Department of Molecular Biosciences and Bioengineering

Agricultural Science 218
1955 East-West Road
Honolulu, HI 96822
Tel: (808) 956-8384
Fax: (808) 956-3542
Email: mbbe@hawaii.edu
Web: ctahr.hawaii.edu/mbbe/

Faculty

*P. Nerurkar, PhD (Chair)—metabolic disorders and alternative medicine, signal transduction and gene regulation, gut microbiome, metabolomics, nanotechnological application in agriculture and health science
*Q. Li, PhD (Graduate Chair)—bioremediation, environmental biotechnology
*J. P. Bingham, PhD—peptide synthesis, marine neurotoxins
*D. Borthakur, PhD—plant-microbe interaction, plant biotechnology
Y. Cho, PhD—fine-tuned gene regulation, sRNA, photosynthesis, climate change, tropical plant genomics
*D. Christopher, PhD—plant biotechnology, plant response to heat stress, protein-protein interactions, gene regulation, protein folding
*Z. Du, PhD—biochemistry and molecular biology
*N. Jiang, PhD—biochemistry and specialized metabolism in plants
*S. Khanal, PhD, PE—bioenergy and bio-based products; waste to energy heat and mass transport in chemically reacting ecosystems, energy conversion, bioremediation
R. Kurasaki, MS, PE—controlled environment agriculture, automation
*G. Presting, PhD—bioinformatics
*G. Roell, PhD—metabolic modeling, machine learning, fermentation optimization, multi-omics analysis
*W-W. Winston Su, PhD—biochemical engineering, cell culture engineering

Cooperating Graduate Faculty

R. Allsopp, PhD—stem cells, regulation of telomerase expressor in cells
M. Arif, PhD—molecular biology; microbial and patholoogical techniques; bioinformatics
J. Awaya, PhD—biodegradation and bioremediation
F. R. Bellinger, PhD—selenoproteins in brain function
M. J. Berry, PhD— selenoproteins, antioxidants, and human diseases
W. A. Boisvert, PhD—cardiovascular research
S. Cao, PhD—natural products therapeutics
M. Carbone, MD, PhD—cancer biology
L. C. Chang PhD—protein Kinase inhibitors, characterization of natural bioactive compounds, traditional culture medicines
S. Chang, PhD—vaccine development, molecular immunology
Y. Deng, PhD—bioinformatics, biomedical informatics, cancer, and genomics.
P. Fei MD, PhD—cancer cell biology, tumor suppression
K. Frank, PhD—Aina-based microbiology, microbial ecology, biogeochemistry, microbial activity, microbial energetics, biogeochemical cycling (sulfur, carbon, iron)
C-E. Ha, PhD—biochemistry, human serum albumin
Y. He, PhD—animal genomics; epigenomics
B. Hernandez, PhD—human papilloma virus, hepatitis virus, viral carcinogenesis, epidemiology
T. Hoang, PhD—molecular microbiology
P. R. Hoffmann, PhD—selenoprotins in asthma and inflammation
J. Hu, PhD—plant virology
N. James, PhD—advanced fluorescence methodologies, spectroscopy and microscopy, protein & synaptic vesicle dynamics; Parkinson’s disease pathogenesis
R. Jha, PhD—animal nutrition, feed evaluation, carbohydrate metabolism, gut physiology and health
S. Jun, PhD—food engineering
J. K. Kaholokula, PhD—Native Hawaiian health
M. Kantar, PhD—intersection between genomics, agriculture and ecology; food systems that are more productive and sustainable
P. Kaufusi, PhD—pathogenesis of West Nile virus
T. Kawamori, MD, PhD—cancer research
V. Khadka, PhD—bioinformatics, biostatistics, data mining, pancancer, cancer pathogenesis and tumor microbiome
Y. S. Kim, PhD—animal biotechnology
L. Le Marchand MD, PhD—epidemiology, cancer research
O. Le Saux, PhD—cell molecular biology, human developments, and developmental pathway
D. Lerner, PhD—organismic and evolutionary biology
Y. Lu, PhD— environmental health
T. Matsui, MD, PhD—cardiovascular research
A. Maunakea, PhD—biomedical science, epigenomics
M. Melzer, PhD—agrosecurity; virology
B. Mishra, PhD—reproductive physiology of domestic animals and poultry, environmental stress on reproduction, transcriptional regulation of egg formation in the laying hens, nutritional programming to increase the reproductive efficiencies.
S. Moisyadi, PhD—mammalian transgenesis
C. Morden, PhD—molecular systematics
M. Muszynski, PhD—molecular mechanisms controlling plant growth and development, plant hormone signaling pathways, maize genetics and genomics, gene function analysis
L. Ndhlovu, PhD—HIV immunology
V. Nerurkar, PhD—molecular virology and epidemiology
R. A. Nichols, PhD—neuropharmacology, neuroscience and physiology
J. Odani, DVM—pathogenesis, clinical/pathologic manifestation and diagnostic testing of animal diseases, especially livestock, poultry and aquaculture species, and of public health or economic importance
J. Panee, PhD—selenoproteins, and natural product as antioxidants
R. Perroy, PhD—environmental impacts, climate change
T. Ray, PhD—wearable sensors, microfluids, additive manufacturing, multiscale materials, nanoparticles/nanomaterials, MEMS/NEMS fabrication
R. Richmond, PhD—invertebrate zoology, conservation biology
A. Seale, PhD—osmoreception, osmoregulation an environmental adaptation of fish; physiology and endocrinology of fish
J. Shepherd, PhD—breast cancer radiomics, body composition methodologies, risk models, 3D optical body scanning, shape and appearance modeling, deep learning, and artificial intelligence, accessible technologies
A. J. Stokes, PhD—biochemistry and physiology of ion channel proteins
S. Sung, PhD—bioremediation
M. Tallquist, MD—cardiovascular biology and birth defects
L. Tao, PhD—regulation of cell division; mechanisms driving formation and functions of mitotic spindle; analysis of mitotic effects of anti-cancer drugs from Hawaiian natural products
M. Tiirikainen, PhD—genotyping and gene expression profiling to cancer
S. Q. Turn, PhD—biomass gasification
S. Verma, PhD—molecular biochemical aspects of viral disease
W. Wang, MD—study of premembrane and envelope proteins of dengue virus, virus-like particles, antibodies responses after natural infection and strategy of new vaccines against dengue virus
H. Yang, PhD—pathogenesis of mesothelioma, a malignancy often related to asbestos exposure, find novel strategies for mesothelioma, early deduction, prevention, and therapy
J. Yang, PhD—molecular biology and animal biotechnology
J. Y. Yew, PhD—neurobiology of chemical communication in Drosophila, biochemistry of lipid pheromones, and development of mass spectrometry methods for lipid analysis
H. Yu, PhD—cancer control, population sciences, cancer epidemiology
J. Yu, PhD—bioengineering, marine bioproduct development

