My research started in the areas of obesity, hypertension, and atherosclerosis prevention during and after my MD/MS degree in Tianjin Medical University of China and was followed by the investigation in the association of nutrient deficiency, e.g. selenium, and human diseases including cancer during and after my PhD degree in Kyoto University of Japan. For the recent almost two decades in the U.S., the research of mine has been focus on bioenergetics and breast cancer prevention, defining the cellular and molecular regulations and pathways that control nutrient uptake and energy balance during tumor growth/inhibition, including AMPK-associated energy sensor pathway and metabolic reprogramming, PI3K-Akt-mTOR, cell cycle, apoptotic cell death, angiogenesis, signal transduction and inflammation, along with a variety of strategies in cancer prevention using animal mammary tumorigenic model and clinical intervention trials for breast cancer. My dedication to mechanistic investigations and clinical cancer prevention research is demonstrated by 1) the unique path I have taken to reach my current professional position; 2) my publications in the multiple areas including, but are not limited to: genetics, proteomics, endocrinology, and metabolomics; 3) my successes in the multiple (more than 10) projects that I have been involved as a principle investigator, co-principle investigator, or senior investigator, which were funded by the National Institute of Health (NIH)-National Cancer Institute (NCI), the Department of Defense (DOD), Susan G. Komen Foundation, and the American Institute for Cancer Research (AICR); 4) my active involvement in the peer reviews of manuscripts and grant applications as well as the scientific speech and consultant invited by scientific journals and foundations as well as conferences or institutes and companies not only in the U.S. but in China and Japan; and 5) my international outreach in China (Co-director of International Tea for Health Institute and Affiliated Teaching Professor) and Japan.
These experiences provide the strong foundation from which I have developed a new project in cancer stem cell research. After thirty years involvement (learning, teaching, practicing and researching) in the biomedical field, I realized that the surmounting strategy to enhance the human health and life span by preventing and treating variety of diseases including cancer will be the systemic and complete investigations in stem cell biology.