Welcome to Gu Lab

"I have a MSc in biochemistry and molecular biology (2021) from Southwest University, China, and join IMPRS program as a doctoral student of Dr. Gu's group at MPI-HLR. I am interested in Wolbachia, evolution, epigenetics, and bioinformatics. My Ph.D. studies will work on the relationship between Wolbachia and epigenetic modification using Drosophila melanogaster as a model, which needs to be illustrated by the combination of multi-omics integration research, molecular works, and bioinformatic analysis."

hobby: swimming, travel, badminton, drum sets

 Contact me at: Zhixin.Niu@mpi-bn.mpg.de 

 "My name is He Yi, and I received a Master's degree from Beijing Jiaotong University in China. I began the IMPRS program as a doctoral student in Dr. Gu's group at MPI-HLR in 2022. My research interests are in bioinformatics and epigenetics, with a special focus on the analysis of sequencing data for biological problems. During my studies, I will conduct research on the mechanism of mammal-specific heart regeneration using bioinformatic methods.

I love animals, and my interest outside of the lab include hiking and animal observation. I also enjoy playing strategy computer games."

contact me at: Yi.He@mpi-bn.mpg.de

"I am a PhD student study in Xi'an Jiaotong University, China. My major is surgery of clinical medicine, mainly about molecular mechanism of deubiquitinating enzymes in liver cancer microenvironment. I joined in Dr.Gu’s department as a visiting PhD student in 2024. 

I love taking photos of landscape and portraits of my friends. At the same time, I have many sports hobbies, like swimming, table tennis, badminton and yoga."

Contact me at: huanye.mo@mpi-bn.mpg.de 

 "I joined Dr. Gu’s group as a PhD student in 2024 Spring and obtained my master degree from Beijing University of Technology in China with the major in bio-medical engineering. During my postgraduate study, the research mainly focus on the development of new methods of proteomics based on the mass spectrometer. 

In my spare time, I like swimming and I also love to watch table tennis matches to feel the charm of sports. "

Contact me at: Chang.Liu@mpi-bn.mpg.de

"I'm Fan Yurong, holding an MSc in Microbiology from Huazhong Agricultural University. Currently, I'm a PhD candidate in Dr. Gu's lab. My heart beats for all things about microbes, and my current research revolves around unraveling the symbiotic genetic mechanisms between Drosophila melanogaster and Wolbachia, in which maybe I'll find something valuable to humanity. 

Beyond the lab, I find inspiration in traveling the globe to explore different cultures. I also enjoy music and photography."

  "Hello! I'm Qihao Duan, and I hold a Master's degree from the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, specializing in algorithm and software development. Currently, I am a PhD student in the Gu Lab, focusing on bioinformatics and deep learning for epigenetic data analysis. My research aims to contribute to cancer treatment, no matter how small the impact may be.

In my spare time, I enjoy photography, self-driving trips, camping, and sports such as working out, badminton, and jogging. These activities help me stay balanced and grounded.

  I received my PhD from Boston University's Department of Mathematics and Statistics in May 2024, with a focus on machine learning. In addition to the theoretical aspects, I am also interested in applying machine learning models to solve practical problems in fields such as biology and finance. Joining Dr. Gu’s lab has provided me with invaluable experience in exploring epigenetics from a statistical perspective.

In my spare time, I enjoy traveling to new places, appreciating art, and engaging in various outdoor water sports.

  I am a physician from Fujian Provincial Hospital with a PhD in cardiology. I have been engaged in clinical and scientific research work in cardiovascular medicine and geriatrics. I am deeply passionate about understanding the intricate processes that contribute to aging. During the period of scholar visiting in Dr. Gu's group at MPI-HLR, I will devote myself to investigating the mechanism of aging, and exploring new potential intervention targets for alleviating age-related diseases. 

Outside of my professional life, I enjoy playing the piano, reading, and writing.

I am a university teacher. I graduated from HuaZhong Agricultural University with a  master's degree in Biochemistry and molecular biology and a doctor's degree in computer software and theory from Institute of Software CAS. I am interested in deep learning, bioinformatics. During the one-year visiting scholar program in Dr. Gu's Lab, I will focus on the topic of DNA methylation Large Language Model, use artificial intelligence technology to understand massive amounts of DNA methylation data. 

In my spare time, I enjoy running and other fitness activities, inference type films.

  I graduated from Capital Medical University in Beijing and have been working as a general surgeon at Beijing Tiantan Hospital since then. Both my master's and doctoral degrees are in surgery, which makes laboratory research a significant challenge for me. During my one-year visiting scholar program in Dr. Gu's lab, I aim to deepen my understanding of the mechanisms behind fatty liver disease, liver cirrhosis, and liver cancer, as well as enhance my laboratory skills.

