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Research Molecular Biologist
USDA ARS Grand Forks Human Nutrition Research Center
Biography:
Dr. Zeng was born and grew up in Xiamen, China. He obtained B.S. and M.S. degrees in Biology from Xiamen University. He attended the University of Wyoming, where he earned a Doctor of Philosophy degree in Molecular Biology in 1996. After graduation, Dr. Zeng spent three and half years as a postdoctoral researcher at the National Institutes of Health (Bethesda, MD) investigating steroid hormone-induced gene expression. Dr. Zeng joined the scientific staff of the USDA-ARS Grand Forks Human Nutrition Research Center (GFHNRC) as a Research Molecular Biologist in November 1999.
Research Interests:
Obesity related colon cancer is a significant global health concern and the impact of specific dietary components on colon cancer risk has been well recognized. Dr. Zeng's main area of research is to determine the molecular mechanisms of cancer-preventive nutrients in foods. This focus presently centers on dietary fiber / diet timing and gut microbiome, and the development of new molecular biomarkers for obesity related colon cancer prevention. Currently, Dr. Zeng is studying the effects of secondary bile acids and short chain fatty acids in the colon: a focus on colonic microbiome, cell proliferation, inflammation, and cancer.