The Chiang Lab - Create. Innovate. Discover.
Who We Are
The Chiang Laboratory, directed by Dr. Austin W.T. Chiang, is part of the Immunology Center of Georgia at Augusta University. Our lab is dedicated to advancing the frontiers of bioinformatics, AI/ML, and systems immunology, with a strong emphasis on translational research.
Jump to: About Dr. Chiang What We StudyResearch TeamCurrent Research InterestsPublications
About Dr. Chiang
Austin W.T. Chiang, PhD
Assistant Professor
Immunology Center of Georgia
Dr. Chiang is a computational biologist with expertise spanning biomedical informatics, multi-omics integration, and systems immunology.
He received his Ph.D.from National Yang-Ming University in Biomedical Informatics and Systems Biology, and completed postdoctoral training at Academia Sinica and the University of California, San Diego. Before joining Augusta University in 2023, he served as an Assistant Project Scientist at UC San Diego.
Over the course of his career, Dr. Chiang has authored more than 50 scientific manuscripts, filed six patents, and collaborated widely with international leaders in immunology, systems biology, and biotechnology.
His research bridges fundamental discovery science with applied biomedical innovation, particularly in the areas of immune regulation, therapeutic protein engineering, and computational drug discovery.
What We Study
The overarching mission of our lab is to understand how the immune system functions across different diseases and to leverage computational and experimental strategies for new therapeutic insights. We combine single-cell multi-omics, AI-based predictive modeling, and systems biology frameworks to investigate immune regulation, disease pathogenesis, and biomanufacturing.
Our research focuses on:
- Cardiovascular Immunology: Dissecting how immune tolerance breaks down in atherosclerosis and coronary artery disease, and identifying immune subsets that drive chronic vascular inflammation.
- Vaccine and Infection Biology: Investigating mechanisms of Staphylococcus aureus-mediated vaccine interference and identifying new pathways for effective vaccine development.
- Allergy and Autoimmunity: Studying eosinophilic esophagitis, systemic lupus erythematosus, and sarcoidosis to define molecular drivers of disease progression and therapeutic resistance.
- AI in Drug Discovery: Using advanced machine learning to develop predictive models for therapeutic design, early diagnostics, and vaccine strategies.
- Biomanufacturing and Glycobiology: Engineering mammalian cells and glycosylation pathways to improve therapeutic protein production and quality.
Research Team
The Chiang Lab is a multidisciplinary and collaborative environment that blends computational biology with experimental immunology.
- Principal Investigator:
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- Dr. Austin W.T. Chiang – Assistant Professor, Immunology Center of Georgia, Augusta University.
- Postdoctoral Fellows: Conducting advanced research in T cell biology and single cell multi-omics integration.
- Graduate Students and Trainees: Pursuing projects in systems immunology, bioinformatics pipeline development, and human immunological disease modeling.
- Research Staff and Collaborators: Supporting immunological data analysis, big data analysis, and biomanufacturing initiatives.
We foster an environment of innovation, mentorship, and collaboration, and maintain active partnerships with researchers across the United States and internationally.
Current Research Interests
Immune Regulation in Cardiovascular Disease
- Single-cell analysis of T cell subsets in coronary artery disease.
- Mechanistic studies of immune tolerance and vascular inflammation.
Vaccine Failure and Pathogen Immunity
- Elucidating S. aureus-driven pathways that impair vaccine efficacy.
- Identifying molecular targets for next-generation vaccine design for human immunological diseases.
Allergic and Autoimmune Disorders
- Molecular profiling of human immunological diseases to uncover diagnostic biomarkers and therapeutic targets.
- driving chronic immune activation.
Artificial Intelligence for Drug Discovery
- Development of computational classifiers and predictive models for complex diseases such as CVD and cancer.
- AI-driven analysis of transcriptomics, lipidomics, and glycomics datasets to accelerate drug discovery.
Systems Biology of Biomanufacturing
- Engineering Chinese Hamster Ovary (CHO) cells for higher-yield, higher-quality therapeutic proteins.
- Systems-level analysis of glycosylation and secretory pathways for improved protein therapeutics.
