University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign · EngineeringThe RBC Innovation Lab
Hua Wang · Champaign, Illinois
Research Focus
Dr. Hua Wang's lab at the University of Illinois focuses on innovative approaches to modify and tag red blood cells (RBCs) for various biomedical applications. They aim to develop methods that allow for the direct engineering of RBCs in living organisms, which can enhance drug delivery, imaging, and immune responses. By leveraging the natural capabilities of RBCs, the research has the potential to transform how we use these cells in medicine.
red blood cellsdrug deliverymetabolic taggingbiomembranesmolecular imagingclick chemistryglycoengineeringimmunomodulation
Research Aims
3AIM 01Elucidate the mechanisms of metabolic glycan labeling in red blood cells.
AIM 02Explore in vivo conjugation efficiency and retention of chemically tagged RBCs.
AIM 03Demonstrate the potential of the tagging technology for enhanced drug delivery and imaging.
Skills the Lab Values
in vivo experimentationclick chemistrymetabolic labelingcell membrane engineeringanimal modelsmolecular biology techniquesdrug formulationmagnetic resonance imagingglycoprotein analysis
Output against the department
Publications1,613top 1% of dept.4th of 278
this lab
most publishedleast published
Citations60ktop 4% of dept.10th of 278
this lab
most citedleast cited
Career totals from OpenAlex, compared against labs that share a department. A department spans everything from one paper to tens of thousands, so bar heights are on a log scale — otherwise the largest lab would flatten every other bar to a line.