Guo Lab

News

Research

Our research revolves around creating new methods for discovering pathogens and conducting diagnostic studies. By applying these innovative methods, we want to rapidly detect potential pathogenic microorganisms in both clinical and zoonotic settings, and also to investigate the potential mechanisms behind unexplained illnesses, such as, ME/CFS and the post-acute infection syndromes.

• Our previous work includes pioneering the field of pathogen capture sequencing technology and high-throughput Serochip technology. We have developed BacCapSeq, a groundbreaking platform capable of simultaneously screening for all human pathogenic bacteria, as well as virulence and antibiotic resistance markers.
• We were the first to discover that SARS-CoV-2 viral RNA can persist in patients' digestive tracts even months after its elimination from their respiratory tracts.
• We have also conducted molecular epidemiological studies on numerous studies, aiming to enhance public health policies and raise awareness of the One Health concept.
• Furthermore, our research has demonstrated that intestinal bacteria can serve as biomarkers for diagnosing Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS). This finding opens up possibilities for potential treatment therapies by analyzing the association between microorganisms and ME/CFS.

To date, our efforts have resulted in 50+ SCI papers with 3300+ citations.

1. Pathogen Discovery: emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases

2. One Health: prevent the next pandemic

3. Microbiome: human microbiome and diseases associated with infection

People

Cheng Guo, PhD, Associate Professor
guoch36@mail.sysu.edu.cn  •  Google Scholar  •  Twitter  •  LinkedIn

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2024- Senior consultant for CII at Columbia University

2022-2023 Head of bioinformatics team for CII at Columbia University

2016-2023 Senior programmer analyst for CII at Columbia University

2015-2016 Bioinformatician for U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

2011-2016 Ph.D student at Miami University

2004-2008 Bachelor & 2008-2011 Master student at China Pharmaceutical University

Lab Members

Conghui Liao,Postdoctoral
liaoch3@mail2.sysu.edu.cn

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Hi! I am Conghui Liao, currently a Postdoctoral Researcher at the School of Public Health, Sun Yat-sen University. I earned both my Ph.D. and M.A. degrees from Sun Yat-sen University(SYSU), following my undergraduate studies at China Medical University. My research primarily focuses on innovations in vaccine regulation, specifically the development and evaluation of novel tools advanced methodologies, and enhanced standards. Please feel free to reach out to me at liaoch3@mail2.sysu.edu.cn. if you have any inquiries or would like to discuss potential collaborations.

Xiaokang Li,PhD student
lixk35@mail2.sysu.edu.cn

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2016-2021 Bachelor student at Wuhan University

2021-2024 Master student at Sun Yat-Sen University

What I want to say is You Are Worth It

Weiya Mao,Master
maowy@mail2.sysu.edu.cn

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2019-2024 Bachelor student at Wenzhou Medical University

Hello! I am Weiya Mao, a Master's candidate at the School of Public Health, Sun Yat-sen University (SYSU). My work centers on driving innovation in vaccine regulation, with a dedicated focus on: Developing and optimizing novel regulatory tools, Designing robust methodologies for vaccine evaluation, Establishing enhanced standards to advance regulatory frameworks. I'd welcome discussions on research synergies or collaborative opportunities. Please feel free to contact me via maowy@mail2.sysu.edu.cn.

Yan Long,Master
longy73@mail2.sysu.edu.cn

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2018-2023 Bachelor student at the University of South China

Chuanhao Cheng,Master
chengchh3@mail2.sysu.edu.cn

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2019-2024 Bachelor student at Sun Yat-Sen University

Existence Precedes Essence, Chance Shapes the World.

Academic Service

• Editor board member for Journal of Urology and Renal Diseases
• Editor board member for Clinical Pathology and Research Journal
• Editor for Journal One Health Bulletin
• Guest Editor for Frontiers in Plant Science (Computational Methods in Inferring Cancer Tissue-of-Origin and Cancer Molecular Classification)
• Guest Editor for Frontiers in Genetics (Computational Methods in Inferring Cancer Tissue-of-Origin and Cancer Molecular Classification)
• Guest Editor for Frontiers in Oncology (Cancer Imaging and Image-directed Interventions)

Resources

• PubMed: NCBI PubMed database.
• bioRENDER: Images and clip art for biology.
• Microbe TV: Great podcast resource for microbes.

