About

Feng Li is a professor of Early Chinese History and Archaeology at Columbia University, specializing in Bronze-Age China. His career began in the 1980s and 1990s as an Assistant Research Fellow at the Institute of Archaeology, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences in Beijing, where he worked on the capital sites Feng and Hao of the Western Zhou period (1045–771 B.C.) in Shaanxi. From 2006 to 2011, he served as the principal investigator of Columbia's first archaeological project in China, organizing and co-directing an international collaborative archaeological survey and test excavation of the late Bronze-Age city-site in Guicheng, Shandong. As a historian, Feng Li has focused extensively on bronzes and their inscriptions, using them as sources to interpret early states and society in China. His research addresses questions of dating, casting technology, authenticity, and inscriptional calligraphy of bronzes, and he has also worked on Shang oracle bone inscriptions and bamboo or wooden manuscripts from Warring States to Han tombs. His interests include the rise and political dynamics of early states, the transition to imperialism, writing and literacy development, bureaucracy and administration, early society's political economy, regional variations of Bronze-Age society and culture, and cross-regional communications. In recent years, he has focused on the social and economic conditions of states or non-state communities as new approaches to understanding early China, as well as comparative studies of early states and civilizations. Feng Li advocates for an integrated approach to studying early states and societies by combining archaeological, inscriptional, and textual evidence. Since 2015, he has been the Faculty Director of the Tang Center for Early China at Columbia University and the content co-editor of the Tang Center Series in Early China from Columbia University Press.

Research topics

• Immunology
• Biology
• Cancer research
• Computer Science
• Biochemistry
• Biotechnology
• Chemistry

Selected publications

• Characteristic and endovascular management of peripancreatic arterial aneurysms: Experience from a single-center cohort study

  Science Progress · 2026-01-01

  articleOpen access

  Objective Peripancreatic arterial aneurysms (PAAs) are rare but associated with a high risk of rupture and significant mortality. This study aims to evaluate the safety and efficacy of endovascular management for PAAs, focusing on technical strategies and midterm outcomes. Methods A single-center retrospective analysis was conducted on a study cohort of 26 patients with PAAs treated consecutively between June 2014 and March 2025. Endovascular therapy was prioritized, with open repair reserved for anatomically complex cases. Technical success, procedural details, and follow-up outcomes were analyzed. Results Among 29 aneurysms in 26 patients, 15 were located at the gastroduodenal artery–superior pancreaticoduodenal artery (GDA-SPDA) and 14 were at the superior mesenteric artery–inferior pancreaticoduodenal artery (SMA-IPDA). Endovascular therapy achieved primary technical success in 88.5% of cases. Two patients failed endovascular access via both the CA and SMA. Another had a vascular variant creating a high risk of splenic ischemia upon embolization, and a fourth had an aneurysm involving critical duodenal branches. Three of these four patients underwent successful open surgical repair. Sac-only embolization was performed in 63.6% of cases to preserve collateral flow. Access routes were largely determined by aneurysm location, with SMA for SMA-IPDA aneurysms and celiac artery (CA) for GDA-SPDA aneurysms ( p < 0.001). Concomitant celiac revascularization was avoided in most cases. At a median follow-up of 48 months, aneurysm recurrence and restenosis rates were 4.0% each, with no coil migrations or ischemic complications. Conclusion Tailored endovascular strategies guided by aneurysm anatomy and collateral circulation yield high technical success and favorable midterm outcomes without routine celiac revascularization. Endovascular therapy is a safe and effective first-line approach for PAAs, with open repair reserved for complex anatomies.

  PublisherDOI

• pH-responsive polymeric-peptide complex enhances tumor immunogenic cell death by membrane disruption

  Journal of Controlled Release · 2026-01-24

  article
  PublisherDOI

• Engineered probiotics for tumor-targeted combination chemoimmunotherapy

  bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory) · 2026-02-07

  articleOpen access

  Abstract Achieving tumor-specific delivery and sustained activation of both cytotoxic and immune-modulating agents remains a critical challenge in chemoimmunotherapy. Here, we present a bacterial platform engineered to combine enzyme/prodrug chemotherapy with immunotherapy, where tumor-homing E. coli Nissle 1917 expresses cytosine deaminase to convert the prodrug 5-fluorocytosine into the cytotoxic drug 5-fluorouracil within tumors. Concurrently, the engineered bacteria produce an IL-15 superagonist and a PD-L1 blocking nanobody to mitigate the immunosuppressive effects of tumor-localized chemotherapy. This platform demonstrated potent antitumor effects in the murine MC38 solid tumor model. Mechanistic studies showed that the combination therapy enhances activation of antigen-presenting cells, T cells and natural killer cells, while reducing immunosuppressive populations. In summary, our approach integrates enzyme/prodrug therapy and immunotherapy into a single bacterial delivery system, overcoming the limitations of conventional therapies and offering a scalable and precision-engineered strategy with an improved safety profile for synergistic cancer treatment. One Sentence Summary A precision-engineered bacterial platform integrates enzyme/prodrug chemotherapy and immunotherapy to drive synergistic antitumor responses with enhanced safety, offering promise for clinical translation.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• 936 Tumor-specific antibodies elicited by engineered bacteria promote bladder cancer immunotherapy

  Regular and Young Investigator Award Abstracts · 2025-11-01

  articleOpen access

  Figure 1 EcN hCXCL13 synergizes with PD-1 blockade to promote long-term survival and durable protection in an orthotopic model of

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Optimal timing of surgical treatment for Behcet’s disease aortic or peripheral artery pseudoaneurysms

