Ji-Xin Cheng

Ji-Xin Cheng attended University of Science and Technology of China (USTC) from 1989 to 1994. From 1994 to 1998, he carried out his PhD study on bond-selective chemistry at USTC. As a graduate student, he worked as a research assistant at Universite Paris-sud (France) on vibrational spectroscopy and the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) on quantum dynamics theory. After postdoctoral training on ultrafast spectroscopy at HKUST, he joined Sunney Xie’s group at Harvard University as a postdoc, where he and others developed CARS microscopy that allows high-speed vibrational imaging of cells and tissues. Cheng joined Purdue University in 2003 as Assistant Professor in Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering and Department of Chemistry, promoted to Associate Professor in 2009 and Full Professor in 2013.

Cheng joined Boston University as the Inaugural Moustakas Chair Professor in Photonics and Optoelectronics in summer 2017. For his pioneering work in chemical imaging, Cheng is a recipient of 2020 Pittsburg Spectroscopy Award. Cheng also received the Ellis R. Lippincon award from Optical Society of America in 2019, the Craver Award from Coblentz Society in 2015. Cheng and his team have been constantly at the most forefront of the field of chemical imaging in innovation, discovery, and clinical translation. Cheng is authored in over 240 peer-reviewed articles with an h-index of 74 (Google Scholar). His research has been supported by over 25 million ($) fund from federal agencies and private foundations including the Keck Foundation. In 2014 He co-founded Vibronix Inc which has the mission of saving lives through medical device innovations. Cheng is a Fellow of Optical Society of America and a Fellow of American Institute of Medicine and Biological Engineering.

Dr. Cheng will be leading a discussion on Vibrational Spectroscopic Imaging to Unveil Hidden Signatures in Living System. Chemical microscopy utilizing fingerprint vibrational spectroscopic signals is able to map the chemical contents temporally and spatially. Such capacity opens a new window to visualize the orchestra of molecules and/or biological structures inside living systems. Because the intrinsic signal is much weaker than fluorescence from a dye, integrated innovations in both instrumentation and data science are needed to enable high-sensitivity, high-resolution chemical imaging of a living system. Cheng and his research team have been dedicated to pushing the boundary of chemical microscopy in the entire spectrum of molecular spectroscopy, discovering molecular signatures in diseases, and translating label-free techniques to clinic for molecule-based precision diagnosis or treatment. In this presentation, Cheng will present innovations and applications to nervous system, including CARS imaging of myelin sheath, label-free imaging of membrane potential, and single cell metabolism.