Wu named Pew Biomedical Scholar
Molecular microbiologist honored for research on how early-life gut microbes shape lifelong immunity
Meng Wu, PhD, an assistant professor of molecular microbiology at WashU Medicine, has been named a 2026 Pew Biomedical Scholar by The Pew Charitable Trusts. The award recognizes early-career investigators who demonstrate outstanding promise in science relevant to the advancement of human health and provides $300,000 in flexible funding over four years to support their work.
Wu’s research focuses on how “good” bacteria in the gut train the body to fight off disease over a lifetime. Specifically, her lab explores how exposure to beneficial microbes early in life programs fibroblasts — structural cells throughout the body that form and maintain connective tissue — to enhance immunity and keep organs healthy. In preliminary studies using human samples and animal models, Wu has found that microbial colonization shortly after birth triggers the expansion of specialized fibroblasts that produce immune-boosting proteins, a process associated with an enhanced ability to defend against infection.
Supported by the Pew award, Wu aims to uncover how beneficial microbes communicate with tissues during development. Using cutting-edge methods to analyze microbes, cells and proteins, Wu’s team will identify the molecular signals produced by beneficial microbes across key developmental stages, from infancy to adulthood; map how fibroblasts detect, interpret and respond to these signals; and determine how these interactions shape tissue environments and resistance to infection. Ultimately, this work could provide a blueprint for developing microbiome-based therapies designed to preserve tissue health, strengthen immunity and prevent chronic inflammation or cancer progression.
