Affiliations
Research Associate, Monell Chemical Senses Center
Education
Ph.D., Biochemistry, Department of Korean medicine, Kyung-Hee University, South Korea
Laboratory Of
Dr. Hong Wang
Research Summary
Respiratory viral infections can cause persistent chemosensory dysfunctions, including loss or distortion of taste and smell, yet the underlying neural and molecular mechanisms remain poorly understood. My research project has been centered on two interconnected areas—taste neuroscience and human olfactory organoid modeling—with the overarching goal of defining how viral insults disrupt chemosensory systems at the cellular and synaptic level.
In the gustatory system, my work has focused on investigating how viral infection alters the synaptic interface between taste receptor cells and afferent sensory neurons. Using hydrogel-based tissue clearing and expansion techniques—such as expansion microscopy, SHIELD, and eMAP—I have been examining structural and molecular changes at taste synapses driven by innate immune responses in the peripheral taste circuit. These ongoing studies are expected to identify the molecular signatures underlying persistent taste loss following viral infection and to reveal how the broader taste niche—including supporting glandular structures—contributes to gustatory dysfunction, potentially opening new avenues for targeted therapeutic strategies.
In parallel, I have been establishing and utilizing human olfactory organoids as a physiologically relevant in vitro platform to model virus-induced olfactory dysfunction. These organoid systems are designed to recapitulate essential features of the human olfactory epithelium, and ongoing refinements are expected to enable increasingly precise mechanistic investigation of how viral entry and epithelial injury converge to impair olfactory function. By systematically comparing clinical biopsy data with organoid-based experimental results, this work aims to establish a direct translational link between patient clinical findings and experimental models, while ultimately building a viable alternative platform to animal experimentation for olfactory research.
Together, these complementary and continuously evolving approaches are anticipated to provide a comprehensive framework for understanding the pathophysiology of virus-associated chemosensory disorders and for identifying molecular targets amenable to future therapeutic intervention.
Keywords
Chemosensory dysfunction, Taste synapse, Innate immune response, Human olfactory organoids, Hydrogel-based tissue clearing/expansion microscopy
Representative Publications
Kang-Hoon Kim, Jubeen Yoon, Christian P. Macks, Han-Eol Park, Jihyun Youn, Jung-uk Lee, Minji An, Jongseong Park, Jaewon Ko, and Chang Ho Sohn (2023). Molecular decrowding by tissue expansion allows precise determination of the spatial distribution of synaptic proteins at a nanoscale by exTEM. ACS Nano, 17, 11, 9919-9937.
Kang-Hoon Kim, Ji Hoon Jung, Won-Seok Chung, Chang Hun Lee, Hyeung-Jin Jang (2021). Ferulic acid induces keratin 6α by inhibition of nuclear β-catenin accumulation and activation of Nrf2 on wound-induced inflammation. Biomedicine, 22;9(5)
Kang-Hoon Kim, Ye-Ji Park, Hyun-Jae Jang, Seung-Jae Lee, Soyoung Lee, Bong-Sik Yun, Seung Woong Lee and Mun-Chual Rho (2020). Rugosic acid A, derived from Rosa rugosa Thunb., is novel inhibitory agent for NF-κB and IL-6/STAT3 axis in acute lung injury model. Phytother Research, 2020, 1-11.
Hyun-Jae Jang*, Kang-Hoon Kim*, Eun-Jae Park, Jeong A Kang, Bong-Sik Yun, Seung-Jae Lee, Chan Sun Park, Soyoung Lee, Seung Woong Lee, Mun-Chual Rho (2020). Anti-inflammatory activity of diterpenoids from Celastrus orbiculatus in lipopolysaccharide-stimulated RAW264.7 cells. J Immunol Research, 2020, 7207354.
Kang-Hoon Kim, Eun Young Bae, Hyun Goo Lim, Mi Heui Kim, Tae-Seok Oh, Seung Woong Lee (2020). Eleocharis kuroguwai Ohwi Ameliorates LPS-mediated Inflammation by Suppressing MAPKs Signaling. J Life Sci, 30, 5, 476-482.
Kang-Hoon Kim, Eun-Jae Park, Hyun-Jae Jang, Seung-Jae Lee, Chan Sun Park, Bong-Sik Yun, Seung Woong Lee#, & Mun-Chual Rho# (2019). 1-Carbomethoxy-b-carboline, derived from Portulaca oleacea L., ameliorates LPS-mediated inflammatory response associated with MAPK signaling and nuclear translocation of NF-kB. Molecules, 24, 22, 4042.
Alessandro Bertucci*, Kang-Hoon Kim*, Jinyoung Kang, Jonathan M. Zuidema, Seo Hyeon Lee, Ester J. Kwon, Dokyoung Kim, Stephen B. Howell, Francesco Ricci, Erkki Ruoslahti, Hyeung-Jin Jang#, and Michael J. Sailor# (2019). Tumor-targeting, microRNA-silencing Porous Silicon Nanoparticles for Ovarian Cancer Therapy. ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, 11, 27, 23926-23937.
Kang-Hoon Kim, Jiyoung Park, In-Seung Lee, Yumi Kim, Eun Jin An, & Hyeung Jin Jang. (2018). Cucurbitacin B Induces Hypoglycemic Effect in Diabetic Mice by Regulation of AMP-Activated Protein Kinase Alpha and Glucagon-like peptide-1 via Bitter Taste Receptor Signaling. Frontiers in Pharmacol, 9, 1071, 1-13.
