo Chi)

2016.08-2021.12 Ph.D., University of Tennessee Health Science Center/St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, USA

2015.08-2016.05 Research Assistant, School of Medicine, Tsinghua University, China

2013.08-2015.07 Research Assistant, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, China

2009.08-2013.06 B.S., School of Life Sciences, Wuhan University, China

Research

Our laboratory investigates the dynamic interplay among immunity, metabolism, and neuroscience by integrating cutting-edge technologies including CRISPR screening, single-cell sequencing, metabolomics, and proteomics. We aim to: Decipher the roles of immune-metabolic crosstalk in tumor, brain development, aging, neurodegenerative disorders, and neuroinflammation; Develop novel immunotherapeutic strategies to drive transformative breakthroughs in neurological sciences.

Research Directions:

1.Immunoregulatory T cells (Treg) in aging & neurodegeneration: Mechanistic studies on Treg-mediated neuroprotection, Development of CAR-Treg-based immunotherapy for neurological diseases

2.Immune regulation of neural circuitry: Molecular mechanisms of immune signaling in Neurodevelopment & synaptic function, Neural circuit dysfunction in pathology

3.Translational neurotherapeutics: Cell therapies (engineered immune/non-immune cells), Small-molecule drugs targeting immunometabolic pathways, Antibody-based neuroprotective strategies

Representative  Publications

1. Su W, Saravia J, Risch I, Rankin S, Guy C, Chapman NM, Shi H, Sun Y, Li W, Huang H, KC Anil, Hu H, Wang Y, Liu D, Jiao Y, Chen PC, Soliman H, Yan KK, Zhang J, Vogel P, Liu X, Serrano G, Beach T, Yu J, Peng J, Chi H. CXCR6 orchestrates brain CD8+ T cell residency and limits murine Alzheimer’s disease pathology. Nature Immunology. 2023, 24, 1735-1747. (Research highlight: CD8+ T cells pump the brakes on Alzheimer’s disease. Nature immunology News & Views 2023. 24, 1597-1598.) (Editor’s Choice in Science Signaling: Restraining neuroinflammation in Alzheimer’s disease. Science Signaling. 2023, 16, 808.) (Spotlight in Trends in Immunology: Alzheimer’s defense: brain CD8+ T cells in action. Trends in Immunology. 2023. 12. 936-937)

2. Su W, Chapman NM, Wei J, Zeng H, Dhungana Y, Shi H, Saravia J, Zhou P, Long L, Rankin S, KC Anil, Vogel P, Chi H. Protein prenylation drives discrete signaling programs for the differentiation and maintenance of effector Treg cells. Cell Metabolism. 2020, 32, 996-1011.

3. Lim AS*, Su W*, Chapman NM, Chi H. Lipid metabolism in T cell signaling and function. Nature Chemical Biology. 2022, 18, 470-481. * Co-first author

4. Lim AS, Wei J, Ngugen TM, Shi H, Su W, Dhungana Y, Palacios, G, Dhungana, Y, Chapman NM, Long, LL, Saravia, J, Vogel, P, Chi H. Lipid signalling enforces Treg cell functional specialization in tumors. Nature. 2021, 591, 306-311

5. Blanco B Daniel, Chapman Nicole, Raynor J, Xu C, Su W, KC Anil, Li W, Lim AS, Schattgen S, Shi H, Risch, I, Sun Y, Dhungana Y, Kim YJ, Wei J, Rankin S, Neale G, Thomas P, Yang K, Chi H. PTEN directs developmental and metabolic reprogramming Signaling for innate-like T cell fate and tissue homeostasis. Nature Cell Biology. 2022, 24, 1642-1654

6. Long L, Wei J, Lim AS, Raynor J, Shi H, Connelly J, Wang H, Guy C, Xie B, Chapman N, Fu G, Wang Y, Huang H, Su W, Saravia J, Risch I, Wang D, Li X, Niu M, Dhungana Y, KC A, Zhou P, Vogel P, Yu Y, Peng M, Pruett-Miller, S, Chi H. CRISPR screens unveil signal hubs for nutrient licensing of T cell immunity. Nature. 2021, 600, 308-313

7. Zhou M, Li W, Li J, Xie L, Wu R, Wang L, Fu S, Su W, Hu J, Li P. Compartmentalization of Enhanced biomolecular interactions for high-throughput drug screening in test tubes. JBC. 2020, 5

8. Zeng H, Yu M, Tan H, Li Y, Su W, Shi H, Dhungana Y, Guy C, Neale G, Cloer C, Peng J, Wang D, Chi H. Discrete roles and bifurcation of PTEN signaling and mTORC1-mediated anabolic metabolism Underlie IL-7-driven B lymphopoiesis. Sci Adv. 2018, 4