Dr. Xu’s research lies in machine learning, optimization and computational biology (especially protein bioinformatics and biological network analysis). He has developed several popular bioinformatics programs such as the CASP-winning RAPTOR/RaptorX for protein structure prediction and IsoRank for comparative analysis of protein interaction networks. Dr. Xu has received Alfred P. Sloan Research Fellowship, NSF CAREER award and a number of NSF and NIH R01 grants.