Menghao Cai

  State Key Laboratory of Bioreactor Engineering (SKLBE)

  130 Meilong Road,Shanghai, 200237, China

  Phone: 021-64253306

  Email: cmh022199@ecust.edu.cn

        Dr. Cai holds a B.S. degree in Bioengineering and Ph. D. degree in Biochemical Engineering from East China University of Science and Technology (ECUST). From 2009 to 2010, he worked as a joint Ph.D. student in School of Chemistry in University of Bristol, UK. In 2011, Dr. Cai joined the faculty of School of Biotechnology in ECUST and worked as a postdoc and lecturer until 2014, and then promoted to associate professor in School of Biotechnology in ECUST. He was granted by Shanghai Innovative Research Funding for Postgraduate Student, Yuanzhi Plan in School of Biotechnology, Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities, National Natural Science Foundation of China, National High Technology Research and Development Program, National Major Scientific and Technological Special Project for Significant New Drugs Development.

Dr. Cai has authored or co-authored more than 40 research articles (more than 30 for first or corresponding author), published in high profile journals in applied biotechnology and biochemistry such as Metab Eng, J Biol Chem, Sci rep, J., Biotechnol, Microb Cell Fact, Bioresourc Technol. He also filed more than 14 patents, with six of them already issued. He was also invited as reviewer for some known journals in applied microbiology and biotechnology such as Microb Cell Fact, Appl Microbiol Biotechnol, Biotechnol Lett, FEMS Yeast Res, Appl Biochem Biotechnol, Biochem Eng J. He is committee member for Division of Marine Microbiology of Chinese Society for Microbiology (2016-2021), Division of Marine Biochemistry and Molecular Biology of Chinese Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (2016-2020), Young Committee of China Marine Drug Ph.D. Forum of Division of Marine Drug of Chinese Society for Medical (2015-2019).

Current Research

1. Synthetic biology and metabolic engineering for production of pharmaceuticals: Genetically modify native metabolic networks or reassemble biosynthetic pathway in heterologous chassis cells; Improve titre of pharmaceuticals by static control, biosensor design and dynamic control, and systematic metabolic engineering.

2. Molecular design on novel chassis cells: Clarify transcriptional regulation mechanism of methylotrophic yeast; Reconstruct transcriptional regulation networks to relieve carbon source and precursor repression; Balance biosynthetic pathway and develop high efficient hosts; which are used forbiosynthesis of pharmaceuticals.

3. Fermentation for production of pharmaceuticals: Fungal fermentation for pharmaceuticals covering morphological regulation, metabolic regulation, bioprocess design and optimization, and fermentation scale-up.

Selected Publications

1. Liu Y, Tu X, Xu Q, Bai C, Kong C, Liu Q, Yu J, Peng Q, Zhou X, Zhang Y, Cai M*. Engineered monoculture and co-culture of methylotrophic yeast for de novo production of monacolin J and lovastatin from methanol. Metab Eng. 2017, 45:189-199.

2. Wang X, Wang Q, Wang J, Bai P, Shi L, Shen W, Zhou M, Zhou X, Zhang Y, Cai M*. Mit1 transcription factor mediates methanol signaling and regulates alcohol oxidase 1 promoter in Pichia pastoris. J Biol Chem. 2016, 291:6245-6261.

3. Wang J, Wang X, Shi L, Qi F, Zhang P, Zhang Y, Zhou X*, Song Z*, Cai M*. Methanol-independent protein expression by AOX1 promoter with trans-acting elements engineering and glucose-glycerol-shift induction in Pichia pastoris. Sci Rep. 2017, 7:41850.

4. Xue Y, Kong C, Shen W, Bai C, Ren Y, Zhou X, Zhang Y, Cai M*. Methylotrophic yeast Pichia pastoris as a chassis organism for polyketide synthesis via the full citrinin biosynthetic pathway. J Biotechnol. 2017, 242:64-72.

5. Zhang X, He H, Yin Y, Zhou W, Cai M*, Zhou X, Zhang Y. A light–dark shift strategy derived from light-responded metabolic behaviors for polyketides production in marine fungus Halorosellinia sp.. J Biotechnol. 2016, 221:34-42.

6. Gao L, Cai M*, Shen W, Xiao S, Zhou X, Zhang Y. Engineered fungal polyketide biosynthesis in Pichia pastoris: a potential excellent host for polyketide production. Microb Cell Fact. 2013, 12:77.

7. Yu Z, Cai M*, Hu W, Zhang Y, Zhou J, Zhou X, Zhang Y. A cyclin-like protein, ClgA, regulates development in Aspergillus nidulans. Res Microbiol. 2014, 165:462-467.

8. Zhou W, Cai M*, Zhou J, Jiang T, Zhou J, Wang M, Zhou X*, Zhang Y. Nutrition and bioprocess development for ef?cient biosynthesis of an antitumor compound from marine-derived fungus. J Ind Microbiol Biotechnol. 2013, 40:1131-1142.

9. Davison J, al Fahad A, Cai M, Song Z, Yehia SY, Lazarus CM, Bailey AM, Simpson TJ, Cox RJ. Genetic, molecular, and biochemical basis of fungal tropolone biosynthesis. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2012, 109: 7642-7647.

10. Cai M, Zhou X, Lu J, Fan W, Zhou J, Niu C, Kang L, Sun X, Zhang Y. An integrated control strategy for the fermentation of the marine-derived fungus Aspergillus glaucus for the production of anti-cancer polyketide. Mar Biotechnol. 2012, 14:665-671.

11. Cai M, Zhou X, Lu J, Fan W, Niu C, Zhou J, Sun X, Kang L, Zhang Y. Enhancing aspergiolide A production from a shear-sensitive and easy-foaming marine-derived filamentous fungus Aspergillus glaucus by oxygen carrier addition and impeller combination in a bioreactor. Bioresourc Technol. 2011, 102: 3584-3586.

12. Cai M, Zhou X, Zhou J, Niu C, Kang L, Sun X, Zhang Y. Efficient strategy for enhancing aspergiolide A production by citrate feedings and its effects on sexual development and growth of marine-derived fungus Aspergillus glaucus. Bioresourc Technol. 2010, 101:6059-6068.