Shang Cai Lab focuses on deciphering the composition, architecture and evolution of the intratumor microbiota, as well as its interactions with tumor cells and immune cells. Utilizing multidisciplinary approaches including multi-omics, organoid reconstitution, and gene editing technologies, we investigate how the intatumor microbiota influences tumor initiation and progression. Furthermore, we explore the feasibility of reshaping the tumor microenvironment by modulating the intratumor microbiota as a therapeutic strategy.

Dr. Shang Cai's research elucidates the tumor microenvironment's impact on cancer development, including his discovery of intracellular bacteria in breast tumors that enable cross-kingdom regulatory mechanisms helping cancer cells resist mechanical stress and promote metastasis (Cell 2022 et al.); his construction of a mammary mini-organ model for precise in vitro simulation of mammary morphogenesis, physiological cycles, and early carcinogenesis (Nature Methods 2023); and his establishment of single-cell spatiotemporal atlas to decode mammary stem cell dynamics during aging, where he identified key aging-regulating transcription factors and screened small-molecule inhibitors to reverse aging processes, thereby reducing aging-associated breast cancer incidence (Nature Communications 2024).

Dr. Shang Cai, a scholar in stem cell and cancer research, serves as a Principle Investigator and Doctoral Supervisor at Westlake University's School of Life Sciences. He obtained his Bachelor of Science in Biological Sciences from Peking University's School of Life Sciences in 2003, prior to pursuing his Ph.D. (2004–2009) in the Department of Biochemistry at Indiana University, USA, where he investigated molecular mechanisms of spindle assembly and chromosome alignment during cell division. From 2010 to 2017, he conducted postdoctoral research at Stanford University's Institute for Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine, focusing on self-renewal mechanisms and differentiation pathways in adult stem cells and cancer stem cells. In 2017, he joined Westlake University as a Distinguished Investigator, establishing the Stem Cell and Cancer Research Laboratory and focusing on intratumor microbiota’s roles in cancer development.

Aikun Fu,Bingqing Yao,Tingting Dong,Yongyi Chen,Jia Yao,Yu Liu,Hang Li,Huiru Bai,Xiaoqin Liu,Yue Zhang,Chunhui Wang,Yajing Guo,Nan Li,Shang Cai (2022) Tumor-resident intracellular microbiota promotes metastatic colonization in breast cancer. Cell 185 (8), 1356-1372. e26.

Lei Yuan, Shaofang Xie, Huiru Bai, Xiaoqin Liu, Pei Cai, Jing Lu, Chunhui Wang, Zuobao Lin, Shuying Li, Yajing Guo, Shang Cai*(2023) Reconstruction of dynamic mammary mini gland in vitro for normal physiology and oncogenesis. Nature Methods.20, 2021–2033.

Huiru Bai, Xiaoqin Liu, Meizhen Lin, Yuan Meng, Ruolan Tang, Yajing Guo, Nan Li, Michael F. Clarke & Shang Cai (2024) Progressive senescence programs induce intrinsic vulnerability to aging-related female breast cancer. Nat Commun. 15, 5154.

Zuobao Lin, Yajing Guo, Huiru Bai, Xiaoqin Liu, Meizhen Lin, Yue Zhang, Ruolan Tang, Tian’en Hu, Lili Yu, Chunhui Wang, Shang Cai （2025）Distinct mammary stem cells orchestrate long-term homeostasis of adult mammary gland. Cell Discovery 39 (2025)