Shuai LIU

A lack of targeted and precise delivery systems is the major problem in the development and transformation of nucleic acid drugs. Global scientists and entrepreneurs are searching for effective solutions.

From his school studies to his position today as an independent PI in the College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Zhejiang University, Liu’s research interest has been always focused on the crucial part of nucleic acid drug development: the problem of drug delivery.

During his days as M.S. and Ph.D. candidate at Nankai University, Liu’s research projects are primarily about the design and preparation of novel polymeric gene delivery carriers, and he obtained a variety of multifunctional delivery materials suitable for stem cells, nerve cells, and other functional but hard-to-transfect cells. When working at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Liu gained a breakthrough in the field of organ-specific mRNA delivery: he developed efficient and selective delivery systems, specifically targeted for the lungs, spleen, liver, and lymph glands.

Recently, Shuai Liu creatively developed ionizable phospholipid materials and improved the efficiency of endosomal escape and mRNA delivery, with which he built the LNPs library for mRNA delivery specific to the lungs, spleen, and liver. He explored the carrier system beyond LNPs, and developed a phospholipidaated zwitterionic polymer library for the selective delivery of mRNA to lymph glands and spleen, with potential applications in immunological therapy.