Tania Wong, PhD

Dr. Tania Wong is an Assistant Professor and Chancellor Scholar in the Department of Microbiology, Biochemistry & Molecular Genetics at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School. Her laboratory, located within the Center for Immunity and Inflammation (CII), investigates host-pathogen interactions, focusing on how opportunistic airway pathogens, such as Staphylococcus aureus and Klebsiella pneumoniae, manipulate host metabolic responses to evade immune clearance. Dr. Wong's prior work has demonstrated that K. pneumoniae associated with prolonged infections stimulates mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation, establishing a milieu that fosters an immune response permissive of infection. Her current research dissects the impact of specific metabolic pathways on immunity and infection outcomes. This includes employing metabolic and dietary interventions to modulate immunometabolic responses and promote pathogen clearance.

Dr. Wong received her PhD from the University of Melbourne, Australia, and completed her postdoctoral training at Columbia University in New York. She is supported by a K99/R00 Pathway to Independence Award from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI). She is also the Scientific Director of a new spatial metabolomics facility at the CII.