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Background

Dr Haoxiang Wu is currently a Lecturer (Assistant Professor) in Indoor and Environmental Mycology at the Megan Centre of Applied Mycology (MCAM), ÂãÁÄÖ±²¥. Before joining Cranfield, he served as a Lecturer in the Department of Biology at Hong Kong Baptist University for five years (2020–2025).

Dr Wu has extensive research experience and expertise in mycology and aerobiology. He obtained his PhD in Indoor Mycology and now leads the Indoor and Environmental Mycology Research Group at MCAM, ÂãÁÄÖ±²¥. His research focuses on understanding how indoor fungi respond to dynamic environmental conditions and on developing novel strategies to prevent fungal growth in indoor environments. In addition to his work in mycology, Dr Wu conducts research in aerobiology, investigating the mechanisms that regulate how airborne microorganisms respond to varying environmental factors such as temperature and relative humidity. His work also explores synergistic disinfection approaches for airborne microbes and elucidates their underlying mechanisms. To date, Dr Wu has published over 10 papers in international peer-reviewed journals, with approximately 70% appearing in top-tier journals in the field. He actively contributes to the academic community as an Editorial Board Member, Guest Editor, and Reviewer for several reputable journals.

Beyond academia, Dr Wu is also passionate about industry collaboration and community engagement. He has partnered with industrial companies on multiple projects, including those focused on in-car air quality and the microbial communities of soy sauce products. He is dedicated to science communication, sharing knowledge about mycology and aerobiology through television programmes and media interviews.

Research opportunities

- Indoor Mycology

- Aerobiology

- (Synergistic) Disinfection of microbes

Dr Haoxiang Wu has recently joined MCAM and is in the process of establishing his research team. As the first step in building his team, Dr Wu is seeking a postdoctoral researcher and self-funded PhD students. The postdoctoral candidate should have a strong background in molecular mycology and be proficient in techniques such as RNA sequencing, bioinformatics analysis, gene manipulation, and microscopy (including confocal, SEM, TEM and cryo-EM). Students with a strong interest in mycology and relevant laboratory experience are encouraged to discuss PhD opportunities.

Current activities

Dr Haoxiang Wu's research work focuses on understanding how fungi respond to ambient environmental conditions - particularly transient moisture - and the underlying mechanisms driving these responses. In addition, he conducts research on aerobiology, where he studies how microbes respond to varying atmospheric conditions and airborne disinfection of microorganisms and plans to integrate fungal investigations into this area as well.

There are some specific research questions that Dr Wu is interested in looking into:

- Mechanisms regulating the responses of indoor moulds to wet-dry cycles

- Mechanisms of airborne survival of microbes under various conditions

- Synergistic disinfection of airborne microbes by different disinfection technologies such as UV(C), air ions...

- Novel strategies for preventing pathogenic microbes in indoor environments

Clients

• Research England
• UK Research and Innovation

Publications

• Articles in journals