Metabolic Stressors and Multi-Organ Vulnerability: Environmental Triggers to Clinical Impact

Biography
Prof. Wei Wu serves as Deputy Dean of the School of International Education, Deputy Director of the Department of International Cooperation and Exchange, and Professor of the Department of Toxicology at Nanjing Medical University, China. He was a guest researcher at the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) between 2017 and 2018. He is the Principal Investigator (PI) of the State Key Laboratory of Reproductive Medicine and Offspring Health. He is also the PI of the Key Laboratory of Modern Toxicology of the Ministry of Education. His research focused on the epigenetic mechanisms underlying transgenerational reproductive and developmental disorders caused by endocrine disrupting chemicals. Prof. Wu has published more than 100 papers in peer-reviewed journals, including EBioMedicine, Human Reproduction, Environment International, Environmental Pollution, Environmental Health, Clinical Epigenetics, and Toxicological Sciences. His H-index is 31. He has edited ten books, collaborated on ten other books, holds 20 patents, and has helped organize three international conferences.

Biography
Dr. Wang is an associate researcher. She is a Committee Member of the Obesity Prevention Branch within the Chinese Student Nutrition and Health Promotion Association, and serves as a Communication Review Expert for the Academic Degrees Committee of the Ministry of Education. Her primary research focus lies in investigating the risk factors and intervention strategies for nutrition-related diseases in children. She has over 50 publications including Hepatology, Journal of Hazardous Materials, and The Lancet Regional Health – West Pacific. Dr. Wang actively contributes to the peer-review process as an anonymous reviewer for more than 10 prominent English-language journals, such as eBioMedicine, Liver International, Hepatology International, and Clinical and Molecular Hepatology. She has successfully secured and led multiple competitive research grants, including projects funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC), the Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu Province, the Jiangsu Overseas Study Scholarship Program, the Cyrus Tang Foundation Young Scholars Program, and the Peking University Young Investigator Cultivation Project. Dr. Wang was awarded the Peking University Health Science Center Teaching Excellence Award in 2025.

Biography
Dr. Jinhui Li is currently an Assistant Professor and Ph.D. advisor at the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC). She received her M.D. from the University of Hong Kong and has held research positions at several prestigious institutions, including Stanford University, Boston University, and the Chinese University of Hong Kong, serving as a postdoctoral fellow or research scientist.
Dr. Li has authored over 50 peer-reviewed articles in leading international journals such as Nature Communications, Environment International, Diabetes, and the Journal of Thoracic Oncology. Her work has been cited more than 1,300 times, with an h-index of 19.
She has led or participated in multiple research projects funded by the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC), and collaborative grants in Hong Kong and the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. Her research focuses on the health effects and prevention strategies related to multi-dimensional environmental exposures—such as air pollution and heavy metals—in connection with cancer and other chronic diseases.

Biography
Dr. Xian Wu is a Research Assistant Professor in the Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology at the Brody School of Medicine, East Carolina University. He earned his PhD in Toxicology from the University of Georgia, where he specialized in neurotoxicity screening using human pluripotent stem cell–derived neurons and astrocytes. Dr. Wu completed postdoctoral training at the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
Dr. Wu's research lab centers on the developmental origins of health and disease, with a focus on how environmental toxicants such as arsenic disrupt striated muscle development—including cardiac and skeletal muscle—through metabolic reprogramming. His current work leverages stem cell–derived organoids and in vitro models to investigate the role of CPT1B-mediated fatty acid oxidation in arsenic-induced toxicity. Additional research interests include chemotherapy-induced cardiotoxicity and the use of epigenetic modulation to promote heart regeneration.
He has authored or coauthored approximately 25 peer-reviewed publications and book chapters and has received several honors, including the Society of Toxicology (SOT) Best Postdoctoral Publication Award, the NIH Fellows Award for Research Excellence, and the Excellence in Research Award from the SOT Stem Cells Specialty Section. Dr. Wu has been an active SOT member since 2014 and currently serves as Vice President of the SOT Stem Cells Specialty Section, after previously holding the role of Secretary/Treasurer (2024–2025). He is also dedicated to mentorship and service, contributing to academic committees and editorial boards.