Ahmad S. Khalil, Ph.D. Professor (BME)
Education B.S., Mechanical Engineering, Stanford UniversityPrimary Appointment Associate Professor, Department of Biomedical EngineeringAdditional Affiliations Associate Director, Biological Design Center (BDC)
In the News
With an NSF grant, a BU program will train a diverse group of PhD students for tomorrow’s workforce in biotech, synthetic biology, and other sectors. [ More ]
A more precise and effective gene circuit engineering method that might boost the field of synthetic biology to the next level. [ More ]
With food scraps instead of fossil fuels, a BU bioreactor project is modeling sustainable manufacturing. [ More ]
Honors and Awards 2022 Schmidt Science Polymath Award
Areas of Interest Synthetic biology; systems biology; genetic and epigenetic regulation; directed evolution; microbial ecology & evolution; technology development & automation
Research Areas My research seeks to understand the design principles of living systems by creating and analyzing synthetic ones in the laboratory. Our team develops synthetic biology approaches to rationally construct and dissect the molecular circuits that control gene regulation in eukaryotes, work that has resulted in fundamental discoveries on transcription regulation and epigenetic memory and led to platforms for creating programmable cellular therapies to address pressing human diseases. In addition, our team develops powerful automation technologies, such as the eVOLVER, that enable researchers to perform laboratory evolution at unprecedented scale. We are applying these technologies to recreate the evolutionary histories of biological systems in the laboratory and to harness the power of evolution to generate biomolecules with new and improved functions for a variety of applications. Finally, we are working to distribute and democratize access to the eVOLVER platform (and other technologies we develop), so that researchers worldwide can easily build their own tools and undertake creative new laboratory experiments.
Publications
View all profiles
