Hui Chen, Ph.D.

Project Description

Diagnosis is a crucial first step in healthcare, essential for connecting patients with appropriate treatments and potential cures. Traditionally, China has placed great importance on diagnosis, often simply referring to medical consultations as "seeing a doctor". Accurate and early diagnosis is particularly critical for addressing life-threatening diseases such as cancer, infectious diseases, neurological disorders, and cardiovascular diseases. Unfortunately, most existing diagnostic tools are primarily designed for well-resourced urban centers and centralized diagnostic laboratories. These facilities often require specialized, expensive equipment and highly trained personnel, making them inaccessible to marginalized groups including residents of rural areas and individuals facing economic or physical challenges. Our laboratory is dedicated to addressing these healthcare disparities. Our long-term goal is to develop accessible, user-friendly, fast, and cost-effective diagnostic tools. These innovations will focus on diseases prevalent among marginalized populations, including cancers, cardiovascular diseases, infectious diseases, and neurological disorders, utilizing the latest advances in micro/nano-technologies, machine learning, synthetic biology, microfluidics, and biomimetics. This approach aims to expand the availability of crucial diagnostic services, ensuring that vulnerable groups have better access to the healthcare they need.

About Dr.Chen

I hope to develop technologies that can truly change patients' lives, with a special emphasis on translational research. I also hope to train the next generation of bioengineers and scientists to work at the forefront of biosensing and bioengineering, expanding the boundaries of this exciting field." Professor Chen is an assistant professor in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at Texas Tech University. Professor Chen received his bachelor's degree in Biochemistry from Shandong University in Jinan, China in 2008 and his master's degree in Chemical Engineering from Tsinghua University in Beijing, China in 2011. He earned his Ph.D. in Chemical Biology from the University of Houston in 2017. After completing postdoctoral training in Clinical Chemistry at the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, and in Translational Medicine at Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, he established his own lab at Texas Tech University in 2024. Dr. Chen's lab is dedicated to developing innovative accessible diagnostic tools by integrating chemistry/biology/medicine, micro- and nanotechnology, and consumer electronics to address unmet clinical challenges, especially targeting diseases like cancer, infectious diseases, cardiovascular and neurological disorders (such as Alzheimer's disease). His work has been recognized by major news outlets including 360Dx, Medical Imaging Week, and AACC News Letter. He has mentored over 30 postdoctoral research fellows and undergraduate and graduate students.

Here's the link for more information about Dr.Chen: Chen Lab Website