Meng Li completed her medical degree in Beijing University and received her PhD in 1996, under the supervision of Austin Smith at the Institute for Stem Cell Research, University of Edinburgh. She continued in the Smith laboratory for her postdoctoral studies where she pioneered the Sox based lineage marking and selection strategy for embryonic stem cell derived neural progenitor cells. Li established her own laboratory in 2000 following a Career Development Award from the UK Medical Research Council. Li's research is focussed primarily on elucidating the cellular and molecular mechanisms that control dopaminergic neuron specification and axon connectivity, using embryonic stem cells and transgenic technologies. Her research has been supported by the UK Medical Research Council and the European Commission Frame Work 6 program