Ellen Zhong, an expert in computational biology, has received a New Innovator Award from the National Institutes of Health.
Zhong, an assistant professor of computer science, uses machine learning tools to expand the range of possibilities for biological imaging techniques. Her research focuses on the direct observation of proteins and molecules at the atomic level through cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) and tomography (cryo-ET).
The NIH Director’s New Innovator Award supports exceptionally creative, high-impact research by early-career scientists. The grant provides $475,000 a year for 5 years to support Zhong’s work on developing artificial intelligence and machine learning tools to overcome key challenges in cryo-EM and cryo-ET image processing.
By advancing new approaches for interpreting cryo-EM and cryo-ET data, Zhong’s work will allow researchers to create high-resolution 3D visualizations of proteins and other biomolecules directly within cells, improving both the accuracy and efficiency of biomolecular structure determination. These advances will deepen our understanding of how proteins operate at the atomic level and may lead to new discoveries about the molecular mechanisms underlying health and disease.
Zhong joined the Princeton faculty in 2022 after completing her doctoral work at MIT. Her work has been recognized by a E. Lawrence Keyes, Jr./Emerson Electric Co. Faculty Advancement Award and a commendation for outstanding teaching, both from Princeton’s School of Engineering and Applied Science. She received a bachelor of science degree from the University of Virginia.