  Journal of Vascular Surgery · 2025-02-17 · 5 citations

  article
  PublisherDOI

• Myeloid Cells in Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm

  Current Atherosclerosis Reports · 2025-05-22 · 5 citations

  review
  PublisherDOI

• Optimal timing of surgical treatment for Behcet’s disease aortic or peripheral artery pseudoaneurysms

  European Journal of Vascular and Endovascular Surgery · 2025-08-01

  article
  PublisherDOI

• Gender-based differences of intraoperative transfusion during open surgery for descending thoracic and abdominal aortic aneurysms: a retrospective single-center cohort study

  BMC Surgery · 2025-07-19

  articleOpen access

  BACKGROUND: Several studies have reported gender-based differences in prognosis following open surgery repair (OSR) and endovascular therapy for treating aortic aneurysms. However, the blood transfusion rates for both gender and the predictors of intraoperative transfusion during OSR for Descending Thoracic and Abdominal Aortic Aneurysms (DTAA) remain uncertain. METHODS: Data of Patients with DTAA who underwent OSR at our center between August 2002 and December 2021 were retrospectively collected. Specific aneurysms and preoperative anemia were excluded from the study. Transfusion of blood products was recorded. Logistic regression analyses were conducted to identify the factors significantly related to transfusion. An adjusted analysis of the association between gender and red blood cell (RBC) transfusion was performed. RESULTS: A total of 82 patients were included, of whom 23 were female. Forty-six DTAAs received intraoperative RBC transfusions. The transfusion rates for male and female were 45.8% and 82.6%, respectively. Preoperative hemoglobin concentration (Hb) was similar between the transfusion and no-transfusion cohorts. Female gender, thoracoabdominal aortic aneurysm, increased procedure duration, blood loss, and urine volume were associated with higher intraoperative transfusion rates. Female gender was identified as an independent predictor (odds ratio [OR], 5.24; P = 0.034). Preoperative Hb, statin use, blood loss, and urine volume were significantly different between gender. After adjusting for these four factors, an association between female gender and RBC transfusion was also found (OR, 6.63; P = 0.037). According to the receiver operator characteristic curve (ROC), increased age (cutoff = 66 years, area under curve [AUC] = 0.81, P = 0.044) and longer procedure duration (cutoff = 245 min, AUC = 0.84, P = 0.021) were found to have significant predictive value for intraoperative transfusion in women. CONCLUSION: Women with DTAA may have a higher requirement for intraoperative RBC transfusion. Therefore, women appear to require more comprehensive RBC preparation plans for elective OSR.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Supplementary Table 10 - 13 from Tumor Explants Elucidate a Cascade of Paracrine SHH, WNT, and VEGF Signals Driving Pancreatic Cancer Angiosuppression

  2024-02-08

  supplementary-materialsOpen access

  <p>Supplementary Table 10: Antibodies for IHC and IF.</p><p>Overview of antibodies used for stainings in human PDAC or KPC-derived tissues.</p><p>Supplementary Table 11: Primer sequences for qRT-PCR.</p><p>Primers for qRT-PCR-based quantification of ChIP and mRNA samples.</p><p>Supplementary Table 12: Freezer dryer settings for sponge production.</p><p>Specific settings for optimal sponge production.</p><p>Supplementary Table 13: Explant media composition.</p><p>List of reagents used for human PDAC and murine explants.</p>

  PublisherDOI

• [Overexpression of lncRNA FEZF1-AS1 promotes progression of non-small cell lung cancer <i>via</i> the miR-130a-5p/CCND1 axis].

  PubMed · 2024-05-20 · 1 citations

  articleOpen access1st authorCorresponding

  OBJECTIVE: To explore the molecular mechanism by which FEZF1-AS1 overexpression promotes progression of nonsmall cell lung cancer (NSCLC) via the miR-130a-5p/CCND1 axis. METHODS: TCGA database was used to analyze FEZF1-AS1 expression levels in NSCLC. FEZF1-AS1 expression was detected by qRT-PCR in clinical specimens of NSCLC tissues and NSCLC cell lines, and its correlation with clinical features of the patients were analyzed. The binding sites of FEZF1-AS1 with hsa-miR-130a-5p and those of hsa-miR-130a-5p with CCND1 were predicted. CCK8 assay, clone formation assay, scratch assay, and Transwell assay were employed to examine the effects of FEZF1-AS1 knockdown and hsa-miR-130a-5p inhibitor on proliferation, invasion, and migration abilities of lung cancer cell lines. Dual luciferase assay was used to verify the binding of FEZF1-AS1 with hsa-miR-130a-5p and the binding of hsa-miR-130a-5p with CCND1. Western blotting was performed to detect the changes in CCND1 protein expression level in H1299 and H358 cells following FEZF1-AS1 knockdown and treatment with hsa-miR-130a-5p inhibitor. RESULTS: < 0.05). CONCLUSION: FEZF1-AS1 is highly expressed in NSCLC tissue in close correlation with lymph node metastasis to promote cancer progression through the miR-130a-5p/CCND1 axis.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

Frequent coauthors

• Marie C. Hasselluhn

  Columbia University Irving Medical Center

  44 shared

• Carmine F. Palermo

  National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University

  44 shared

• Amanda R. Decker-Farrell

  Columbia University Irving Medical Center

  44 shared

• Stephen A. Sastra

  44 shared

• Kenneth P. Olive

  44 shared

• Ezequiel J. Tolosa

  43 shared

• Alice Ma

  43 shared

• Urszula N. Wasko

  Columbia University

  43 shared

Education

• M.A., Archaeology

  Institute of Archaeology

  1986

• Ph.D.

  University of Chicago

  2000

• Other

  University of Tokyo

  1991