PEOPLE
John T. Ngo, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Biomedical Engineering
Research Interests: My students and I develop chemical and biophysical tools to probe, manipulate, and reprogram the processes by which biological macromolecules are produced and organized within cells. We use these tools to gain insight into natural biology and to overcome challenges in engineering therapeutic cells, RNAs, and proteins. Our current projects focus on three interlinked topic areas: (1) the transport and translation of mRNAs into proteins, (2) contact-dependent and mechanically-mediated signaling mechanisms, including Notch signaling and synaptic transmission, and their downstream outcomes, and (3) natural and synthetic signaling regulation via proteolytic control.
About Me: I was born in San Jose, California, to Vietnamese-American refugee parents. I was the first in my family to attend college (UC Santa Barbara) and the first to earn a Ph.D. (2012, Caltech, under the mentorship of David Tirrell). From 2012 to 2015, I trained as a postdoctoral fellow at UC San Diego under Roger Tsien (2008 Nobel Laureate in Chemistry). In 2015, I joined the Department of Biomedical Engineering at Boston University, where I held the University’s Reidy Family Career Development Assistant Professorship from 2016 to 2019. I served as Chair of the International Mammalian Synthetic Biology Workshop (mSBW) in 2024, and I received the ACS Synthetic Biology Young Innovator Award in 2025. Students from my lab have been recognized with multiple honors, including the BME Thesis of the Year Award and the College of Engineering’s Earle and Mildred Bailey Memorial Award, among others
John T. Ngo, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Biomedical Engineering
My students and I develop chemical and biophysical tools to probe, manipulate, and re-program how cells communicate. We then leverage these tools to gain insight into natural biology and overcome roadblocks in developing cell therapies and tissue-engineered systems. Our current efforts are focused on understanding contact-dependent cell signaling mechanisms, including Notch signaling and synaptic transmission, and their downstream outcomes. I was born in San Jose, California, and was the first in my family to go to college. I received a Ph.D. from Caltech in 2012 and was a post-doc at UC San Diego until 2015. In 2024, I Co-Chair of the International Mammalian Synthetic Biology Workshop (mSBW) in Boston, MA. Students from the lab have received several awards and honors, including the BME Thesis of the Year Award and the College of Engineering's Earle and Mildred Bailey Memorial Award, among others.
Alex Marzilli, PhD
Post-Doctoral Fellow, Biomedical Engineering
Alex’s research is focused on developing tools to study and manipulate mRNA in living cells. Alex’s work uses a combination of protein and nucleic acid engineering to create novel post-transcriptional mRNA circuits that are responsive to a variety of biological ques, including small-molecule drug, light, and intracellular antigen levels.
Jeremy Tran
Graduate Student, Biomedical Engineering
Jeremy's research is focused on developing synthetic Notch (SynNotch) systems to program mammalian cells to sense and interpret signals in their environment, such as mechanical force, ECM composition, and pericellular proteolysis.
Chris Kuffner,
Graduate Student, Biomedical Engineering
Chris uses genetic engineering to incorporate new functionality into RNA-protein interaction systems. He is currently applying these systems for high-contrast real-time imaging of single RNA molecules in live cells, where the system's engineered functionality has uncovered new insight into the spatiotemporal dynamics of post-transcriptional phenomena.
Quan Le,
Graduate Student, Biomedical Engineering
Quan's research involves engineering drug-responsive nanobodies for controlling protein activities and signaling pathways, as well as nanobody-based tools for targeted protein degradation and visualization of translational activities in live cells.
Aiden Reilly,
Graduate Student, Biomedical Engineering
Quan's research is focused dually on synthetic mechanobiology and in the development of protease-activiated switches for controlling cell and protein activities.