Graduate mentoring philosophy: Teach students in accordance with their aptitude.

Postdoc / Scientist

Bio: Dr. Shrameeta Shinde is originally from India, where she completed her undergraduate studies. She then pursued a master's in molecular biology in the USA, followed by a PhD in Microbiology at Miami University. After graduation, she worked as a Research Scientist at Cemvita, developing nature-inspired solutions for sustainability. Currently, she is working under the guidance of Dr. Tang and Dr. Pakrasi. Outside of her research career, she is an avid traveler, passionate about exploring nature, discovering diverse cuisines, and capturing moments through photography. In addition to her scientific endeavors, she is a self-taught mandala and contemporary artist, and she seeks to cultivate spirituality in her life.

Bio: Dr. Binbin Wang is an environmental scientist (PhD from Cornell University) whose research integrates biotechnology with data-driven analysis to tackle sustainability challenges. His work spans nutrient dynamics, metabolism, and algal ecology, microplastics degradation, and the development of biotechnological approaches for environmental remediation. Outside of research, Binbin enjoys playing soccer and running.  

PhD Students

Bio: Yufei Sun (2022~present) joined the Tang lab in 2022. He finished his BS in Chemical Engineering at Purdue University, and MS at Johns Hopkins University. His PhD research interests are metabolic analysis of microbes and also computational modeling. On weekends, he goes hiking, and skiing during winter.

Bio: Eunseo Lee (2023~present) did her BSc in Yonsei University(Bio-convergence major) in Republic of Korea. She joined the Tang Lab in 2023. Her PhD research interest as of now is alternative feedstock study for bio-productions. Her favorite activities are road trips, snowboarding and plating violin.

Bio: Vincent Xu (2024~present) did his BS in Chemical Engineering at Washington University. He became an EECE PhD student in the fall of 2024. His studies focus on bioprocess modeling and AI. He has a particular interest in applying integrative synthetic biology methods to develop sustainable energy options. In his free time, he likes to play basketball, go on hikes, and play viola.

Bio: Charandatta Muddana (2024~present) completed his undergraduate studies in Chemical Engineering at the National Institute of Technology (Warangal, India). His research interests lie in integrating multi-omics data with process modeling and AI to gain an in-depth understanding of bioprocesses. During his leisure time, he enjoys playing sports such as tennis and cricket, as well as reading comic books.

Bio: Ying Yu (2024~present) completed her undergraduate degree from Liverpool University and her master degree at University College London, UK. Her research interest is using synthetic biology to produce high-value chemicals and conducting metabolic analysis. In her free time, she enjoy going hiking with friends.

Bio: Pei-Ti Sun (2025-present) completed her BS in Biotechnology at National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University (Taiwan) and MS in Bioengineering at Imperial College London (UK). Afterwards, she worked as RA in Imperial College and Strain Engineer in a start-up. Her research interests focus on yeast fermentation, applications of synthetic biology and bio-manufacturing. Apart from research, she also enjoys singing, music, reading and traveling. 

Bio: My name is Gauri Desai (2025-present), and I am from India. I earned an undergraduate degree in microbiology from Mumbai University and subsequently pursued a master's degree in marine biotechnology from Goa University, India. After my master's, I joined IIT Bombay, where I worked on bacterial and human metabolomics. I am especially interested in applying metabolomics to understand bacterial metabolism as a whole. In my free time, I enjoy reading books (fiction always!), watching great movies, or binge-watching a series. I also love to try my hand at arts and crafts (I have a calligraphy/art page and lately have been trying crochet). 

Bio: I am Husayn Bootwala, I graduated from IIT Bombay with a B.Tech in Chemical Engineering. During my time at IITB, I worked on research projects involving synthetic biology, algal carbon capture and metabolomics-guided bioprocess optimisation. I hope to continue learning and growing as a researcher in this field. I am a huge fan of animation and I love Pixar movies (Wall-E is my favorite), I also love reading books and listening to pop music.My Linkedin profile - https://www.linkedin.com/in/husayn-bootwala-558728244/

Master Students

Bio:  Millie Savage (2025~present) graduated from Lincoln University. She will pursue an MS degree with thesis. Her studies focus on microbial fermetnations and plastic degradations. 

Bio: Akshaj Jois graduated from Western Governors University. He is interested in AI research, with a focus on developing intelligent systems and computational methods. He is interested in applying these advances to domains such as cellular and metabolic engineering, where AI can help accelerate biological discovery and engineering.

Undergraduate Researcher

Bio: Larissa Ishikawa is an undergraduate student pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering at Washington University through the Dual Degree Program. Before transferring to WashU, she studied Chemistry at Carthage College. In August 2025, she joined the Tang Lab.

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Alumni (G: PhD;         M: Master with Thesis;       P: Postdoc)

G: PhD student; M: MS student;  T: technician; H: summer high school student; R: rotation students  

P: postdoc;  V: visiting scholar; U: summer undergraduate researcher

Note: Several REU students went to graduate schools at top universities

Jacob Rubens (MIT); Yogesh Goyal (Princeton); Madelyn Ball (University of Wisconsin, Madison); Huifeng Yu (Cambridge, UK): Xiaotong Duan (Stanford)