VCU Philips Institute of Oral and Craniofacial Molecular Biology

Image of Ping Xu, Ph.D.

Ping Xu, Ph.D.

  • Associate Professor of Oral & Craniofacial Molecular Biology and Microbiology & Immunology
  • Member Scientist, VCU Philips Institute

Office Location: Wood Building, Room 430
P.O. Box 980566
Phone: (804) 827-6264
Fax: (804) 828-0150
E-mail: pxu@vcu.edu

Lab Web Page:
http://www.people.vcu.edu/~pingxu

Research Interests

We are studying oral microbial diseases by integrating advanced sciences including comparative genomics, proteomics, microarray and bioinformatics. Genes will be studied for their biological functions on a genome-wide scale and their interactions will be associated using systems biology approaches.

1. Regulation of Fitness and Virulence in Oral Streptococci

Based on the comparative genomics of S. sanguinis with other streptococci, we identified many transcriptional factors that regulate gene expression. We are studying their regulation and biological effects using microarray and sequencing technology.

2. Oral Microbiota

We are collaborating with clinical researchers to study the oral microbial community and the human microbiome. Microbial genome sequencing will be applied to study the biological diversity of uncultured microorganisms, or metagenomics. We are interested in studying medical microbial diversity in different biological niches.

3. Genetics in Oral Streptococcal Biofilm Formation

We have established an in vitro biofilm screening system for S. sanguinis. We are trying to identify genes affecting biofilm formation using a genome-wide deletion methodology. The association of biofilm genes will be studied using systems biology approaches. The oral microbiota and their association with oral diseases will also be studied.

4. Integrative Analysis of Streptococcal Virulence Genes

Efficient removal of invaded bacterial cells from the bloodstream is critical for control of infective streptococcal diseases. Recent developments in genomics, transcriptomics and proteomics present an opportunity to study streptococcal virulence as a whole using systems biology methods. We utilize bioinformatics tools and comprehensive immunological methods to identify virulence genes in oral streptococci. The virulence genes will be identified in blood assays. Gene interaction data will be obtained by bioinformatics. Critical genes will be identified by topological criteria and validated by their correlation with the experimentally found virulence genes. Furthermore, development of new vaccines against endocarditis by reverse vacccinology will be explored. We have active interactions with other faculty from different schools within VCU to identify virulence genes for drug target development.

Honors

  • 2004: The Honor Professor, Medical College, Zhejiang University
  • 2002: The Honor Professor, Biotechnology College, Zhejiang University
  • 1997: The Second Class National Award of Teaching Achievement Certificate
  • 1997: The Rockefeller Foundation Career Fellowship, University of California, Davis, CA
  • 1994-1996: The Rockefeller Foundation Visiting Scholarship, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN
  • 1994: The Second Class Award of Science and Technology Achievement, Zhejiang Province
  • 1994: First Class Editor Award from the Chinese Science and Technology Press
  • 1994: Second Class Award for Scientific Paper in Zhejiang Province
  • 1993: The Distinguished Teacher Award, Zhejiang University
  • 1987-1989: Scholarship of the Sino-British Joint Education Program, Oxford University, UK
  • 1986: New Star graduate student, Nanjing University

Funded Research

  • NIDCR R01DE018138: Regulation of Fitness and Virulence in Oral Streptococci (PI)
  • AD Williams Fund: Streptococcus sanguinis vaccine discovery

Selected Publications

  1. Das S, Kanamoto T, Ge X, Xu P, Unoki T, Munro CL, Kitten T. Contribution of lipoproteins and lipoprotein processing to endocarditis virulence in Streptococcus sanguinis. J Bacteriol. 2009 Apr 24
  2. Ge X, Kitten T, Chen Z, Lee S, Munro CL and Xu P. Identification of Streptococcus sanguinis genes required for biofilm formation and examination of their role in endocarditis virulence. Infect & Immunity, 2008 Jun;76(6):2551-9.
  3. Xu P, Alves JM, Kitten T, Brown A, Chen Z, Ozaki LS, Manque P, Ge X, Serrano MG, Puiu D, Hendricks S, Wang Y, Chaplin MD, Akan D, Paik S, Peterson DL, Macrina FL, Buck GA. Genome of the opportunistic pathogen Streptococcus sanguinis. J Bacteriol. 2007 Apr;189(8):3166-75.
  4. Xu P, Alves JM, Kitten T, Brown A, Chen Z, Ozaki LS, Manque P, Ge X, Serrano MG, Puiu D, Hendricks S, Wang Y, Chaplin MD, Akan D, Paik S, Peterson DL, Macrina FL, Buck GA. Genome of the opportunistic pathogen Streptococcus sanguinis. J Bacteriol. 2007 Apr;189(8):3166-75.
  5. Xu P, Widmer G, Wang Y, Ozaki LS, Alves JM, Serrano MG, Puiu D, Manque P, Akiyoshi D, Mackey AJ, Pearson WR, Dear PH, Bankier AT, Peterson DL, Abrahamsen MS, Kapur V, Tzipori S, Buck GA. The genome of Cryptosporidium hominis. Nature. 2004 Oct 28;431(7012):1107-12.
  6. Abrahamsen MS, Templeton TJ, Enomoto S, Abrahante JE, Zhu G, Lancto CA, Deng M, Liu C, Widmer G, Tzipori S, Buck GA, Xu P, Bankier AT, Dear PH, Konfortov BA, Spriggs HF, Iyer L, Anantharaman V, Aravind L, Kapur V. Complete genome sequence of the apicomplexan, Cryptosporidium parvum. Science. 2004 Apr 16;304(5669):441-5.