MISSION
Leading transformative engineering in synthetic biology and genetics to control vector-borne diseases, protect global food security, and shape enduring solutions for a healthier, more sustainable world.
INSPIRATION
We are driven by the conviction that transformative engineering in the life sciences can reshape global health, agriculture, and animal welfare. Our work addresses major societal challenges: eliminating vector-borne diseases that threaten vulnerable populations, protecting global food systems from destructive agricultural pests, and controlling veterinary parasites that endanger livestock economies and food security. By integrating synthetic biology, genome engineering, bioinformatics, and computational modeling, we design scalable, field-deployable biological technologies that translate fundamental discovery into durable, real-world impact. Our goal is to engineer resilient biological systems that suppress mosquito-borne illness, enable sustainable crop protection without ecological harm, and safeguard livestock from devastating parasitic outbreaks. Through interdisciplinary engineering leadership, we seek to establish new paradigms for responsible biotechnology—delivering solutions that strengthen public health, secure food and animal systems, and expand the role of biological engineering in addressing global grand challenges.
VISION / FOCUS
We pioneer transformative engineering innovations in synthetic biology and genome engineering to control disease vectors, suppress agricultural and veterinary pests, and safeguard global health and food systems. By integrating molecular design, computational modeling, and ecological deployment, we develop scalable, field-ready genetic technologies that redefine applied biological engineering. Our work establishes new paradigms for precision genetic biocontrol, delivering measurable societal impact in disease prevention, sustainable agriculture, and livestock protection.
🦟 Vector-borne Disease Control
We design next-generation, species-specific molecular genetic systems to combat mosquitoes and other arthropod vectors that transmit deadly pathogens such as dengue, Zika, chikungunya, malaria, and West Nile virus.
Our pioneering toolkit includes:
CRISPR-based homing gene drives (HGD), Home and Rescue gene drives (HomeR), Maternal Effect Dominant Embryonic Arrest gene drives (MEDEA), Under-dominance Maternal effect Lethal under dominant gene drives (UdMel), Engineered Reciprocal Translocations under dominant gene drives, Synthetic Postzygotic Barriers Exploiting CRISPR-based Incompatibilities for Engineering Species as extreme under dominant gene drives (SPECIES), and self-limiting genetic biocontrol technologies such as Precision-Guided Sterile Insect Technique (pgSIT), Temperature-Inducible pgSIT (TI-pgSIT), Sexing Element Produced by Alternative RNA-Splicing of a Transgenic Observable Reporter (SEPARATOR), and Inherited Female Elimination by Genetically Encoded Nucleases to Interrupt Alleles (Ifegenia).
🌱 Sustainable Agriculture
We engineer advanced genetic systems to control devastating agricultural pests—such as Asian citrus psyllids, Spotted Wing Drosophila, and Mediterranean and Mexican fruit flies—to strengthen global crop protection, sustainability, and food security.
🧬 Synthetic Biology Innovations
Our team pioneers novel genetic sexing technologies including Sex Conversion Induced by CRISPR (SCIC) and Sex-Linked CRISPR Selection (SELECT). We also develop RNA-targeting and CRISPR-based diagnostic platforms such as the Sensitive Enzymatic Nucleic Acid Sequence Reporter (SENSR) and antiviral mechanisms that expand the capabilities of applied genome engineering.
🦠 Host–Pathogen Interactions
We are engineering new biological systems that bridge synthetic biology with public health—creating, for example, Zika- or dengue-neutralizing mosquitoes, for example vRNA Expression Activates Poisonous Effector Ribonuclease (REAPER), and developing engineered human skin microbiota capable of repelling mosquitoes. These efforts translate genetic innovation into real-world, life-saving applications.
🦟 Vector-borne Disease Control
We design next-generation, species-specific molecular genetic systems to combat mosquitoes and other arthropod vectors that transmit deadly pathogens such as dengue, Zika, chikungunya, malaria, and West Nile virus.
Our pioneering toolkit includes:
CRISPR-based homing gene drives (HGD), Home and Rescue gene drives (HomeR), Maternal Effect Dominant Embryonic Arrest gene drives (MEDEA), Under-dominance Maternal effect Lethal under dominant gene drives (UdMel), Engineered Reciprocal Translocations under dominant gene drives, Synthetic Postzygotic Barriers Exploiting CRISPR-based Incompatibilities for Engineering Species as extreme under dominant gene drives (SPECIES), and self-limiting genetic biocontrol technologies such as Precision-Guided Sterile Insect Technique (pgSIT), Temperature-Inducible pgSIT (TI-pgSIT), Sexing Element Produced by Alternative RNA-Splicing of a Transgenic Observable Reporter (SEPARATOR), and Inherited Female Elimination by Genetically Encoded Nucleases to Interrupt Alleles (Ifegenia).
🌱 Sustainable Agriculture
We engineer advanced genetic systems to control devastating agricultural pests—such as Asian citrus psyllids, Spotted Wing Drosophila, and Mediterranean and Mexican fruit flies—to strengthen global crop protection, sustainability, and food security.
🧬 Synthetic Biology Innovations
Our team pioneers novel genetic sexing technologies including Sex Conversion Induced by CRISPR (SCIC) and Sex-Linked CRISPR Selection (SELECT). We also develop RNA-targeting and CRISPR-based diagnostic platforms such as the Sensitive Enzymatic Nucleic Acid Sequence Reporter (SENSR) and antiviral mechanisms that expand the capabilities of applied genome engineering.
🦠 Host–Pathogen Interactions
We are engineering new biological systems that bridge synthetic biology with public health—creating, for example, Zika- or dengue-neutralizing mosquitoes, for example vRNA Expression Activates Poisonous Effector Ribonuclease (REAPER), and developing engineered human skin microbiota capable of repelling mosquitoes. These efforts translate genetic innovation into real-world, life-saving applications.
