KOH Cheng Gee
Collaborator, Mechanobiology Institute, National University of Singapore
Associate Chair (Faculty), School of Biological Sciences, Nanyang Technological University
cgkoh@ntu.edu.sg
+65 6316 2854
SBS-03n-38
Nanyang Technological University
50 Nanyang Avenue
Singapore 639798
Research Program
The Cell-Matrix and Cell-Cell Mechanotransduction Group
Koh Cheng Gee
Collaborator
Research Areas
Cell signalling; Regulation of actin cytoskeleton; Rho GTPases, their effectors and regulators
Research Interests
Our laboratory is interested in the signal transduction events involving small GTPases of the Rho family, their regulators and effectors. These proteins play key roles in transducing extracellular stimuli into distinct responses including cell shape changes, cell motility, adhesion, cell division and phagocytosis. The emphasis of our current research is on the kinase PAK, its interacting protein PIX and a family of serine/ threonine phosphataes of the PP2C family, POPXs.
Biography
Dr Koh did her undergraduate studies at the Department of Chemistry at the National University of Singapore. After completing her Ph.D. with Sydney Brenner at the University of Cambridge, she returned to Singapore to work on Fugu genomics at the Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology. She later moved to Louis Lim’s laboratory at the same institute to study small GTPases-mediated cell signaling. In 2004, Dr Koh started her own laboratory at the School of Biological Sciences, Nanyang Technological University. Dr Koh is also a Principal Investigator at MBI.
Education
PhD University of Cambridge
Recent Publications
- Zhang S, Chong LH, Woon JYX, Chua TX, Cheruba E, Yip AK, Li H, Chiam K, and Koh C. Zyxin regulates embryonic stem cell fate by modulating mechanical and biochemical signaling interface. Commun Biol 2023; 6(1):62. [PMID: 36653484]
- Wong DCP, Pan CQ, Er SY, Thivakar T, Rachel TZY, Seah SH, Chua PJ, Jiang T, Chew TW, Chaudhuri PK, Mukherjee S, Salim A, Aye TA, Koh CG, Lim CT, Tan PH, Bay BH, Ridley AJ, and Low BC. The Scaffold RhoGAP Protein ARHGAP8/ BPGAP1 Synchronizes Rac and Rho Signaling to Facilitate Cell Migration. Mol Biol Cell 2023;:mbcE21030099. [PMID: 36598812]
- Yip AK, Zhang S, Chong LH, Cheruba E, Woon JYX, Chua TX, Goh CJH, Yang H, Tay CY, Koh C, and Chiam K. Zyxin Is Involved in Fibroblast Rigidity Sensing and Durotaxis. Front Cell Dev Biol 2021; 9:735298. [PMID: 34869319]
- Sathe SR, Jain D, Koh C, and Yim EKF. POPX2 phosphatase enhances topographical contact guidance for cell morphology and migration. Biomed Mater 2020;. [PMID: 33321483]
- Koon YL, Zhang S, Rahmat MB, Koh CG, and Chiam K. Enhanced Delta-Notch Lateral Inhibition Model Incorporating Intracellular Notch Heterogeneity and Tension-Dependent Rate of Delta-Notch Binding that Reproduces Sprouting Angiogenesis Patterns. Sci Rep 2018; 8(1):9519. [PMID: 29934586]
- Ou S, Tan M, Weng T, Li H, and Koh C. LIM kinase1 regulates mitotic centrosome integrity via its activity on dynein light intermediate chains. Open Biol 2018; 8(6). [PMID: 29925632]
- Weng T, and Koh C. POPX2 phosphatase regulates apoptosis through the TAK1-IKK-NF-κB pathway. Cell Death Dis 2017; 8(9):e3051. [PMID: 28906490]
- Zhang S, Weng T, Cheruba E, Guo T, Chan H, Sze SK, and Koh C. Phosphatase POPX2 Exhibits Dual Regulatory Functions in Cancer Metastasis. J. Proteome Res. 2016;. [PMID: 27976581]
- Hoon JL, Tan MH, and Koh C. The Regulation of Cellular Responses to Mechanical Cues by Rho GTPases. Cells 2016; 5(2). [PMID: 27058559]
- Khaw S, Min-Wen C, Koh C, Lim B, and Shyh-Chang N. Oocyte Factors Suppress Mitochondrial Polynucleotide Phosphorylase to Remodel the Metabolome and Enhance Reprogramming. Cell Rep 2015; 12(7):1080-8. [PMID: 26257174]
Lab Members
Building the Future of Cell Biology Together at Cell Bio 2026
Professor Rong Li, President of the American Society for Cell Biology calls for participation for Cell Bio 2026 in San Diego. The meeting will feature more than 400 scientific talks and over 2,500 poster presentations, alongside symposia, minisymposia, and special interest subgroup sessions selected by the Program Committee directly from member-suggested topics.
Seeking Research Assistant in the labs of Dr. Natalie Dye and Dr. Alphée Michelot at the Mechanobiology Institute, NUS
We are seeking a Research Assistant to join the labs of Dr. Natalie Dye and Dr. Alphée Michelot at the Mechanobiology Institute, NUS.
Seeking Postdoctoral Research Fellow in the Vascular Mechano-medicine Lab led by Dr. Shailaja Seetharaman at the Mechanobiology Institute, NUS
We are seeking to recruit a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in the research group of Dr. Shailaja Seetharaman at the Mechanobiology Institute and Department of Physiology at the Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, NUS.
A Cell Never Forgets: How Prior Environments Affect Confined Cell Migration
Researchers from the Holle Lab at the Mechanobiology Institute, NUS discover that cells retain mechanical memory that influences subsequent migration despite environmental changes, suggesting broader implications for understanding wound healing, fibrosis and cancer metastasis.
Force sensing in cells at the single molecule level
Professor Yan Jie and his team from the Mechanobiology Institute collaborated with Professor Liu Xiaogang from the Department of Chemistry, NUS, to determine the exact force needed to activate Piezo1, via a DNA-based approach.
MBI Hosts Students from Raffles Girls School!
MBI hosted students from Raffles Girls School on 28 April 2026, for an outreach session designed to spark curiosity about mechanobiology and research careers.
Farewell Avery, All the Best!
Farewell to Dr. Avery Rui Sun, a former PhD student at the Young Lab from 2021-2026!
Ting, Hatice and Raageshwari in ASBTE Conference 2026
The Young Lab attends the 2026 Australasian Society for Biomaterials and Tissue Engineering (ASBTE) from 30 Mar-2 Apr 2026!
Pallavi Chinnu Varghese
Research Fellow, Young Group
Takafumi Sakai
Research Fellow, Hirashima Group
Paulina Magdalena Pokorska
Research Fellow, Li Group
Piyush Amitabh
Research Fellow, Dye Group
