Fei Chen, Ph.D.
Associate professor Harvard Department of Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology
Core Faculty member at the Broad Institute

Abstract
Tissues are not simply collections of cell types, but organized multicellular communities whose structure across space and time helps determine function in development, homeostasis, aging, and disease. In this lecture, I will describe my lab’s efforts to define the principles by which molecularly distinct cells assemble into tissue architectures, communicate with one another, and change state in response to both local environment and cellular history. To address these questions, we develop and apply genomic technologies that preserve spatial organization, record aspects of cellular history, and connect molecular state to multicellular function. Using these approaches, we have mapped tissue architecture at single-cell resolution, identified how spatial context shapes cell state and cell-cell interactions, and begun to uncover signaling dependencies within diseased tissues. I will conclude by discussing our broader goal of moving from descriptive tissue maps toward predictive models and experimental strategies to measure, understand, and ultimately engineer tissue organization in vivo.

Short Bio
Dr. Fei Chen is currently an Associate professor at the Harvard Department of Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology, and a Core Faculty member at the Broad Institute. His laboratory develops innovative tools that bridge single-cell genomics with spatial and temporal resolution, enabling researchers to uncover where specific cell types reside within intact tissues and when key transcriptional programs are activated. To achieve this, the Chen lab integrates approaches from microscopy, genomics, and synthetic biology. This work has led to widely adopted technologies in biology, including expansion microscopy, Slide-seq, Slide-tags, and in situ genome sequencing. The lab applies these technologies to investigate fundamental principles of tissue organization during development, and to understand how these principles break down in injury and disease.

Dr. Chen obtained his Ph.D. in biological engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He was a Schmidt Fellow at the Broad Institute. His awards include the National Institutes of Health Director’s Early Independence Award, the Allen Distinguished Investigator Award, and the New York Stem Cell Foundation Robertson Investigator Award.

Publications of Interest

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