Plenary

Tae Hyun Hwang, Ph.D., serves as the Endowed Chair in the Department of Artificial Intelligence and Informatics, Cancer Biology and Immunology at the Mayo Clinic, focusing on AI driven cancer research to ultimately deliver precision oncology care. He leads the AI in Oncology program, dedicated to harnessing AI to enhance cancer diagnosis, treatment, therapeutic development and patient care. As a co-founder of Kure.ai Therapeutics, Dr. Hwang is at the forefront of developing innovative therapeutic targets, biomarkers, and CAR-T cell products for stomach cancer. His work, accessible at HwangLab.org, is at the intersection of AI and oncology, aiming to revolutionize cancer care through cutting-edge research and technology. Dr. Hwang's contributions have positioned him as a key figure in the application of AI in cancer research, showcasing his commitment to improving patient outcomes through innovation.

I was born and raised in Korea until moving to California at sixteen due to my father's position. I got both of my degrees, a bachelor's and a doctorate, at UC Berkeley. My scientific training areas include molecular, cell biology, biochemistry, minor in music and biophysics through my graduate school and postdoctoral years. I started my independent position at the University of Illinois Bioengineering Department in 2009, moved to Johns Hopkins Biophysics in 2015, and recently relocated to Boston Children's Hospital at Harvard Medical School. My research interest involves developing and applying single molecule approaches to acquire a quantitative understanding of biology and to find ways to improve human medicine. The current directions of our research include investigations of G-quadruplex mediated gene expression, telomere regulation with a focus on oxidative damage, and molecular mechanisms underlying liquid-liquid phase separation implicated in neurodegenerative diseases, ALS/FTLD. We employ biochemical, biophysical, cellular, and genetic tools in conjunction with single molecule detection platforms to gain a comprehensive understanding of the biological pathways, with an emphasis on elucidating molecular mechanisms.