W. Andy TaoProfessor—Analytical Chemistry and Chemical Biology(Courtesy)
Office: HANS 434
For Professor Tao's individual Home Page click here.
The Tao research group focuses on the development and applications of biological mass spectrometry for functional proteomics. Examining changes in proteins of interest and their modifications within cells under different physiological conditions will offer insights into understanding cellular and molecular mechanisms that cannot currently be obtained through traditional biological studies that usually focus on the detailed analysis of individual biomolecules. Functional proteomics thus holds significant promise for the discovery of diagnostic or prognostic protein markers, for the detection of new therapeutic targets, and as a powerful tool to further our understanding of basic biological processes and mechanisms. The realization of these expectations relies on the development of robust and highly sensitive and specific methods to identify and quantify important proteins and their specific modifications.
Current projects in the Tao Group are:
1. Molecular signaling in cancer cells: phosphoproteomics
2. Identification of biomarkers for early detection of diseases
3. Tracing virus infection pathways
EducationPh.D., Purdue University, 2001; Postdoctoral, Institute for Systems Biology, 2002-2004.
- University Faculty Scholar, 2011-2016
- NSF Career Award, 2007-2012
- ASMS Research Award, 2006
- Damon Runyon Cancer Research Fellowship, 2002-2004
- Xue L, Wang P, Cao P, Zhu JK, Tao WA, Identification of ERK1 Direct Substrates using Stable Isotope Labeled Kinase Assay-Linked Phosphoproteomics. Mol Cell Proteomics 2014, 13(11), 3199-210.
- Wang P, Xue L, Batelli G, Lee S, Hou YJ, Van Oosten MJ, Zhang H, Tao WA, Zhu JK, Quantitative phosphoproteomics identifies SnRK2 protein kinase substrates and reveals the effectors of abscisic acid action. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 2013, 110, 11205-10.
- Xue L, Wang W, Hu L, Iliuk A, Geahlen RL, Tao WA, Sensitive kinase assay linked with phosphoproteomics for identifying kinase substrates. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 2012, 109(15), 5615-20.