Hao Zhou

Ph.D. Candidate Email: hz424@cornell.edu

Cornell University Tel.: +1 (607)262-2899

Education
August 2017 – Current: Cornell University
• Ph.D. Candidate: Microbiology (Minor: Computational Biology & Genomics)
• Advisor: Prof. Ilana Brito, Meinig School of Biomedical Engineering
August 2016 – December 2016: Cornell University
• Visiting undergraduate (Advisor: Prof. Anthony Hay, Department of Microbiology)
August 2013 – June 2017: Nankai University
• Bachelor of Engineering: Environmental Engineering (Advisor: Prof. Yi Luo, Department of
Environmental Science & Engineering)

Professional Experience
gRED Intern (Computational) – Microbiome, Cancer Immunology – Genentech (Roche) [Incoming; May. 2022]
Research Assistant – Prof. Ilana Brito’s Lab – Cornell University [Jun. 2018 – Current]
• Develop computational models to predict antibiotic resistance gene transfer.
• Predict host-microbiome protein-protein interactions associated with human diseases.
• Reveal antibiotic-induced stress response in the gut microbiome using metagenomics and
metatranscriptomics.
Teaching Assistant – General Microbiology (BIOM 2900) – Cornell University [Aug. 2019 – Dec. 2019]
• Lead discussions about scientific advances in the microbiology field.
Research Intern – Prof. Manuel Aranda’s Lab – KAUST [Dec. 2016 – Apr. 2017]
• Develop computational pipelines to predict miRNAs and piRNAs in Aiptasia.
Research Intern – Prof. Anthony Hay’s Lab – Cornell University [Aug. 2016 – Dec. 2016]
• Perform bioinformatic analyses on microbial composition in commercial compost samples.
• Investigate curli production on clay-E. coli aggregation-sedimentation.
Summer Research Intern – Prof. Na Wei’s Lab – University of Notre Dame [Jul. 2016 – Aug. 2016]
• Optimize genetically engineered yeast for producing biofuel.
Undergraduate Researcher – Prof. Yi Luo’s Lab – Nankai University [Apr. 2015 – Apr. 2017]
• Investigate the dissemination of antibiotic resistance genes in urban dust.

Publications [# equal contribution]

• Hao Zhou#, Juan F. Beltrán#, Ilana L. Brito. Host-microbiome protein-protein interactions capture
disease-relevant pathways. Genome Biology 23.1 (2022): 1-18. [Link]
• Hao Zhou, Juan F. Beltrán, and Ilana L. Brito. "Functions predict horizontal gene transfer and the
emergence of antibiotic resistance." Science Advances 7, no. 43 (2021): eabj5056. [Link] [Coverage]
• Ana M. Porras, Qiaojuan Shi, Hao Zhou, Rowan Callahan, Gabriella Montenegro-Bethancourt, Noel
Solomons, and Ilana L. Brito. "Geographic differences in gut microbiota composition impact
susceptibility to enteric infection." Cell Reports 36, no. 4 (2021): 109457. [Link]
• Matthew J. Mosquera, Sungwoong Kim, Hao Zhou, Tina T. Jing, Marysol Luna, Jason D. Guss, Pooja
Reddy, Kristine Lai, Cynthia A. Leifer, Ilana L. Brito, Christopher J. Hernandez and Ankur Singh.
"Immunomodulatory nanogels overcome restricted immunity in a murine model of gut microbiome–
mediated metabolic syndrome." Science Advances 5, no. 3 (2019): eaav9788. [Link]
• Bibudha Parasar, Hao Zhou, Xieyue Xiao, Qiaojuan Shi, Ilana L. Brito, and Pamela V. Chang.
"Chemoproteomic Profiling of Gut Microbiota-Associated Bile Salt Hydrolase Activity." ACS central
science (2019). [Link]
 • Haiyan Hu#, Hao Zhou#, Shixiong Zhou, Zhaojun Li, Chaojun Wei, Yong Yu, and Anthony G. Hay.
"Fomesafen impacts bacterial communities and enzyme activities in the rhizosphere." Environmental
Pollution (2019). [Link]
• Nirrit Cohen, Hao Zhou, Anthony G. Hay, Adi Radian. “The effect of curli production on clay-E. coli
aggregation-sedimentation trends.” Colloids and Surfaces B: Biointerfaces (2019). [Link]
• Hao Zhou, Wenjie Gu, Wen Sun, and Anthony G. Hay. "A microbial community snapshot of windrows
from a commercial composting facility." Applied microbiology and biotechnology 102, no. 18 (2018):
8069-8077. [Link]
• Hao Zhou#, Xiaolong Wang#, Zhaohuan Li, Yu Kuang, Daqing Mao, and Yi Luo. "Occurrence and
Distribution of Urban Dust-Associated Bacterial Antibiotic Resistance in Northern China." Environmental
Science & Technology Letters 5, no. 2 (2018): 50-55. [Link]
• Yang Fengxia, Daqing Mao, Hao Zhou, Xiaolong Wang, and Yi Luo. "Propagation of New Delhi Metallo-β-
lactamase Genes (blaNDM-1) from a Wastewater Treatment Plant to Its Receiving River."
Environmental Science & Technology Letters 3, no. 4 (2016): 138-143. [Link]
• Yang Fengxia, Daqing Mao, Hao Zhou, and Yi Luo. "Prevalence and Fate of Carbapenemase Genes in a
Wastewater Treatment Plant in Northern China." PloS one 11, no. 5 (2016): e0156383. [Link]

