People
Principal Investigator
Dr. Gang Chen is an assistant professor at the Marsico Lung Institute and Cystic Fibrosis Research Center. He is also affiliated with the faculty of the Division of Pediatric Pulmonology at the Department of Pediatrics, Cell Biology and Physiology (CBP) Curriculum and the Biological & Biomedical Sciences Program (BBSP), UNC at Chapel Hill. Dr. Chen received his B.S. and M.S degrees both from Yangzhou University, China, his Ph.D. from the Molecular and Developmental Biology Graduate Program of Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, and his postdoctoral training from both Cincinnati Children’s Hospital and Cystic Fibrosis Research Center of UNC at Chapel Hill.
Email: gangchen@email.unc.edu
Postdoctoral Fellows
Dr. Koichi Hasegawa earned his M.D. at Nagoya University and completed a residency in Internal medicine and a fellowship in Pulmonary Medicine in Japanese hospitals. After completing his Ph.D. at Kyoto University, he joined the Chen lab in 2022. His research interests include the mechanisms of lung injury/repair and progenitor function of the airway and alveolar epithelial cells.
Email: khasega@email.unc.edu
Dr. Ling Sun is an awardee of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation postdoc fellowship (2022-2025). He joined the Chen lab as a postdoc in 2020. His focus is on the identification of molecular biology and physiology in respiratory medicine with a particular focus on muco-obstructive lung diseases (MOLDs), including idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), cystic fibrosis (CF), and Job’s Syndrome.
Email: ling_sun@med.unc.edu
Research Assistants
Sam Walls received her B.S. degree in Molecular and Cellular Biology from Appalachian State University and joined the Chen lab as a research assistant in 2023. She works with other lab members on various projects in the lab, all of which have the common goal of further understanding chronic airway inflammatory diseases. Outside of the lab, she enjoys crocheting, reading, and hiking.
Meiqi Zheng received her B.S. degree in Biology and Psychology with a minor in French from UNC Chapel Hill. She is currently working on human lung organoid culture to study the mechanisms of lung injury as well as studying the effects of bacterial and viral infection on transgenic mice. She is also on the premed track. Outside of the lab, she likes to stay home, read, sing, and play the piano.
Student Assistants
Daniela Danilova is an undergraduate at UNC majoring in quantitative biology and minoring in chemistry on the pre-medical track. She assists other lab members with various tasks and is interested in therapeutic targets for people with chronic airway inflammatory diseases. Outside of the lab, she loves doing jiujitsu and hiking.
Emi Gilmer is a junior at UNC majoring in Biology and Chemistry on the pre-veterinary track. She assists with genotyping and phenotyping transgenic mouse models to better understand contributors to muco-obstructive lung diseases. Outside of the lab, she enjoys hiking, dog sitting, and listening to live music.
Kate Merrin is an undergraduate at UNC currently pursuing a B.S. in Biology and a double minor in Chemistry and Data Science. She aids with various tasks around the lab, which aim to contribute solutions and mitigations to muco-obstructive pulmonary diseases. Outside of the lab, she loves to travel, read, and perform in the theatrical arts.