Dr. Zhongkui Hong is an Associate Professor in the department.
Dr. Zhongkui Hong is an Associate Professor in the department. His research is focused on biomechanics in cardiovascular diseases, and mechanics in biomaterial design and tissue engineering. In his most recent project, funded by the NSF, he and his team study knowledge gaps in cellular mechanical oscillations and propose an innovative approach that seeks to advance efforts to treat and prevent cell migration-relevant diseases such as cardiovascular diseases and cancers. Periodic oscillations exist broadly in animal cell mechanics. These mechanical oscillations of cells are thought to contribute to disease development, such as cardiovascular disease and cancer by triggering cell migration, moving from one location of the body to another.
To elucidate the molecular mechanism of cellular mechanical oscillations and their functions in cell migration, Dr. Hong's team is employing an innovative approach integrating a series of novel experimental approaches and data-driven mathematical models to monitor cellular mechanical oscillations, cytoskeleton dynamics, as well as cell membrane undulation and polarization.