Shinuo Weng

Shinuo Weng is an assistant professor of mechanical engineering specializing in multiscale mechanobiology.  Leading the Tissue Morpho & Mechanics Laboratory (TMML), Weng is dedicated to bridging the gap between mechanical engineering and developmental cell biology to enhance our understanding of tissue morphogenesis—the multifaceted process through which tissues take shape during embryonic development.

Weng’s research uses a multidisciplinary approach to study tissue development and morphogenesis. She investigates how tissues acquire their mechanical properties essential for proper shaping and function during development and  explores how large-scale mechanical forces direct smaller-scale cell and tissue behaviors that sculpt developing tissues. She also delves into how deviations from normal developmental forces can lead to congenital anomalies through abnormal tissue shaping. Finally, she develops engineering tools to recreate the mechanical forces driving normal tissue growth across multiple size scales.

Weng earned her BEng at Shanghai Jiao Tong University in 2009, followed by her master’s and doctoral degrees in Mechanical Engineering in Biosystems from the University of Michigan in 2011 and 2016.  After a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Texas at Austin, Weng joined Johns Hopkins University in January 2024.