Voiland CollegeVoiland SchoolBin Cao

Bin Cao

  1. Associate Professor
Email Addressbcao@wsu.edu
LocationWegner 309
Phone509-335-6579

Biography

Dr. Bin Cao is an associate professor in the Gene and Linda Voiland School of Chemical Engineering and Bioengineering, Washington State University. He earned his Ph.D. in Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering from the National University of Singapore. He was named a Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry (FRSC) in 2024.

Research Interests

Dr. Cao’s research group is dedicated to tackling key challenges in sustainability and health through synthetic bioengineering. Specifically, his work centers on applying tools from molecular and synthetic biology, integrated with engineering principles, to design novel microbial systems and bioprocesses or enhance existing ones across multiple scales, from DNA and proteins to microbial communities. These efforts are aim at developing innovative solutions to pressing environmental and health issues, such as removing emerging contaminants, recovering critical resources, promoting sustainable biomanufacturing, and combating antimicrobial resistance.

Selected Publications

Full publication list available at www.bcaolab.org.

  1. Hu Y, Liu J, Teng A, Zhang Y, Yang L, Cao B (2025) A sensitive and broadly compatible transcription factor-based biosensor for monitoring c-di-GMP dynamics in biofilms. ACS Synthetic Biology 14(6): 2316–2327.
  2. Liu Z, Liu Y, Teng A, Cao B (2025) Improving Response of Microbial Fuel Cell-Based Biosensing through Optogenetic Enhancement of Electroactive Biofilms. Environmental Science & Technology 59(25): 12752–12762.
  3. Liu Y, Liu Z, Liu J, Hu Y, Cao B (2025) Unlocking the potential of Shewanella in metabolic engineering: Current status, challenges, and opportunities. Metabolic Engineering 89: 1-11.
  4. Liu Y, Bairoliya S, Zaiden N, Cao B (2024) Establishment of plastic-associated microbial community from superworm gut microbiome. Environment International 183: 108349.
  5. Mukherjee M, Hu Y, Tan CH, Rice S, Cao B (2018) Engineering a Light-responsive, Quorum Quenching Biofilm to Mitigate Biofouling on Water Purification Membranes. Science Advances 4(12): eaau1459.