Professor (Tenure-Track associate professor) Department of Plant Science Email: zhang_huan@sjtu.edu.cn Office: Room Number 411, Building B Address: School of Agriculture and Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 800 Dongchuan Road, Minghang, 200240, Shanghai, China

Research interests

Utilizing nano-scale construction and manipulation approaches, primarily nucleic acid nanotechnology, to simulate, regulate, and monitor biological processes. We aim to expand their application potential in areas such as human health and sustainable agricultural development. Specific research directions include, but are not limited to:

1. Precision Design and Controlled Self-assembly of Framework Nucleic Acids (FNAs);
2. Development of Nanoprobes for Biosensing and Bioimaging Applications;
3. Nanotechnology-mediated Gene Editing, Functional Molecule Delivery, and Disease Treatment in Plant Systems.

 

Employment

July 2022 – Present, Principal Investigator, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Tenure-track Associate Professor,

September 2020 – June 2022, Associate Professor,Jinan University,

February 2017 – July 2020, Postdoctoral Fellow (Advisor: Markita P. Landry), University of California, Berkeley,

 

Education

Ph.D. (2009-2014), Inorganic Chemistry, Shanghai Institute of Applied Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences; Supervisor: Academician Fan Chunhai

 

Funding

National Natural Science Foundation of China

National Key Research and Development Program 

 

Selected Publications (^# first author, * corresponding author)

1)Zeyu Chen#, Xu Chen#, Dan Lu, Huating Kong, Jingyi Ye, Chunhai Fan, Honglu Zhang,*and Huan Zhang*.Engineering Liquid Hierarchical Materials with DNA-Programmed Spherical Nucleic Acids. Advanced Science, 2025, e04471

2)Qianqian Hu#, Erfeng Kou#, Xiuzhen Liao, Ruiyi Qiu, Qi Tang, Huan Zhang,* Yun Zheng,* Ji Yang,* and Binglian Zheng*. Nanoparticle Delivery of Antisense miR162 Inhibits Invasive Habitat Adaption of Alternanthera Philoxeroides. Advanced Science, 2025, 2416747.

3)Erfeng Kou; Zhongxu Luo; Jingyi Ye; Xu Chen; Dan Lu; Markita P. Landry; Honglu Zhang; Huan Zhang*. Sunlight-Sensitive Carbon Dots for Plant Immunity Priming and Pathogen Defense. Plant Biotechnology Journal, 2025, 1-12.

4)Xiaoyue Xu, Erfeng Kou, Kunyu Zhang*, Honglu Zhang*, Huan Zhang*; Programmable DNA-based biomaterials for bone tissue engineering, Fundamental Research, 2025, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fmre.2024.12.015.

5)Bin Zhao, Jingyi Ye, Zeyu Chen, Danyang Chen, Jiahui Chai, Zhongxu Luo, Xu Chen, Dan Shao, Qianjun He*, Chunhai Fan, Huan Zhang*, Honglu Zhang*. Mitochondria-Targeted Photoredox Catalysis Activates Pyroptosis for Effective Tumor Therapy. Advanced Functional Materials, 2024, 2417681.

6)Zeyu Chen#, Xu Chen#, Bin Zhao, Honglu Zhang*, Huan Zhang*. Efficient Poly-Adenine-Tailed DNA Functionalization of Gold Nanorods for Tailored Nanostructure Assembly. The Journal of Physical Chemistry Letters, 2024, 15, 4400-4407.

7)Yao Hu, Zhongxu Luo, Zhilei Ge, Qian Li, Peihui Yang, Honglu Zhang*and Huan Zhang*. Morphology Dictated Immune Activation with Framework Nucleic Acids. Small, 2023, 23034: 1-10.

8)Jingyi Ye, Huan Zhang* and Honglu Zhang*. In situ DNA storage with whole blood cryogenic silicification. Matter, 2023, 6, 26-29.

9)Bin Zhao; Zhongxu Luo; Honglu Zhang*; Huan Zhang*; Imaging tools for plant nanobiotechnology, Frontiers in Genome Editing, 2022, 4: 1029944.

10)Huan Zhang#, Natalie S Goh#, Jeffrey Wang, Gozde S Demirer, Salwan Butrus, So-Jung Park, Markita Landry*. Nanoparticle Cellular Internalization is Not Required for RNA Delivery to Mature Plant Leaves. Nature Nanotechnology, 2022, 17, 197-205.

11)Huan Zhang#, Yuhong Cao#, Dawei Xu, Natalie S Goh, Gozde S Demirer, Stefano Cestellos-Blanco, Yuan Chen, Markita P. Landry*, Peidong Yang*. Gold Nanocluster Mediated Delivery of siRNA to Intact Plant Cells for Efficient Gene Knockdown. Nano Letters, 2021, 21, 5859–5866.

12)Huan Zhang#, Honglu Zhang#, Gozde S. Demirer, Eduardo González-Grandío, Chunhai Fan and Markita P. Landry*. Engineering DNA nanostructures for siRNA delivery in plants. Nature Protocols, 2020, 15, 3064-3087.

13)Huan Zhang#, Gozde S. Demirer#, Honglu Zhang#, Tianzheng Ye, Natalie S. Goh, Abhishek J. Aditham, Francis J. Cunningham, Chunhai Fan and Markita P. Landry*. DNA Nanostructures Coordinate Gene Silencing in Mature Plants. PNAS, 2019,116, 15:7543-7548.

14)Gozde S. Demirer#, Huan Zhang#, Natalie S. Goh, Markita P. Landry*. Carbon nanotube-mediated DNA delivery without transgene integration in intact plants. Nature Protocols, 2019, 14, 2954-2971.

15)Honglu Zhang#, Yu Wang#, Huan Zhang#, Xiaoguo Liu#, Antony Lee, Jie Chao, Huajie Liu, Jiang li, Jiye Shi, Lihua Wang, Lianhui Wang, Xiaoyu Cao, Carlos Bustamante, Zhongqun Tian*, Chunhai Fan*. Programming chain-growth co-polymerization of DNA hairpin tiles for in-vitro hierarchical supramolecular organization. Nature Communications, 2019, 10, 1006 (1-11).

16)Gozde S. Demirer, Huan Zhang, Juliana L. Matos, Natalie Goh, Francis Cunningham, Younghun Sung, Roger Chang, Abhishek J. Aditham, Linda Chio, Myeong-Je Cho, Brian Staskawicz and Markita P. Landry*. High Aspect Ratio Nanomaterials Enable Delivery of Functional Genetic Material Without Transgenic DNA Integration in Mature Plants. Nature Nanotechnology, 2019, 14, 456-464.

17) Gozde S. Demirer, Huan Zhang, Natalie S. Goh and Markita P. Landry. Nanotubes effectively deliver siRNA to intact plant cells and protect siRNA against nuclease degradation. Science Advances, 2020, 6, eaaz0495.