Publications
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Glycoengineering of the hepatitis C virus E2 glycoprotein improves biochemical properties and enhances immunogenicityKulakova, L., Li, K. H., Chiang, A. W. T., Schwoerer, M. P., Suzuki, S., Schoffelen, S., Elkholy, K. H., Chao, K. L., Shahid, S., Kumar, B., Murray, N. B., Archer-Hartmann, S., Azadi, P., Voldborg, B. G., Marin, A., Mariuzza, R. A., Andrianov, A. K., Ploss, A., Lewis, N. E. & Toth, E. A. & 1 others, , Dec 2025, In: npj Vaccines. 10, 1, 121.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review |
Automated denoising of CITE-seq data with ThresholdROliaeimotlagh, M., Kumar, S., Taraskin, A., Armstrong Suthahar, S. S., Suryawanshi, V., Chiang, A. W. T. & Ley, K., Jul 21 2025, In: Cell Reports Methods. 5, 7, 101088.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review |
Loss of effector Treg signature in APOB-reactive CD4+ T cells in patients with coronary artery diseaseRoy, P., Bellapu, A., Suthahar, S. S. A., Oliaeimotlagh, M., Lyu, Q., Parashar, S., Makings, J., Wu, R., Kumar, S., Mehta, M., Chiang, A. W. T., Sette, A., McNamara, C. A. & Ley, K., Jul 2025, In: Nature Cardiovascular Research. 4, 7, p. 841-856 16 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review |
Eosinophilic esophagitis drives tissue fibroblast regenerative programs toward pathologic dysfunctionJumabay, M., Abud, E. M., Okamoto, K., Dutta, P., Chiang, A. W. T., Li, H., Manresa, M. C., Zhu, Y. P., Frederick, D., Kurten, R., Croker, B., Lewis, N. E., Kennedy, J. L., Dohil, R., Croft, M., Ay, F., Wechsler, J. B. & Aceves, S. S., Apr 2025, In: Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology. 155, 4, p. 1333-1345 13 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review |
Pathobiont-driven antibody sialylation through IL-10 undermines vaccinationTsai, C. M., Hajam, I. A., Caldera, J. R., Chiang, A. W. T., Gonzalez, C., Du, X., Choudhruy, B., Li, H., Suzuki, E., Askarian, F., Ty’Tianna, C., Lin, B., Wierzbicki, I. H., Riestra, A. M., Conrad, D. J., Gonzalez, D. J., Nizet, V., Lewis, N. E. & Liu, G. Y., Dec 16 2024, In: Journal of Clinical Investigation. 134, 24, e179563.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review |
The human milk oligosaccharide 3′sialyllactose reduces low-grade inflammation and atherosclerosis development in micePessentheiner, A. R., Spann, N. J., Autran, C. A., Oh, T. G., Grunddal, K. V., Coker, J. K. C., Painter, C. D., Ramms, B., Chiang, A. W. T., Wang, C. Y., Hsiao, J., Wang, Y., Quach, A., Booshehri, L. M., Hammond, A., Tognaccini, C., Latasiewicz, J., Willemsen, L., Zengler, K. & de Winther, M. P. J. & 13 others, , Nov 8 2024, In: JCI Insight. 9, 21, e181329.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review |
Boltzmann Model Predicts Glycan Structures from Lectin BindingYom, A., Chiang, A. & Lewis, N. E., May 28 2024, In: Analytical Chemistry. 96, 21, p. 8332-8341 10 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review |
LipidSIM: Inferring mechanistic lipid biosynthesis perturbations from lipidomics with a flexible, low-parameter, Markov modeling frameworkLiang, C., Murray, S., Li, Y., Lee, R., Low, A., Sasaki, S., Chiang, A. W. T., Lin, W. J., Mathews, J., Barnes, W. & Lewis, N. E., Mar 2024, In: Metabolic Engineering. 82, p. 110-122 13 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review |
Mechanotransduction-induced interplay between phospholamban and yes-activated protein induces smooth muscle cell hypertrophyRawson, R., Duong, L., Tkachenko, E., Chiang, A. W. T., Okamoto, K., Dohil, R., Lewis, N. E., Kurten, R., Abud, E. M. & Aceves, S. S., 2024, (Accepted/In press) In: Mucosal Immunology. 17, 3, p. 315-322 8 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review |
T-Cell Clonality, Functional Changes, and Clinical Response after Dupilumab in Atopic Dermatitis and Asthma PatientsDilley, M., Loop, L., Croker, B., Aceves, S., Lewis, N., Zhu, Y., Lee, J., Shamie, I., Chiang, A., Tambay, A. & Geng, B., Feb 2023, In: Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review |
