Dr. Zhenyu Cheng Principal Investigator, Associate Professor
Dr. Zhenyu Cheng is an Associate Professor in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology at
Faculty of Medicine, Dalhousie University.
My lab has been focusing on the study of host-bacterial interactions. I finished my undergraduate study
in 2002 at Wuhan University in China. I then went to University of Waterloo in Ontario, Canada to
pursue my graduate studies, under the supervision of Drs. Bernard Glick and Brendan McConkey. After
obtaining my PhD degree in 2010, I joined Dr. Frederick Ausubel’s lab in Boston for my postdoctoral
position that is jointly appointed in the Department of Molecular Biology at Massachusetts General
Hospital (MGH) and the Department of Genetics at Harvard Medical School. During my postdoctoral
training, I received a Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) Postdoctoral
Fellowship and a Banting Postdoctoral Fellowship from the Government of Canada, followed by a
Tosteson Award from MGH. I started this independent research lab at Dalhousie University, Nova Scotia
since 2016 and I am a Cystic Fibrosis Canada Marsha Morton Early Career Investigator.
Renee Raudonis Lab Manager, Research Technician
I am a research technician and lab manager in Dr. Zhenyu Cheng’s lab. I help oversee the
daily operations, training and regulatory compliances of the lab. I also work in the CORES Flow
Cytometry Facility within Dalhousie’s Faculty of Medicine. In Dr. Cheng’s Lab, my research is
currently focused on developing flow cytometry-based methods for screening and analyzing the
persistence mechanisms of the opportunistic pathogen Pseudomonas aeruginosa. I completed
my MSc degree at the University of Alaska Fairbanks where I studied bacterial communities
associated with saxitoxin-producing algae.
Dr. Zhong Sun Research Associate
My project in the Cheng lab focuses on the characterization of the roles of RACK1 in
maintaining cellular homeostasis. Specifically, I am interested in how RACK1 coordinates
protein synthesis and degradation, thereby controlling cell growth and survival under stress
conditions.
I finished my Ph.D. in Cell Biology at the University of Waterloo. For my doctoral thesis under
the supervision of Dr. John Thompson, I have extensively examined the regulatory role of
eukaryotic initiation factor 5A1 in apoptosis using mammalian cell lines.
Yunnuo Shi PhD Student
I received my bachelor’s degree in general biology in 2013 at University of New
Brunswick. I then pursued my master’s degree in Microbiology and Immunology from 2013 to 2016 under the supervision of Dr. Song Lee and Dr. Scott Halperin at Dalhousie University. My research focused on designing and creating antigen-targeting fusion proteins to improve the immunogenicity ofcommensal bacteria-based vaccine vectors. I joined the Cheng Lab in 2017 and start my PhD study in May 2019. My research interest is to investigate the role of RACK1 in regulating proteasome function and its biological significance in different disease models.
Karla Natalia Valenzuela Valderes PhD Candidate
I obtained my bachelor’s degree in Chile followed by a master’s in microbiology and Immunology at Dalhousie. After I graduated, I joined Dr. Cheng’s lab to pursue a PhD. My research interests are to study host-pathogen interactions and how intracellular bacterial pathogens establish their replicative niche. My thesis project aims to understand how RACK1 function impacts the intracellular life cycle of the enteropathogen Shigella flexnerii.
Toka Omar MSc Student
I graduated with an honours in Microbiology and Immunology at Dalhousie University in 2018. I carried
out my honours project in the Cheng lab focusing on protein-protein interaction using the yeast-two
hybrid system. Currently, I am pursuing my masters where I’m interested in the effect of RACK1 on the
immune signalling pathway upon Pseudomonas aeruginosa infection in lung tissue.
Dr. Said Daboor Research Associate
Said M. Daboor, PhD in microbiology. I joined Dr. Zhenyu Cheng’s lab in 2016. Currently my research
is focusing on developing a treatment strategy to eradicate pathogen biofilms. This project target will
provide the physicians with important information to halt the spread of pathogenic bacteria through
their biofilms and dysregulate the antibiotic resistance gene as well. Also, this research involves the
extraction of alginate hydrolytic enzymes from marine bacteria to hydrolyze and break down alginate
polymers, which are the major components of Pseudomonas aeruginosa biofilm.
Zheng Pang PhD Candidate
I am a PhD student in Department of Pathology at Dalhousie University. I studied and
majored in Molecular Biology and Biochemistry for my undergraduate study at Simon Fraser
University in Vancouver, BC. In 2013, I moved to Halifax, NS to pursue my graduate study. After
obtaining a MSc degree at Saint Mary’s University in 2015, I joined Dr. Tong-Jun Lin’s lab at Dalhousie
University for PhD study and transferred to Dr. Zhenyu Cheng’s lab in 2017. My projects mainly focus
on investigation of host defense mechanisms during Pseudomonas aeruginosa lung infection. I am
also interested in cancer research, and carried out a side project on studying the molecular mechanisms
involved in metastatic breast cancer. During my PhD study, I received a Cancer Research Training
Program (CRTP) graduate scholarship from Beatrice Hunter Cancer Research Institute (BHCRI).
Dave Allan
I obtained a Master of Science degree from Dalhousie University, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, in 2002, when I studied the chaperonin of Legionella pneumophila. Working as a research technician, I have spent the last several years at a bio-tech start-up company called Chelation Partners, where I performed antimicrobial testing of proprietary iron chelators against pathogenic bacteria. Having collaborated with Dr. Cheng during that time, I have since joined the Cheng lab in 2019 to do research to elaborate the details of Pseudomonas aeruginosa pathogenesis and host interactions.
Janie Zhang Undergraduate Student
I am research student in the summer and occasional volunteer at the Cheng lab throughout the year. I have been attending Dalhousie University since 2017 and hope to obtain my bachelor's degree in 2021. At the lab I assist in everyday activities and am involved in research regarding immune responses of canola plants infected with Pseudomonas aeruginosa.
Alumni
Elmira Farrashzadeh NSERC URSA Student
Currently in Dalhousie’s Faculty of Dentistry Dental Surgery program
Jamie Cook MSc
Thesis title: Getting to the Root of Infection: Using a Novel Model to Study Innate Immune Responses in Canola
Joining the Haney Lab at the University of British Columbia in the fall to begin his PhD
Jingyi Luo Visiting PhD Student
PhD, Ophthalmologist. Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center, Sun Yat-sen University
Emma Finlayson-Trick Honours Student, Faculty of Medicine Impact Award Recipient
Thesis title: Interaction between RACK1 and the 26S Proteasome
Completed Masters in Science at Dalhousie University, currently attending Medical School at UBC
Anna Dunn-Suen Honours Student, Governor General's Academic All Canadian Commendation
Thesis title: Interplay of Environmental Conditions and Anti Anti-sigma Factor in Pseudomonas
aeruginosa Antibiotic Persistence
Currently doing a Masters in Global Health at McMaster University