I am an evolutionary biologist interested in using genomic and bioinformatic tools to study how pathogenic microorganisms – especially eukaryotic pathogens – adapt to the unique environment of their hosts.
Our research focuses on utilising omic tools to explore the microognism evolution and adaptation in nature. We have long-standing interests in fungi, yeast (particularly the genus Saccharomyces), carnivorous plants and their symbiotic microorganisms, as well as other eukaryotic microbes closely related to Asia’s environment. We are particularly interested in applying third-generation sequencing technologies, such as Oxford Nanopore Technologies (ONT), to leverage the advantages of long-read sequencing for quantifying diversity at various timescales (comparative, population and communities), aiming to address ecological and evolutionary questions at the genomic level.
- 自然環境中的微生物族群基因體學與生物地理學 Genomics and Biogeography of Microbial Populations in Natural Environments
- 真菌與酵母菌的基因體演化 Genomic Evolution of Fungi and Yeast
- 食蟲植物與微生物之間的互動與共演化 Interactions and Co-evolution between Carnivorous Plants and Microbes
- 寄生生物的基因組演化與致病機制 Genomic Evolution and Pathogenic Mechanisms of Parasites
2025 - Taiwan-Franco Prize
2024 - 楊祥發院士傑出農業科學年輕學者獎
2023 - 國科會傑出研究獎
2022 - Associate Editor, Yeast
2020 – Associate Editor, Molecular Ecology and Molecular Ecology Resources
2019 - EMBO Global investigator
2005-2010 Imperial College London, UK Ph.D., Bioinformatics and Population Genomics
2004-2005 Imperial College London, UK MS.c., Bioinformatics
2001-2004 Nottingham University, UK, BSc, Biochemistry and Genetics
Job Description
This internship will provide hands-on training in environmental microbiome research, combining field ecology, molecular biology, sequencing technologies, and computational genomics. The intern will learn how natural microbial communities are sampled, processed, sequenced, and analyzed to study yeast diversity, microbial interactions, and genome-level variation across forest environments.
The project is especially suitable for students interested in microbial ecology, evolutionary genomics, environmental sequencing, yeast biology, or bioinformatics. The intern will work as part of an international research environment and will be encouraged to develop practical skills in both wet-lab and dry-lab workflows.
Preferred Intern Educational Level
Advanced undergraduate student, Master’s student, or early-stage PhD student in biology, microbiology, ecology, evolutionary biology, genomics, bioinformatics, or a related field.
Skill sets or Qualities
The ideal candidate should be curious, careful, and motivated to learn interdisciplinary approaches that combine fieldwork, wet-lab experiments, and computational analysis. Basic knowledge of microbiology, molecular biology, ecology, genetics, genomics, or bioinformatics would be beneficial.
Useful technical skills include experience with DNA extraction, PCR, microbial culturing, environmental sampling, sequencing library preparation, Linux command-line environments, R or Python, genome assembly, metagenomic analysis, or microbial taxonomic profiling. Prior experience in all areas is not required, but the candidate should be willing to learn new methods and work carefully with complex environmental samples and large sequencing datasets.
Important personal qualities include reliability, attention to detail, good record-keeping, willingness to work both independently and as part of a team, and an interest in microbial diversity, yeast evolution, and forest ecosystems.