Welcome to Synthetic Biology and Smart Medical Device Laboratory

Paradigm shifts in biomedical fields often arise from innovations in tools and measurement methods. Our research group is interested in applying interdisciplinary approaches to develop new tools and methods to solve current challenges in life sciences, such as disease diagnostics, medical therapeutics, as well as personalized medicine. Our current research focuses on the integration of micro- and nanotechnology with biology and medicine, and their biomedical applications. Our research philosophy is “Interdisciplinary, Integration and Innovation (I3)”.

We are seeking highly talented and motivated individuals (e.g., postdoc, graduate, and undergraduate) from different disciplinary backgrounds (e.g., biology, chemistry, biomedicine, and engineering (e.g., mechanical, electronic, biomedical). Please see the positions available. We welcome inquiries about positions with a cover letter and CV by contacting Dr. Changchun Liu via email (chaliu@uchc.edu).

Latest Lab News

July 2024: Our research on palm-sized lab-in-a-magnetofluidic tube platform for virus detection has been featured by NIH/NIBIB Science Highlights: "Putting the power of lab-based diagnostic testing in the palm of your hand".

March 2024: Our research on CRISPR-powered keyword search engine in DNA data storage has been featured by UConn Today. Searching for Data in DNA with CRISPR.

March 2024: Jiongyu’s paper entitled “CRISPR-powered quantitative keyword search engine in DNA data storage” has been accepted for publication in Nature Communications. Congratulations!

November 2023: Our research on asymmetric CRISPR assay has been featured by UConn Today. Researchers Improve Efficacy and Efficiency of CRISPR Diagnostic Technology.

November 2023: Jeong’s paper entitled “Asymmetric CRISPR enabling cascade signal amplification for nucleic acid detection by competitive crRNA” has been accepted for publication in Nature Communications. Congratulations!

August 2023: Ziyue Li successfully defended his PhD thesis. Ziyue has accepted an Associate Professor position at the Zhejiang University School of Medicine, China. Congratulations to Ziyue! We wish him the best of luck in his career journey!

 

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Selected Publications

Xiong Ding, Kun Yin, Ziyue Li, Rajesh V. Lalla, Enrique Ballesteros, Maroun M. Sfeir, and Changchun Liu, Ultrasensitive and visual detection of SARS-CoV-2 using all-in-one dual CRISPR-Cas12a (AIOD-CRISPR) assay, Nature Communications, 2020, 11, 4711. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-18575-6.

Jeong Moon and Changchun Liu, Asymmetric CRISPR enabling cascade signal amplification for nucleic acid detection by competitive crRNA, Nature Communications, 2023, 14, 7504. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-023-43389-7.

Ziyue Li, Naoki Uno, Xiong Ding, Lori Avery, David Banach, and Changchun Liu, Bioinspired CRISPR-Mediated Cascade Reaction Biosensor for Molecular Detection of HIV Using a Glucose Meter, ACS Nano, 2023, https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acsnano.2c12754.

Jiongyu Zhang, Ziyue Li, Chong Guo, Xin Guan, Lori Avery, David Banach, and Changchun Liu, Intrinsic RNA Targeting Triggers Indiscriminate DNase Activity of CRISPR-Cas12a, Angewandte Chemie International Edition, 2024, DOI: 10.1002/anie.202403123

Jiongyu Zhang, Chengyu Hou and Changchun Liu, CRISPR-powered quantitative keyword search engine in DNA data storage, Nature Communications, 2024, 15, 2376. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-46767-x

Ziyue Li, Shuo Zhang, Jiongyu Zhang, Lori Avery, David Banach, Hui Zhao, and Changchun Liu, Palm-sized Lab-in-a-Magnetofluidic Tube Platform for Rapid and Sensitive Virus Detection, Advanced Science, 2024, DOI:10.1002/advs.202310066

 

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Contact Us

Professor Changchun Liu

Biomedical Engineering Department

University of Connecticut, UConn Health

263 Farmington Avenue

Farmington, CT 06030, USA

Office:              Room L6083

Phone:             860-679-2565

Email:             chaliu@uchc.edu

Website:          https://smds.engr.uconn.edu/