James J. Collins

James Joseph Collins is an American systems biologist, biomedical engineer, and biophysicist who is one of the founders of synthetic biology. He is known for pioneering synthetic gene networks and programmable cells, which launched the field of synthetic biology and influenced research in the detection and treatment of Ebola, Zika, and SARS-CoV-2. He pioneered the use of artificial intelligence in antibiotic discovery, identifying novel antibiotics effective against drug-resistant bacterial pathogens. He is also known for pioneering stochastic resonance, neurostimulation, and biological dynamics in the research of physiological and biological systems. He is the Termeer Professor of Medical Engineering & Science at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).