Meet the PI

Qiwen Dong, Ph.D.

Qiwen Dong completed her undergraduate studies in biotechnology at Nankai University, China (B.S., 2012). She performed her graduate work on herpesvirus pathogenesis with Dr. Laurie Krug at Stony Brook University and obtained her Ph.D. in Molecular and Cellular Biology in 2018. She then went on to a postdoctoral fellowship in Dr. Eric Pamer’s group at the University of Chicago, studying Clostridioides difficile genomics and pathogenicity. In 2023, she joined Dr. Aimee Shen’s lab at Tufts University for a second postdoctoral training, where she continued to work on C. difficile physiology and virulence. In 2025, Qiwen joined the Department of Microbiology, Molecular Genetics and Immunology at KU Medical Center as an assistant professor. Outside the lab, Qiwen enjoys reading, solving puzzles and playing board games.

Research Assistant

Thomas Paulus, B.S

Hello! I recently graduated from Northeastern University in Boston, Massachusetts., with a bachelor’s degree in Cell and Molecular Biology (2025). While at Northeastern, I completed two 6-month research and drug discovery co-ops in Cambridge, Massachusetts. These two experiences led me to pursue a research career in understanding pathogenesis. In the fall of 2025, I joined the Dong Lab as a Research Assistant. Outside the lab, I enjoy going to the movies, playing tennis and doing crosswords.

Postdoc scholar

Rusha Pal, Ph.D.

Rusha Pal obtained her Ph.D. in Biomedical Sciences and Pathobiology from Virginia Tech in 2022. She then completed a postdoctoral fellowship at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, where she investigated gene essentiality in Clostridioides difficile. Rusha recently joined Qiwen Dong’s lab at the University of Kansas Medical Center and aims to pursue further studies related to C. difficile pathogenicity.