Honors and Awards

• Hsien Wu and Daisy Yen Wu Scholarship – Cornell University – Feb. 2021
• Cornell Graduate Student Fellowship – Cornell University – Aug. 2017 – May. 2018
• Visiting Student Research Fellowship – King Abdullah University of Science & Technology – Oct.
2016
• Provost's International Research Scholarship – Cornell University – Aug. 2016
• International Summer Undergraduate Research Scholarship – University of Notre Dame – Mar.
2016
• National Undergraduate Training Program for Innovation and Entrepreneurship Fellowship –
Nankai University – Mar. 2015

Public Engagement & Leadership

• Volunteer – Youth Ambassador Program for Minorities - Technology & Education Connecting
Cultures [Jul. 2017]
• Project leader – National Undergraduate Training Program for Innovation and Entrepreneurship –
Nankai University [Apr. 2015 – Apr. 2017]
• Vice president – Youth International Communication Association – Nankai University [Jun. 2015 –
Jul. 2016]
• Volunteer – Cheng Kung-Nankai Service-Learning Project – National Cheng Kung University &
Nankai University [Jul. 2015 – Feb. 2016]

Skills
Language: Mandarin, English
Programing language: Python, R, SQL
Design and animation: AutoCAD, 3ds Max
Relevant courses/certificates: Neural Networks and Deep Learning, Sequence Models, Machine Learning,
Javascript Programming, Data Science with SQL and Tableau, Python for Data Science.

Research Interest
Computational biology; Microbiome; Protein-protein interaction; Antibiotic resistance; Infectious disease;
Artificial intelligence; Graph neural network; Protein structure; Environmental science.
References

Prof. Ilana Brito

Assistant Professor
Mong Family Sesquicentennial Faculty Scholar
Nancy E. and Peter C. Meinig School of Biomedical Engineering
Cornell University
Ithaca, NY 14850, United States
Email: ibrito@cornell.edu

Prof. Iwijn De Vlaminck

Associate Professor
Nancy E. and Peter C. Meinig School of Biomedical Engineering
Cornell University
Ithaca, NY 14850, United States
Email: idevlaminck@gmail.com

Prof. Anthony G. Hay

Associate Professor
Department of Microbiology
Cornell University
Ithaca, NY 14853, United States
Email: agh5@cornell.edu