* Graduate Faculty

The Academic Programs

The Department of Molecular Biosciences and Bioengineering (MBBE) features a multidisciplinary faculty having a broad spectrum of interests in biotechnology, molecular biology, biochemistry, and biological engineering. The department’s strong basic and applied research programs and its active, internationally recognized faculty combine to provide students with exciting learning opportunities. The department houses degree-granting programs in biological engineering (BS) and in molecular biosciences and bioengineering (MS and PhD), and molecular biosciences and biotechnology (BS).

Biological Engineering Program

The Biological Engineering Program is accredited by the Engineering Accreditation Commission of ABET, www.abet.org. The mission of the biological engineering program is to provide students a unique opportunity to study the fundamentals of engineering and biology and the application of engineering to biological systems. Example applications in biological engineering include processing of biomass for alternative energy uses or added value, bioreactor design for producing high-valued biologically-based products, bioremediation and biological treatment of wastes, and sensors and control engineering for biological systems. A strong emphasis throughout the program is placed on a systems approach to problem solving.

Undergraduate Study

BS in Biological Engineering

Undergraduates complete a comprehensive curriculum including the basic sciences (biology, chemistry, and physics), engineering mathematics, core engineering (civil, electrical, and mechanical), and fundamental and specialized biological engineering courses. Students receive integrated training in biology and engineering, culminating in a two-semester engineering design sequence.

To fulfill its mission, the BE program has two educational objectives, which describe what graduates are expected to attain within a few years after graduation.

Graduates will practice engineering in professional careers that serve the needs of society in fields such as biotechnology, environmental systems, energy, or agriculture.
Graduates will contribute to their communities by continuing to engage in professional development, ethical decision making, and thoughtful discourse on contemporary issues.

Students are expected to demonstrate accomplishment of the following outcomes at the time of graduation:

An ability to identify, formulate, and solve complex engineering problems by applying principles of engineering, science, and mathematics
An ability to apply engineering design to produce solutions that meet specified needs with consideration of public health, safety, and welfare, as well as global, cultural, social, environmental, and economic factors
An ability to communicate effectively with a range of audiences
An ability to recognize ethical and professional responsibilities in engineering situations and make informed judgments, which must consider the impact of engineering solutions in global, economic, environmental, and societal contexts
An ability to function effectively on a team whose members together provide leadership, create a collaborative and inclusive environment, establish goals, plan tasks, and meet objectives
An ability to develop and conduct appropriate experimentation, analyze and interpret data, and use engineering judgment to draw conclusions
An ability to acquire and apply new knowledge as needed, using appropriate learning strategies.

The bachelor of science in biological engineering is the only undergraduate degree offered by the program. Students benefit from small class size and one-on-one interactions with faculty.

Graduate Study

Graduate Program in Molecular Biosciences and Bioengineering

The Molecular Biosciences and Bioengineering Graduate Program offers both MS and PhD degrees. The MBBE research and graduate training center around understanding the biochemical, nutritional, and molecular-biological processes that underlie growth, development, bioenergy, photosynthesis, and stress, especially as related to tropical agriculture, aquaculture, plant and environmental biotechnology, and bioengineering. Many MBBE graduate students are supervised and supported by cooperating and affiliate graduate faculty from John A. Burns School of Medicine, University of Hawaiʻi Cancer Center, Pacific Biomedical Research Center, Queens Medical Center, Hawaiʻi Agricultural Research Center, Oceanic Institute, Sea Grant College Program, School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology, College of Engineering, and several departments including microbiology, zoology, human nutrition, food and animal sciences, and plant and environmental protection sciences.

Financial Assistance

Most students in the MBBE program are currently supported through teaching assistantships, research assistantships, or fellowships. In addition, tuition is waived for all assistantships and most fellowships. It is recommended that students interested in research assistantships contact faculty working in their area of interest regarding availability. Additional fellowship support is available from the East-West Center, which offers scholarships to Asian, Pacific, and American students for affiliation in one of their programs.

Contact Information

Dr. Qingxiao Li
Graduate Chair, Molecular Biosciences and Bioengineering
University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa
Phone: (808) 956-2011
Fax: (808) 956-3542
Email: mbbegc@hawaii.edu

Programs

Bachelor’s

Biological Engineering, BS

Master’s

Molecular Biosciences and Bioengineering, MS

Doctorate

Molecular Biosciences and Bioengineering, PhD