Biography/Description of Research:

Dr. Mao is widely recognized for his expertise in a range of scientific fields, including chemistry, biochemistry, biomaterials, neurosciences, cancer and nanomedicine. Dr. Mao directs Precision and Quantitative Imaging and Image-Guided Technology Porgram and Laboratory of Functional and Molecular Imaging and Nanomedicine (LFMI&N), which focuses on developing and utilizing cutting-edge functional and molecular imaging technologies to address biological questions and medical problems. Dr. Mao is a Distinguished Investigator of the Academy of Radiological Research, and Charter Member and past chair of the NIH Study Section for Molecular Imaging and Probe Development. He is currently associate editor of Radiology: Imaging Cancer.

The research projects in Dr. Mao's laboratory are focusing on developing and utilizing imaging technologies, especially magnetic resonance methods, to address biological questions and solve medical problems in the areas of cancer and degenerative diseases with strong emphases on translational research and potential clinical applications. Our research currently is involved in the following areas: 1) developing biomarker targeted MRI contrast agents for MRI-based molecular and cellular imaging; 2) developing NMR/MRS based metabolomics to profile cell or tissue metabolites in vivo and ex vivo to investigate the potential metabolite markers for improving the specificity of cancer detection and for early diagnosis of neurodegenerative diseases; 3) developing nanomaterial and nanotechnology for image-guided drug delivery and interventions and in vitro diagnostics; 4) developing clinical applications of advanced MRI technologies for imaging and study of brain functions, brain disorders and diseases, as well as image-guided treatment; 5) developing machine- and deep-learning based automatic image analysis and diagnostics;