Associate Professor, Chemical and Materials Engineering
Dr. Katy Kao is an associate Professor in the Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering at San Jose State University. Dr. Kao's research focuses on genomics, systems biology and biotechnology. Her laboratory is interested in using genomic and systems biological tools to study microbial adaptation in various environments. Specifically, Kao is focusing on the use of adaptive laboratory evolution to develop microbes such as yeast and bacteria for enhanced tolerance to toxic feedstock and products and to increase product formation. Her lab utilizes omics tools in an effort to identify the cellular components responsible for the selected traits. In addition to industrial biotechnology application, she is also interested in understanding how opportunistic human fungal pathogens adapt to environmental stressors and how interactions between different species that are co-isolated impact biofilm formation, which is an important aspect of pathogenesis.
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About Katy Kao
Dr. Katy Kao is an associate Professor in the Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering at San Jose State University. Dr. Kao's research focuses on genomics, systems biology and biotechnology. Her laboratory is interested in using genomic and systems biological tools to study microbial adaptation in various environments. Specifically, Kao is focusing on the use of adaptive laboratory evolution to develop microbes such as yeast and bacteria for enhanced tolerance to toxic feedstock and products and to increase product formation. Her lab utilizes omics tools in an effort to identify the cellular components responsible for the selected traits. In addition to industrial biotechnology application, she is also interested in understanding how opportunistic human fungal pathogens adapt to environmental stressors and how interactions between different species that are co-isolated impact biofilm formation, which is an important aspect of pathogenesis.
| August 2019 - Present | Associate Professor, San Jose State University ‐ Chemical and Materials Engineering | |
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| September 2014 - Present | Associate Professor, Texas A&M University ‐ Department of Chemical Engineering | |
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| August 2008 - August 2014 | Assistant Professor, Texas A&M University ‐ Department of Chemical Engineering | |
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Disciplines
Research Interests
Professional Service and Affiliations
| 2019 - Present | Editor, Scientific Report | 2013 - Present | Editorial Board Member, Journal of Biological Engineering | 2010 - Present | Academic Editor, PLoS ONE | Present | Member, American Chemical Society (ACS) | Present | Member, American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE) | Present | Member, American Society of Microbiology (ASM) | Present | Member, Society of Industrial Microbiology and Biotechnology (SIMB) | 2019 - 2020 | Guest Editor for Special Issue, Journal of Industrial Microbiology and Biotechnology | 2018 - 2019 | Guest Editor for Special Issue, Journal of Industrial Microbiology and Biotechnology |
Honors and Awards
- Presidential Undergraduate Research Award - 1996
- National Institutes of Health - National Research Service Award (NRSA) - 2007
- National Science Foundation - Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Award - 2011
- TEES Select Young Faculty - 2012
- Fluor Distinguished Teaching Award – 2013
- George Armistead, Jr. ’23 Faculty Excellence in Teaching Award – 2017
- Association of Former Students Distinguished Achievement - College-Level Teaching Award – 2017-2018
- Chemical Engineering Graduate Student Association (ChEGSA) Faculty of the year – 2018
| 2005 - 2008 | Postdoctoral Fellow, Stanford University ‐ Department of Genetics | |
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| 2005 | Ph.D., University of California, Los Angeles ‐ Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering | |
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| 1997 | B.S., University of California, Irvine ‐ Department of Chemical Engineering | |
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