En Cai joined Carnegie Mellon University as an assistant professor of biological sciences in May 2021. She received her Ph.D. in biophysics from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and held postdoctoral appointments there and at the University of California, San Francisco.

Cai’s research focuses on cancer and the human immune system, with a particular concern for how the body’s T cells detect tumor cells so the immune system can know to eliminate them.

Zheng Kuang joined CMU as an assistant professor of biological sciences in May 2021. After receiving his Ph.D. in molecular biology from Johns Hopkins University, Kuang held postdoctoral positions at NYU Langone Health and the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center.

Kuang’s research aims to better understand the human gut microbiota, specifically the molecular basis of interactions between the circadian rhythms and the microbiota in the metabolism and immune system of mammals.