Non-protective immune imprint underlies failure of Staphylococcus aureus IsdB vaccineTsai, C.-M., Caldera, J. R., Hajam, I. A., Chiang, A. W. T., Tsai, C.-H., Li, H., Díez, M. L., Gonzalez, C., Trieu, D., Martins, G. A., Underhill, D. M., Arditi, M., Lewis, N. E. & Liu, G. Y., Aug 2022, In: Cell Host and Microbe.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review |
Elucidating Human Milk Oligosaccharide biosynthetic genes through network-based multi-omics integrationKellman, B. P., Richelle, A., Yang, J.-Y., Chapla, D., Chiang, A. W. T., Najera, J. A., Liang, C., Fürst, A., Bao, B., Koga, N., Mohammad, M., Bruntse, A. B., Haymond, M. W., Moremen, K., Bode, L. & Lewis, N. E., May 4 2022, In: Nature communications.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review |
Author Correction: Genome-wide screens uncover KDM2B as a modifier of protein binding to heparan sulfate (Nature Chemical Biology, (2021), 17, 6, (684-692), 10.1038/s41589-021-00776-9)Weiss, R. J., Spahn, P. N., Chiang, A. W. T., Liu, Q., Li, J., Hamill, K. M., Rother, S., Clausen, T. M., Hoeksema, M. A., Timm, B. M., Godula, K., Glass, C. K., Tor, Y., Gordts, P. L. S. M., Lewis, N. E. & Esko, J. D., May 2022, In: Nature Chemical Biology. 18, 5, p. 575 1 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Comment/debate › peer-review |
Esophageal Fibroblasts are the Players in the Interferon Response in Eosinophilic EsophagitisWu, A., Nhu, Q., Chiang, A., Manresa, M., Kurten, R., Lewis, N. & Aceves, S., Feb 2022, In: Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review |
S100A4 Levels in Pediatric Eosinophilic Esophagitis CohortBabbel, J., Dong, S., Lewis, N., Mo, J., Faulkner, C., Chiang, A., Hsieh, L., Aceves, S. & Kurten, R., Feb 2022, In: Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review |
LIGHT controls distinct homeostatic and inflammatory gene expression profiles in esophageal fibroblasts via differential HVEM and LTβR-mediated mechanismsManresa, M. C., Wu, A., Nhu, Q. M., Chiang, A. W. T., Okamoto, K., Miki, H., Kurten, R., Pham, E., Duong, L. D., Lewis, N. E., Akuthota, P., Croft, M. & Aceves, S. S., Feb 2022, In: Mucosal Immunology.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review |
Systems glycobiology for discovering drug targets, biomarkers, and rational designs for glyco-immunotherapyChiang, A., Dec 2021, In: Journal of Biomedical Science.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review |
Correcting for sparsity and interdependence in glycomics by accounting for glycan biosynthesisBao, B., Kellman, B., Chiang, A. W. T., Zhang, Y., Sorrentino, J., York, A. K., Mohammad, M., Haymond, M. W., Bode, L. & Lewis, N. E., Aug 17 2021, In: Nature communications.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review |
The human milk oligosaccharide 3’sialyllactose promotes inflammation resolution and reduces atherosclerosis development.Pessentheiner, A., Spann, N., Collins, C., Ramms, B., Chiang, A., Wang, Y., Quach, A., Booshehri, L., Hammond, A., Tognaccini, C., Latasiewicz, J., Witztum, J. L., Hoffman, H., Lewis, N., Glass, C., Bode, L. & Gordts, P., Aug 2021, In: Atherosclerosis.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review |
A Highly Accurate Ensemble Classifier for the Molecular Diagnosis of ASD at Ages 1 to 4 YearsChiang, A., Jul 9 2021Research output: Other contribution |
Optimal balancing of clinical factors in large scale clinical RNA-Seq studiesChiang, A., Jul 1 2021Research output: Other contribution |
Transfer learning improves outcome predictions for ASD from gene expression in bloodChiang, A., Jun 29 2021Research output: Other contribution |
Model-based assessment of mammalian cell metabolic functionalities using omics dataChiang, A., Jun 2021, In: Cell Reports Methods.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review |
Dysregulation of the secretory pathway connects Alzheimer’s disease genetics to aggregate formationChiang, A., Jun 2021, In: Cell Systems.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review |
Genome wide analysis of heparan sulfate assemblyEsko, J., Weiss, R., Spahn, P., Chiang, A., Liu, Q., Li, J., Hamill, K., Rother, S., Clausen, T., Hoeksema, M., Timm, B., Godula, K., Glass, C., Tor, Y., Gordts, P. & Lewis, N., May 2021, In: FASEB Journal.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review |
