Wusheng Xiao

Assistant Professor
wxiao@bjmu.edu.cn

Personal profile

Dr. Xiao is a tenure-track Assistant Professor at Department of Toxicology, School of Public Health of Peking University. Before joining PKU in November 2022, he was a postdoctoral fellow, instructor, associate scientist, and faculty member under the mentorship of Dr. Joseph Loscalzo at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School from 2015 to 2022. Dr. Xiao obtained his Ph.D. degree in Free Radical and Radiation Biology from the University of Iowa in 2014 after completion of his Master degree in Environmental and Occupational Medicine at Fudan University in 2010 and his Bachelor degree in Preventive Medicine (equivalent to M.D.) at Nanchang University in 2006. He has published peer-reviewed publications in leading journals including Nature Metabolism and Circulation Research. His research has been funded by Beijing Natural Science Foundation, Peking University Clinical Medicine Plus X Young Scholars Project, and other funding resources.

Main research directions

Cardiovascular and pulmonary diseases (CVPDs) are the top leading causes of death in China and worldwide. The morbidity and mortality of such diseases has been linked to environmental pollution. The central focuses of our research are to decipher the mechanisms by which environmental pollutants damage the cardiovascular and pulmonary systems and exacerbate the risk of CVPDs with the goal of developing new preventive and therapeutic approaches for CVPDs.

Project 1: Energy metabolism and cardiopulmonary vasculature injury

Energy metabolism is a fundamental survival mechanism for all mammals. Metabolic alterations have been implicated in the development of many CVPDs. We aim to investigate the crucial roles of metabolic pathways and metabolites in regulating environmental biohazards (e.g., heavy metals and emerging environmental pollutants) induced damages in the cardiovascular and pulmonary systems.

Project 2: Redox stresses and cardiopulmonary vasculature dysfunction

Cellular redox homeostasis is finely tuned by antioxidants (enzymatic and nonenzymatic antioxidants) and pro-oxidants (reactive oxygen/nitrogen species; ROS/RNS). Imbalance between these two arms leads to redox stresses including oxidative stress and reductive stress, both of which are detrimental to biological processes. We aim to elucidate how environmental pollutants perturb cellular redox balance leading to cardiopulmonary vasculature dysfunctions.

Representative scientific research projects

1. Beijing Natural Science Foundation (7252186; 2025-2027; PI): The immunometabolic regulation of glycolytic enzyme PFKFB3 in cadmium-induced early injury of vascular endothelium

2. China CDC Key Laboratory of Environment and Population Health, National Institute of Environmental Health (2024-CKL-02; 2024-2026; PI): The immunometabolic regulation of aryl hydrocarbon receptor in cadmium-induced early injuries of vascular endothelium

3. Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Coal Environmental Pathogenicity and Prevention at Shanxi Medical University (MEKLCEPP/SXMU-201413; 2024-2026; PI): The immunometabolic regulation of pulmonary fibrosis induced by cadmium exposure at levels relevant to mining environment

4. Peking University Clinical Medicine Plus X Young Scholars Project (PKU2023LCXQ005; 2023; PI): Krüppel-like factor 4 (KLF4)-mediated immunometabolic regulation in pulmonary arterial hypertension

10 representative papers

1. Xiao W, Shrimali N, Vigder N, Oldham WM, Clish CB, He H, Wong SJ, Wertheim BM, Arons E, Haigis MC, Leopold JA, Loscalzo J. Branched chain α-ketoacids aerobically activate HIF1α signaling in vascular cells. Nature Metabolism. 2024. 6: 2138-2156.

2. Xiao W, Oldham WM, Priolo C, Pandey AK, Loscalzo J. Immunometabolic endothelial phenotypes: integrating inflammation and glucose metabolism. Circulation Research. 2021, 129: 9-29.

3. Cui K, Li L, Li K, Xiao W*, Wang Q*. AOP-based framework for predicting the joint action mode of di-(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate and bisphenol A co-exposure on autism spectrum disorder. Neurotoxicology. 2024, 104: 75-84. (*co-corresponding author)

4. Li K, Zhang Y, Li L, Cui K, Li Y, Li C, Dai Y*, Xiao W*, Wang Q*. Identification of sensitive endpoints for the assessment of phthalates-induced reproductive and developmental toxicity: a literature mining study. Food and Chemical Toxicology. 2024, 188: 114686. (*co-corresponding author)

5. Xiao W and Loscalzo J. Metabolic response to reductive stress. Antioxidants & Redox Signaling. 2020, 32: 1330-1347. (ESI highly cited paper)

6. Xiao W, Wang RS, Handy DE, Loscalzo J. NAD(H) and NADP(H) redox couples and cellular energy metabolism. Antioxidants & Redox Signaling. 2018, 28: 251-272. (ESI highly cited paper)

7. He H, Mulhern RM, Oldham WM, Xiao W, Lin Y, Liao R, Loscalzo J. L-2-hydroxyglutarate protects against cardiac injury via metabolic remodeling. Circulation Research. 2022, 131: 562-579.

8. Pandey A, Waldeck-Weirmair M, Wells Q, Xiao W, Yadav S, Eroglu E, Michel T, Loscalzo J. Expression of CD70 modulates nitric oxide and redox status in endothelial cells. Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis, and Vascular Biology. 2022, 42: 1169-1185.

9. Xiao W, Sarsour EH, Wagner BA, Doskey CM., Buettner GR, Domann FE, Goswami PC. Succinate dehydrogenase activity regulates PCB3-quinone induced metabolic oxidative stress and toxicity in HaCaT human keratinocytes. Archives of Toxicology. 2016, 90: 319-332.

10. Xiao W, Zhu Y, Sarsour EH, Kalen AL, Aykin-Burns N, Spitz DR, Goswami PC. Selenoprotein P regulates 1-(4-Chlorophenyl)-benzo-2,5-quinone induced oxidative stress and toxicity in human keratinocytes. Free Radical Biology and Medicine. 2013, 65: 70-77.