Dr. Bao is an Associate Professor of Pediatrics in the Division of Clinic and Experimental Immunology and Infectious Disease. She received her PhD in the Cellular Physiology and Molecular Biophysics from the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston. Dr. Bao continued her education as a J.Kempner scholar for the year 2003-2004 and completed her postdoctoral fellowship in a NIAID-supported T32 training program for emerging and reemerging infectious in UTMB. One of her research interests focuses on biological roles of small non-coding RNAs (sncRNAs), especially the newly discovered sncRNA derived from tRNA, in response to viral infection and environmental stimuli. Biological function studies of sncRNAs are a burgeoning field of interdisciplinary research that crosses the path from chemistry, molecular biology, bioinformatics and computer sciences. The ultimate goal of her sncRNA research is to control viral replication or stress-induced cellular responses by regulating the expression of sncRNAs. Her other research interests include identifying the mechanisms associated with immune evasion of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and human metapneumovirus (hMPV), the two leading causes of lower respiratory tract infection in children, and developing therapeutic molecules and attenuated vaccine candidates to combat or prevent these two viral infections.

The research in my lab focuses on molecular mechanisms underlying the pathogenesis and host immune responses associated with RSV and hMPV infections, the two leading causes of lower respiratory tract infections in infants. We aim to identify antiviral pathways, viral evasion mechanisms, and roles of sncRNAs in RSV/hMPV infection. The ultimate goal of our research is to develop effective preventive and therapeutic strategies against respiratory virus-associated viral replication and inflammation.