Selected Publications

2025

2024

2023

• Cheng Guo, Xiaoyu Che, Thomas Briese, Amit Ranjan, Orchid Allicock, Rachel A Yates, Aaron Cheng, Dana March, Mady Hornig, Anthony L Komaroff, Susan Levine, Lucinda Bateman, Suzanne D Vernon, Nancy G Klimas, Jose G Montoya, Daniel L Peterson, W Ian Lipkin, Brent L Williams Deficient butyrate-producing capacity in the gut microbiome is associated with bacterial network disturbances and fatigue symptoms in ME/CFS. Cell Host and Microbe
• Cheng Guo, Boyang Yi, Jianyong Wu, Jiahai Lu The microbiome in post-acute infection syndrome (PAIS). Computational and Structural Biotechnology Journal
• Qin Wu*, Cheng Guo*, Xiao-kang Li, Bo-Yang Yi, Qian-Lin Li, Zhong-Min Guo, Jia-Hai Lu A meta-transcriptomic study of mosquito virome and blood feeding patterns at the human-animal-environment interface in Guangdong Province, China. One Health

Before 2023

• Yifan Li*, Cheng Guo*, Qin Wu, Zhongmin Guo (2022) Characteristics of post-Wuhan COVID-19 outbreaks in mainland China. One Health Bulletin
• Xiaomin Cheng, Yali Zhang, Yifan Li, Qin Wu, Jiani Wu, Soo-Kyung Park, Cheng Guo#, Jiahai Lu# (2022) Meta-analysis of 16S rRNA microbial data identified alterations of the gut microbiota in COVID-19 patients during the acute and recovery phases BMC microbiology
• Jian-Yong Wu*, Cheng Guo*, Yao Xia, Hui-Min Bao, Yan-Shan Zhu, Zhong-Min Guo, Yue-Hong Wei, Jia-Hai Lu (2021) Genomic characterization of Wenzhou mammarenavirus detected in wild rodents in Guangzhou City, China. One Health
• Jin Wang*, Cheng Guo*, Lin Cai, Conghui Liao, Huaimin Yi, Qianlin Li, Huan Hu, Qiang Deng, Yuying Lu, Zhongmin Guo, Zeliang Chen, Jiahai Lu (2021) Pre-Existing Cross-Reactive Antibody Responses Do Not Significantly Impact Inactivated COVID-19 Vaccine-Induced Neutralization. Frontiers in Immunology
• Yongjian Wu, Xiaomin Cheng, Guanmin Jiang, Huishu Tang, Siqi Ming, Lantian Tang, Jiahai Lu, Cheng Guo#, Hong Shan#, Xi Huang# (2021) Altered oral and gut microbiota and its association with SARS-CoV-2 viral load in COVID-19 patients during hospitalization. npj Biofilms and Microbiomes
• Jian-Yong Wu*, Yan-Shan Zhu*, Cheng Guo*, Yao Xia, Zhong-Min Guo, Qian-Lin Li, Jia-Hai Lu (2021) A comparative study of associated microbiota between pig farm and pig slaughterhouse in Guangdong, China. Current Microbiology
• Yongjian Wu*, Cheng Guo*, Lantian Tang, Zhongsi Hong, Jianhui Zhou, Xin Dong, Huan Yin, Qiang Xiao, Yanping Tang, Xiujuan Qu, Liangjian Kuang, Xiaomin Fang, Nischay Mishra, Jiahai Lu, Hong Shan, Guanmin Jiang, Xi Huang (2020) Prolonged presence of SARS-CoV-2 viral RNA in faecal samples. The lancet Gastroenterology & hepatology
• Orchid M Allicock*, Cheng Guo*, Anne-Catrin Uhlemann, Susan Whittier, Lokendra V Chauhan, Joel Garcia, Adam Price, Stephen S Morse, Nischay Mishra, Thomas Briese, W Ian Lipkin (2018). BacCapSeq: a platform for diagnosis and characterization of bacterial infections. mBio
• Cheng Guo, Matthew Spinelli, Congting Ye, Qingshun Q Li, Chun Liang(2017). Genome-Wide Comparative Analysis of Miniature Inverted Repeat Transposable Elements in 19 Arabidopsis thaliana Ecotype Accessions. Scientific reports
• Li Li*, Cheng Guo*, Biao Wang, Zhou Tong, Lei Yang, Yu-hua Dai, He Wen, Chun Liang, Xi-feng Wang (2016). RNAi-mediated transgenic rice resistance to Rice stripe virus. Journal of Integrative Agriculture
• Cheng Guo, Matthew Spinelli, Man Liu, Qingshun Q Li, Chun Liang (2016). A Genome-wide Study of “Non-3UTR” Polyadenylation Sites in Arabidopsis thaliana. Scientific reports
• Cheng Guo, Li Li, Xifeng Wang, Chun Liang(2018). Alterations in siRNA and miRNA expression profiles detected by deep sequencing of transgenic rice with siRNA-mediated viral resistance. PLoS One