Wentao Li
The research in my laboratory combines biochemistry, genetics, adductomics and computational approaches to investigate effects of epigenetics and spatial genome organization on environmental carcinogen-induced DNA damage formation and repair. Specifically, we use next generation sequencing-based methods to identify the precise locations of DNA damage caused by environmental carcinogens (e.g., UV, cigarette smoke, and mycotoxin) and to measure the repair efficiencies at these locations on a genome-wide scale. We aim to identify the key factors that influence both the induction of DNA damage and the efficiency of damage removal by nucleotide excision repair. Understanding these mechanisms may improve the prevention strategies for environmental carcinogenesis and lead to the development of new tools for diagnosing and treating human cancers.