Dr. Hong Li is an Assistant Professor for the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at UMDNJ. Li received his PhD in 1997 from the University of Nevada in Biochemistry, mentored by David Schooley, a renowned insect neurochemist. After his postdoctoral research on obesity-related neuropeptide hormones at Albert Einstein College of Medicine, he pursued an industrial career on the G-protein-coupled receptor-based drug discovery at Synaptic Pharmaceutical Corporation in Paramus, NJ. Since 2000, he has been the director of the Mass Spectrometry Core Facility that later evolved into the Center for Advanced Proteomics Research (CAPR).

One of the goals of his laboratory is to develop and optimize mass spectrometry technologies to study the role of protein post-translational modifications and protein-protein interactions on gene regulation. Protein phosphorylation, acetylation and ubiquitination are the initial targets. After the development and optimization of a robust mass spectrometry-based method, his lab will characterize protein modifications and interactions in the context of cell cycle control, apoptosis, and gene regulation.

Another goal in his lab related to bioinformatics is to discover novel neuropeptide hormones. This will be accomplished via bioinformatics and proteomics approaches. The identified putative neuropeptides will be tested for biological activity using cell-based functional assays. The metabolisms of those neuropeptides will be investigated in order to discover new protease inhibitors that will enhance the function of the hormones.