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Professor Ed Xuekui WU

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Prof. Ed Xuekui WU
Professor Ed Xuekui WU
Chair of Biomedical Engineering,
Lam Woo Professorship in Biomedical Engineering
BSEE Tianjin Univ.; MS Univ. of Wisconsin-Madison; Ph.D. Univ. of California-Irvine; FISMRM; FIEEE; FAIMBE; FHKIE.
  3917 7096
  CB-601G
Research Interests:
Biomedical Engineering; Medical imaging; MRI; Deep Learning; Neuroimaging; Neuroscience.

Biography

Prof. Ed X. Wu is Chair Professor of Biomedical Engineering and holds Lam Woo Professorship in Biomedical Engineering. He joined the University of Hong Kong Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering in 2003. Before joining HKU, Prof. Wu was an Associate Professor of Radiology and Biomedical Engineering at Columbia University in New York where he led the NMR Microimaging Laboratory. From 1990 to 1998, Prof. Wu was the lead technical member in development of the world first 3D positron emission tomography (PET) system and an ultrahigh field magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) system at Columbia University. At present, Prof. Wu is the founding Director of the interdisciplinary Laboratory of Biomedical Imaging and Signal Processing at HKU. He served as the Program Director of Medical Engineering Program from 2009 to 2013 and Associate Dean (Research) of HKU Faculty of Engineering from 2013 to 2016. His current research encompasses (1) MRI physics, data acquisition and image reconstruction algorithms through intelligent computing, and ultra-low-field MRI engineering to widen MRI utility in healthcare; and (2) study of large-scale brain circuits and functions through high-field functional MRI, NMR diffusion and spectroscopy, optogenetic modulation, electrophysiology, behavioural assessment, and modelling.

Prof. Wu is currently an editorial board member of Magnetic Resonance in Medicine (since 2015), and served as Asia-Pacific Editor of NMR in Biomedicine from 2010 to 2025. He has also served in numerous technical and scientific committees in professional societies, funding agencies and international conferences. Prof. Wu is an elected Fellow of International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine (ISMRM) in 2013, Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE) in 2014, American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering (AIMBE) in 2011, and Hong Kong Academy of Engineering Sciences (HKAES) in 2018. He is the recipient of 2009 Outstanding Researcher Award from HKU, 2012 Croucher Senior Research Fellowship from Croucher Foundation, and 2018 Guanghua Engineering Science and Technology Prize.

 

