Shiwei Mitchell-Wang

Based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Shiwei is a chemist and neuroscientist driven to map the molecular foundations of life and consciousness. While modern biology has traditionally centered on the Central Dogma of DNA, RNA, and proteins, Shiwei is developing breakthrough technologies to illuminate biology's "dark matter": the complex carbohydrates that orchestrate cellular communication and form the bedrock of multicellular life.

Recent advances have established the critical role of these sugars in human health, impacting everything from viral infections and aging to cancer and Alzheimer’s disease. Shiwei and his team are unlocking the molecular code of carbohydrates: developing the precision tools necessary to characterize, predict, and map their functions to enable transformative science and a new generation of therapeutics.

During his PhD at MIT, Shiwei pioneered next-generation expansion microscopy, a technology that allows scientists worldwide to visualize the molecular building blocks of tissues with unprecedented efficiency. His work continues to bridge the gap between fundamental chemistry and complex biosystems, bringing the long-hidden "dark matter" of biology into the light to redefine our understanding of life.