Kai received his Diploma degree in Molecular Biology from the University of Heidelberg, and his Ph.D. 
from the Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology in Munich, Germany. His graduate work was focusing on the 
function of neutrophil serine proteases in acute inflammatory responses (Kessenbrock et al, Journal of 
Clinical Investigation, 2008) and in the pathogenesis of autoimmune diseases (Kessenbrock et al, Nature 
Medicine, 2009). He then did his postdoc in Dr. Zena Werb’s lab at the University of California, San 
Francisco. During his postdoc he expanded his expertise to the role of matrix metalloproteinases in 
the tumor microenvironment (Kessenbrock et al, Cell, 2010) and as regulators of breast epithelial 
stem cells through modulation of the Wnt signaling pathway (Kessenbrock et al, Cell Stem Cell, 2013). 
His current research investigates mechanisms of cellular communication in the mammary stem cell niche 
and the spectrum of heterogeneity within the breast epithelium using systems-level analyses in single 
cell resolution. These projects will further our understanding of the systematic changes during early 
tumorigenesis with the ultimate goal to identify biomarkers for early detection as well as novel 
therapeutic strategies to improve disease outcome for breast cancer patients.
联系人：雷锦誌 ( jzlei@tsinghua.edu.cn )