Related Links

Selected Publications

  • L Xie, X Wang, X Lin, J Wen, T Ma, ATL Leong, EX Wu: “Brain-wide resting-state fMRI network dynamics elicited by activation of single thalamic input. Nature Communications 16:11247, 2025.
  • Y Zhao, Y Ding, V Lau, C. Man, S Su, L Xiao, ATL Leong, EX Wu: “Whole-body magnetic resonance imaging at 0.05 Tesla.” Science 384:eadm7168 (free access link), 2024. Science Commentary
  • C Man, V Lau, S Su, Y Zhao, L Xiao, Y Ding, GKK Leung, ATL Leong, EX Wu: “Deep learning enabled fast 3D brain MRI at 0.055 tesla.” Science Advances 9(38):eadi9327, 2023. Nature Commentary
  • WT Kimberly, AJ Sorby-Adams, AG Webb, EX Wu, R Beekman, R Bowry, SJ Schiff, A de Havenon, FX Shen, G Sze, P Schaefer, JE Iglesias, MS Rosen, KN Sheth: “Brain imaging with portable low-field MRI.” Nature Reviews Bioengineering 1:617-630, 2023. Cover Article and Commentary
  • V Lau, L Xiao, Y Zhao, S Su, Y ding, C Man, X Wang, A Tsang, P Cao, GKK Lau, GKK Leung, ATL Leong, EX Wu: “Pushing the limits of low-cost ultralow-field MRI by dual-acquisition deep learning 3D superresolution.” Magnetic Resonance in Medicine 90:400-416, 2023.
  • X Wang, ATL Leong, SZK Tan, EC Wong, Y Liu, LW Lim, EX Wu: “Functional MRI reveals brain-wide actions on thalamically-initiated oscillatory activities on associate memory consolidation.” Nature Communications 14:2195, 2023.
  • J Liu, JW Mo, X Wang, Z An, S Zhang, CY Zhang, P Yi, ATL Leong, J Ren, LY Chen, R Mo, Y Xie, Q Feng, W Chen, TM Gao, EX Wu, Y Feng, X Cao (co-corresponding authors): “Astrocyte dysfunction drives abnormal resting-state functional connectivity in depression.” Science Advances 8:eabo2098, 2022.
  • Y Liu, AT Leong, Y Zhao, L Xiao, H Mak, A Tsang, GK Leung, EX Wu: “A low-cost and shielding-free ultra-low-field brain MRI scanner.” Nature Communications 12:1-14, 2021. Nature Briefing, Scientific American
  • AT Leong, Y Gu, YS Chan, H Zheng, CM Dong, RW Chan, X Wang, Y Liu, LH Tan, EX Wu: “Optogenetic fMRI interrogation of brain-wide vestibular pathways.” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) 116:E10122-E10129, 2019.
  • VB Xie, M Lyu, Y Liu, Y Feng, EX Wu: Robust EPI Nyquist ghost removal by incorporating phase error correction with sensitivity encoding (PEC-SENSE).” Magnetic Resonance in Medicine 79:943-951, 2018.
  • RW Chan, ATL Leong, LC Ho, PP Gao, EC Wong, CM Dong, X Wang, J He, YS Chan, LW Lim, EX Wu: “Low-frequency hippocampal-cortical activity drives brain-wide resting-state functional MRI connectivity.” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) 114:E6972-E6981, 2017.
  • ATL Leong, RW Chan, PP Gao, YS Chan, KK Tsia, WH Yung, EX Wu: “Long-range projections coordinate distributed brainwide neural activity with a specific spatiotemporal profile.” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) 113:E8306-E8315, 2016.
  • P Cao, SJ Fan, AM Wang, VB Xie, Z Qiao, GM Brittenham, EX Wu: “Diffusion magnetic resonance monitors intramyocellular lipid droplet size in vivo,” Magnetic Resonance in Medicine 73:59-69, 2015.
  • MM Cheung, C Lau, IY Zhou, KC Chan, JW Zhang, SJ Fan, EX Wu: “High fidelity tonotopic mapping using swept source functional magnetic resonance imaging,” NeuroImage 61:978-986, 2012.
  • J Yang, J Liu, G Niu, KC Chan, R Wang, Y Liu, EX Wu: “In vivo MRI of endogenous stem/progenitor cell migration from subventricular zone in normal and injured developing brains,” NeuroImage 48:319-328, 2009.
  • JS Cheung, AM Chow, H Guo, EX Wu: “Microbubbles as a novel contrast agent for brain MRI,” NeuroImage 46:658-664, 2009.
  • ES Hui, MM Cheung, L Qi, EX Wu: “Toward better MR characterization of neural tissues using directional diffusion kurtosis analysis,” NeuroImage 42:122-134, 2008.
  • SA Small, EX Wu, D Bartsch, GM Perera, CO Lacefield, R DeLaPaz, R Mayeux, Y Stern, ER Kandel: “Imaging function of hippocampal subregions in humans and in genetically modified mice using a high resolution MRI method,” Neuron 28:653-64, 2000.
  • EX Wu, G Johnson, SK Hilal and ZH Cho: “A new spatial localization technique using pulsed quadratic gradient,” Magnetic Resonance in Medicine 33:242-245, 1994.
  • EX Wu, RB Buxton: “Effect of diffusion on the steady-state magnetization with pulsed field gradients,” Journal of Magnetic Resonance 90:243-253, 1990