Type 2 Immunity and Age Modify Gene Expression of Coronavirus-induced Disease 2019 Receptors in Eosinophilic Gastrointestinal DisordersChiang, A., May 1 2021, In: Journal of Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition. 72, 5, p. 718-722 5 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review |
Genome-wide screens uncover KDM2B as a modifier of protein binding to heparan sulfate.Chiang, A., Apr 12 2021, In: Nature Chemical Biology.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review |
The Human Milk Oligosaccharide 3’Sialyllactose Promotes Inflammation Resolution and Reduces Atherosclerosis Development in MicePessentheiner, A. R., Spann, N. J., Autran, C. A., Ramms, B., Chiang, A. W. T., Grunddal, K. V., Wang, Y., Quach, A., Booshehri, L. M., Hammond, A., Tognaccini, C., Latasiewicz, J., Witztum, J. L., Hoffman, H. M., Lewis, N. E., Glass, C. K., Bode, L. & Gordts, P. L. S. M., Mar 20 2021Research output: Other contribution |
A Unique Esophageal Extracellular Matrix Proteome Alters Normal Fibroblast Function in Severe Eosinophilic Esophagitis.Chiang, A., Feb 5 2021, In: The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review |
Increased Production of LIGHT by T Cells in Eosinophilic Esophagitis Promotes Differentiation of Esophageal Fibroblasts Toward an Inflammatory PhenotypeChiang, A., Nov 2020, In: Gastroenterology.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review |
A Markov model of glycosylation elucidates isozyme specificity and glycosyltransferase interactions for glycoengineeringChiang, A., Nov 2020, In: Current Research in Biotechnology.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review |
Elucidating Human Milk Oligosaccharide biosynthetic genes through network-based multiomics integrationChiang, A., Sep 3 2020Research output: Other contribution |
Autism genetics perturb prenatal neurodevelopment through a hierarchy of broadly-expressed and brain-specific genesChiang, A., May 26 2020Research output: Other contribution |
What does your cell really do? Model-based assessment of mammalian cells metabolic functionalities using omics dataChiang, A., Apr 28 2020Research output: Other contribution |
Elucidate Glycosyltransferase Specificities And Interactions for Rational GlycoengineeringLiang, C., Chiang, A. W. T., Hansen, A. H., Arnsdorf, J., Schoffelen, S., Sorrentino, J. T., Kellman, B. P., Bao, B., Voldborg, B. G. & Lewis, N. E., Apr 2020, In: FASEB Journal.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review |
Multiplex secretome engineering enhances recombinant protein production and purityKol, S., Ley, D., Wulff, T., Decker, M., Arnsdorf, J., Gutierrez, J., Chiang, A., Pedersen, L., Kildegaard, H., Lee, G. & Lewis, N., 2020, In: Nature communications.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review |
ZNF263 is a transcriptional regulator of heparin and heparan sulfate biosynthesisWeiss, R. J., Spahn, P. N., Toledo, A. G., Chiang, A. W. T., Kellman, B. P., Li, J., Benner, C., Glass, C. K., Gordts, P. L. S. M., Lewis, N. E. & Esko, J. D., 2020, In: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review |
A consensus-based and readable extension of Linear Code for Reaction Rules (LiCoRR)Kellman, B. P., Zhang, Y., Logomasini, E., Meinhardt, E., Chiang, A. W. T., Sorrentino, J. T., Liang, C., Bao, B., Zhou, Y., Akase, S., Sogabe, I., Kouka, T., Wilson, I. B. H., Campbell, M. P., Neelamegham, S., Krambeck, F. J., Aoki-Kinoshita, K. F. & Lewis, N. E., 2020, In: Beilstein Journal of Organic Chemistry.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review |
Correcting for sparsity and non-independence in glycomic data through a systems biology frameworkChiang, A., Jul 5 2019Research output: Other contribution |
Combating viral contaminants in CHO cells by engineering innate immunityChiang, A. W. T., Li, S., Kellman, B. P., Chattopadhyay, G., Zhang, Y., Kuo, C.-C., Gutierrez, J. M., Ghazi, F., Schmeisser, H., Ménard, P., Bjørn, S. P., Voldborg, B. G., Rosenberg, A. S., Puig, M. & Lewis, N. E., 2019, In: Scientific reports.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review |