Changwei Li, M.P.H., Ph.D., M.D. Titles and Appointments Associate Professor School School of Public Health Department Public Health Biography Download Curriculum Vitae Dr. Changwei Li is an Associate Professor of Epidemiology in the Peter O’Donnell Jr. School of Public Health at UT Southwestern Medical Center. He earned his Ph.D. in genetic epidemiology from Tulane University in 2015, followed by a one-year postdoctoral training in cardiovascular and kidney disease epidemiology at Tulane. Prior to that, Dr. Li completed his medical training in preventive medicine at Peking University Health Science Center and a residency program in alternative medicine at Beijing Shijitan Hospital. Dr. Li's research focuses on gene-environment interactions in cardiometabolic disease and chronic kidney disease (CKD), providing crucial insights for precision health. His work has helped elucidate the genomic mechanisms underlying salt sensitivity of blood pressure and the long-term cardiometabolic effects of early-life exposure to severe nutritional deprivation. In recent years, he has pioneered the use of metabolomics to quantify lifestyle behaviors, environmental exposures, and medication use, identifying genetic profiles that influence an individual’s cardiometabolic responses to these exposures. Currently, Dr. Li leads a large-scale genomic study funded by the NIDDK, investigating the role of mitochondrial dysfunction in CKD progression among more than 5,000 CKD patients from the Chronic Renal Insufficiency Cohort (CRIC). This study also seeks to identify factors that influence mitochondrial function in CKD patients. Additionally, he is spearheading a metabolomics study of 1,500 CKD patients of African ancestry to uncover factors that trigger the adverse effects of APOL1 gene mutations on CKD progression. Before joining UT Southwestern, Dr. Li served as an Assistant Professor of Epidemiology at the University of Georgia at Athens (2016–2020) and at Tulane University (2020–2024). Dr. Li can be reached at changwei.li@utsouthwestern.edu. Education Graduate School Tulane University (2015), Epidemiology Research Interest Cardiometabolic Disease Epidemiology Chronic Kidney Disease Gene-Environment Interaction Multi-Omics Studies and Precision Health Publications Featured Publications Association between social media use and depressive symptoms in middle-aged and older Chinese adults. Qi Y, Zhang C, Zhou M, Zhang R, Chen Y, Li C, Transl Psychiatry 2024 Oct 14 1 430 Novel Metabolites Associated With Blood Pressure After Dietary Interventions. Sun Y, Zhang R, Tian L, Pan Y, Sun X, Huang Z, Fan J, Chen J, Zhang K, Li S, Chen W, Bazzano LA, Kelly TN, He J, Bundy JD, Li C, Hypertension 2024 Sep 81 9 1966-1975 A longitudinal study of polygenic score and cognitive function decline considering baseline cognitive function, lifestyle behaviors, and diabetes among middle-aged and older US adults. Liu T, Li C, Zhang R, Millender EF, Miao H, Ormsbee M, Guo J, Westbrook A, Pan Y, Wang J, Kelly TN, Alzheimers Res Ther 2023 Nov 15 1 196 Examination of Serum Metabolome Altered by Dietary Carbohydrate, Milk Protein, and Soy Protein Interventions Identified Novel Metabolites Associated with Blood Pressure: The ProBP Trial. Changwei L, Bundy JD, Tian L, Zhang R, Chen J, Kelly TN, He J, Mol Nutr Food Res 2023 Aug e2300044 Genomic Innovation in Early Life Cardiovascular Disease Prevention and Treatment. Li C, Pan Y, Zhang R, Huang Z, Li D, Han Y, Larkin C, Rao V, Sun X, Kelly TN, Circ Res 2023 Jun 132 12 1628-1647 The Influence of the BDNF Val66Met Variant on the Association Between Physical Activity/Grip Strength and Depressive Symptoms in Persons With Diabetes. Zeng B, Yue Y, Liu T, Ahn H, Li C, Clin Nurs Res 2022 Nov 31 8 1462-1471 Association of Mitochondrial DNA Copy Number with Risk of Progression of Kidney Disease. He WJ, Li C, Huang Z, Geng S, Rao VS, Kelly TN, Hamm LL, Grams ME, Arking DE, Appel LJ, Rebholz CM, Clin J Am Soc Nephrol 2022 Jul 17 7 966-975 Examination of serum metabolome altered by cigarette smoking identifies novel metabolites mediating smoking-BMI association. Zhang R, Sun X, Huang Z, Pan Y, Westbrook A, Li S, Bazzano L, Chen W, He J, Kelly T, Li C, Obesity (Silver Spring) 2022 Apr 30 4 943-952 The Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor Functional Polymorphism and Hand Grip Strength Impact the Association between Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor Levels and Cognition in Older Adults in the United States. Liu T, Li H, Conley YP, Primack BA, Wang J, Li C, Biol Res Nurs 2022 Apr 24 2 226-234 Lifelong smoking status, weight gain, and subsequent risk of major adverse cardiovascular events: Long-term follow-up of a middle-aged Chinese population. Liang L, Li C, Liu X, Zhou L, Chu S, Zhang R, Mai J, Westbrook A, Li J, Zhang D, Zhao L, Wu Y, Obesity (Silver Spring) 2022 Mar 30 3 762-769 Results 1-10 of 40 1 2 3 4 Next Last Honors & Awards Rising StarThis award recognizes the works of an assistant professor, within five years of appointment to Tulane, who demonstrates exceptional growth and impact in one or more research areas. (2023-2023) Annual Council on Hypertension Travel AwardAwarded by AHA Hypertension Scientific Sessions (2016-2016) Delta OmegaAwarded by Tulane University (2015-2015) Dorothy R. LeBlanc Scholarship AwardTulane University (2015-2015) First Prize of the Delta Omega Eta Chapter Poster Contest (2015-2015) The Deans Scholastic AwardTulane University (2015-2015) Excellent MedicThe highest honor for rotating medical students in Beijing Shijitan Hospital. (2006-2006)