I have three cats at home, and in my spare time, I look forward to exploring Germany in depth.

  "I'm currently in the fifth semester of my bachelor's degree in Medical Biotechnology at 

the Bingen Technical University of Applied Sciences, and before I started studying, I completed a vocational training as a Biological Technical Assistant in 2022. 

By participating in the research work at Dr. Gu's laboratory, I would like to gather 

experience and practical skills in epigenetic research on the development of diseases. 

As I want to focus on immunologic and oncologic research in the future, I intend to do a master's degree in Immunology.

Alongside to my studies, I enjoy doing sports, going outside and reading books.

I'm looking forward to meeting many great people and visiting lots of new places 

during my academic career."

" I am a last-year medical student at Biruni University in Istanbul and am interested in pursuing a Ph.D. degree. After conducting research both in the United States and the United Kingdom, I realized that I want to understand the underlying mechanisms behind cancer better, and by joining Dr. Gu's lab as an Erasmus scholar, I will be working on epigenetics regulation of tumor response to immunotherapy. "

Other than science, I love nature sports, especially cycling and swimming. Exploring new cultures and making friends from all over the world are what define me most!  

Contact me at:  Betuel-Beyza.Guenes@mpi-bn.mpg.de

  " I'm currently doing my Master's degree in Bioinformatics at the Justus Liebig University in Giessen. I'm an intern and work under Gu Lei on epigenetic mechanisms in regulating responses of tumors to immune therapy." 

 In my spare time, I am interested in 3D printing, the thickest fantasy novels I can find, and all the creepy crawlers you can think of.   

Contact me at:  Henri.Hofmann@bio.uni-giessen.de

 "I have a Master’s degree of medicine in Oncology (2021) from Sun Yat-sen University, China. I mainly focused on multi-omics bioinformatics analysis of cancer which originated from clinical issues. I am familiar with the processing of various high-throughput sequencing data (WGS, WES, ctDNA, RNAseq) of cancer and building survival analysis models. My Ph.D. studies will focus on exploring the epigenetic mechanism of cancer and its interplay with response to immune therapy."

I am open to trying new things such as guitar, roller skating, badminton, swimming. When I am under stress, I like to read science fiction, mysteries, watch horror movies or just jump rope like crazy.

 Contact me at:  Tengjia.Jiang@mpi-bn.mpg.de

"I finished my master's studies in Biotechnology at Justus Liebig University in Giessen, currently, I joined Dr Gu's lab at MPI-HLR as an intern in order to get experience related to epigenetics and bioinformatics fields. I am trying to understand the effect of psychological stresses on epigenetics especially in the presence of the reproductive parasite Wolbachia.

In my spare time, I like to read in the open air, walk, write poetry and listen to music. some times I find crafts and decoration work exciting, interestingly, I will start learning to fish soon."

" I am an evolutionary biologist and I am interested in the evolution of life-history, in particular in anything revolving around trade-offs and understanding the genetics unerpinning these correlations. Drosophila melanogaster is one of my favorite model organisms, and in particular I am interested in the symbiont Wolbachia, and the possible evolutionary consequences that this could have on population of D. melanogaster."

My hobbies mainly revolve around visiting new places, reading and the world of medieval texts and literature! I also enjoy trying creative new things, the recent ones being like emboidery and cross-stitching. 

Contact me at: Ilaria.Venturelli@mpi-bn.mpg.de

  I am currently pursuing a Master's degree in Biochemistry as an international student at the University of Oulu in Finland. I have joined Dr. Gu's laboratory as an intern to gain experience in epigenetic research and I will be investigating how the diet of Drosophila melanogaster effects their epigenome.

Outside of the laboratory, I am actively involved in scouting with my scouting troop "Graue Adler". Additionally, I enjoy going to the gym and unwinding with a good television series.

 Hello! I’m XinYu Zhang, an undergraduate at UC Davis majoring in Genetics and Genomics. I am currently enhancing my hands-on skills in Lei Gu’s laboratory, where I engage deeply with the science and further exploration of biological sciences. My academic journey is driven by a passion for discovery and a keen interest in the practical aspects of genetics. 

In my free time, I pursue photography, with a philosophy of capturing moments and making them timeless.

"I'm an aspiring researcher, pursuing masters in Physical Biology of Cells and Cell Interactions at Goethe University, Frankfurt. With my overall background in biomedical sciences, I’ve always been fascinated  to explore basic and translational research in the field of cell biology mainly related to establishment and maintenance of cellular identity. Herein Dr. Gu's research group, I'll be undertaking my master's thesis to investigate the epigenetic regulations of regeneration.

Outside of the lab, I enjoy going on bike rides, hiking, and reading novels. Apart from this, you can find me trying random new interests every week. "