Person

Mei, Wenyan

Person ID
ZDB-PERS-011106-3
Email
wmei@illinois.edu
URL
https://vetmed.illinois.edu/mei-lab/
Affiliation
Wenyan Mei Lab
Address
2001 S Lincoln Ave, Urbana, IL
Country
Phone
2172444077
Fax
ORCID ID
0000-0001-5270-7727
Biography and Research Interest
research interests:

Dysregulated interactions between the host and the gut microbiota are now recognized as key contributors to immune, metabolic, and neurological diseases. My long-term research goal is to define the mechanisms that maintain host-microbiota homeostasis and to leverage beneficial gut microbes for disease prevention and therapy. My research program addresses three mechanistically linked questions using integrated in vivo (mouse and zebrafish), ex vivo (intestinal organoids), and in vitro experimental platforms.
1. How is a mutualistic relationship between the host and gut microbiota established during the neonatal period through PTBP1-mediated RNA splicing?

2. How do environmental toxicants disrupt host and gut microbiota homeostasis?

3. How can prebiotics and probiotics be rationally combined to modulate the gut microbiota and treat metabolic and inflammatory diseases?
Publications
Non-Zebrafish Publications
Wang Y, Chembazhi UV, Yee D, Chen J, Ji J, Wang Y, Nguyen KL, Lin P, Ratti A, Hess RA, Qiao H, Ko C, Yang J, Kalsotra A, and Mei W. PTBP1 mediates Sertoli cell actin cytoskeleton organization by regulating alternative splicing of actin regulators. Nucleic Acids Research. 2024; 52(20):12244-12261.

Chembazhi UV, Tung WS, Hwang H, Wang Y, Lalwani A, Nguyen KL, Bangru S, Yee D, Chin K, Yang J, Kalsotra A, Mei W. PTBP1 controls intestinal epithelial regeneration through post-transcriptional regulation of gene expression. Nucleic Acids Research. 2023; 51(5): 2397-2414.

Jin, Z., Liang, F., Yang, J. & Mei, W. hnRNP I regulates neonatal immune adaptation and prevents colitis and colorectal cancer. PLoS genetics. 2017; 13(3):e1006672