Wang Lab Team

Dr. Charles Wang obtained his MD and MPH from the Tongji Medical University (now Huazhong University of Science & Technology), Wuhan, China and his PhD in toxicology from the University of Washington, Seattle WA.  He then completed a postdoctoral fellowship in biochip and molecular cancer biology at the FDA’s National Center for Toxicological Research (NCTR)/Oakridge Institute for Scientific Education. Dr. Wang is the founding director of the LLU Center for Genomics which was partially funded by the NIH Office of Research Infrastructure Programs (ORIP). Dr. Wang lab’s long-term research interests are to investigate the genomic and epigenomic mechanisms of diseases and health by exploiting the cutting-edge innovative omics technologies and bioinformatic tools.

Adriana Lopez is the administrative secretary at the Loma Linda University School of Medicine, Center for Genomics. She received her BA degree in communications from California State University Fullerton. Adriana joined the Center for Genomics in 2023. Her professional experience includes work as an administrative assistant in the Quality Department at Loma Linda University Children’s Hospital.  Adriana’s responsibilities include tracking finances, purchasing necessary items for experiments, and scheduling meetings. In her free time, she enjoys reading, attending concerts, and local art events.

Dr. Zhong (John) Chen received his PhD degree in plant molecular biology from the Chinese Academy of Sciences and a bachelor’s degree in microbiology from the Shandong University in China. Dr. Chen completed a postdoctoral fellowship at UC-Riverside. Dr. Chen joined the LLU Center for Genomics and Wang lab in January 2017. Dr. Chen has broad training in molecular biology and biochemistry. His current research focuses on genomics and epigenomics using animal models. Dr. Chen has more than 20 years of experience on DNA and RNA sample handling, many years of hand-on experience in NGS library constructions, including RNA-seq, ATAC-seq, WGS, WGBS, single-cell RNA-seq, snATAC-seq, spatial genomics, etc. Dr. Chen is also responsible for laboratory equipment maintenance, sequencing instrument operations, and laboratory management. More recently, Dr. Zhong Chen has built up extensive experience in NGS data analysis and visualization.

Dr. Wanqiu Chen received her PhD degree in neuroscience from Loma Linda University, and she then completed a postdoctoral fellowship at the UCSF.  Dr. Wanqiiu Chen joined the LLU Center for Genomics and Wang lab in July 2017. Her research interest is to understand the impact of adverse intrauterine environmental exposure on brain development, and how the induced epigenetic dysregulation contributes to neurodevelopmental disorders. Dr. Wanqiu Chen has a broad background in neuroscience and neurological disorders. She has tremendous expertise in multi-omics data generation and bioinformatics data analyses including RNA-seq, ATAC-seq, RRBS methylation, single-cell RNA-seq, snATAC-seq, and spatial genomics.

Pingyu Zeng is a Research Assistant at the Center for Genomics at Loma Linda University School of Medicine. Pingyu joined the Center for Genomics and Wang lab in 2024. She obtained her MD from Xiangya School of Medicine, Changsha, China,  and her master's degree in biology from Purdue University, Indiana, USA.  Dr. Zeng has many years of laboratory research experience before joining Wang lab. In the Wang lab, she provides laboratory technical supports in several aspects including RNAscope and animal related experiments. She also helps with general laboratory managements and the orders on reagents and supplies.  In her free time, Pingyu likes reading, hiking, and baking.

Jingting Chen Postdoc

Jingting received his PhD in Biochemistry from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in May 2026. Since 2022, Jingting had studied drug-induced molecular and genomic adaptation in cancers using imaging-guided multi-omics. Jingting joined the LLU Center for Genomics and Wang lab as a post-doctoral fellow in August 2026. Continuing his interests in genome plasticity, he is passionate about understanding how premature substance use disrupts epigenomic regulation in the brain and contributes to disease susceptibility. For his post-doctoral training, Jingting aims to integrate his diverse background with innovative omics technologies and bioinformatic tools. Outside of lab, Jingting is an avid nature lover and cook. He loves hiking, wildlife, art, and good food in general.

Dr. Xue Pan received her PhD degree in Plant Sciences from the University of Arizona, where her research focused on computational biology, bioinformatics, and gene regulatory networks associated with seed and endosperm development. She joined the LLU Center for Genomics and Wang lab in April 2025 as a postdoctoral fellow. Her current research focuses on understanding brain development and the molecular and epigenetic effects of environmental exposures using integrative multi-omics approaches. Dr. Pan has broad experience in bioinformatics and computational genomics, with expertise in bulk and single-cell RNA-seq, ATAC-seq, whole-genome DNA methylation sequencing, single-cell multiome, and spatial transcriptomics. She is experienced in R, Python, Linux-based bioinformatics workflows, statistical genomics, data visualization, and the development and implementation of reproducible computational pipelines for large-scale sequencing data analysis.

Josh Lee is an MD/PhD student at Loma Linda University School of Medicine. Josh has completed his first two-year medical training on basic sciences and he is just starting his PhD graduate program at the Department of Basic Sciences at Loma Linda University School of Medicine.  After the completion of his PhD degree, Josh is expected to go back to complete his MD training on the clinical sciences. With previous research experience in retrotransposons, Josh joined Dr. Wang's lab in August 2024 to begin the PhD part of his program. He is interested in exploring how epigenetic mechanisms influence disease and health outcomes. Future goals include bridging the gap between genomics/bioinformatics and clinical practice and advancing research in personalized medicine. Outside of academics, Josh enjoys going to the gym, playing soccer, and cooking.