Join the Department of Materials Science and Engineering as we welcome Xizhen Lian from the Johns Hopkins Institute for Nanobiotechnology (INBT) on Wednesday, January 29th at 3pm in Maryland Hall Room 110.
ABSTRACT: Molecular Design and Engineering of Nanomaterials For Targeted In Vivo Delivery of Biomolecules and Gene Editors
The emergence of protein and nucleic acid therapeutics is revolutionizing medicine, offering the ability to modulate all steps of the central dogma of molecular biology and presenting unprecedented potential to treat or cure diseases previously deemed undruggable. However, their large molecular size and susceptibility to biological scavengers often result in inefficient accumulation in target tissues and suboptimal therapeutic efficacy when administered without suitable delivery systems.
In this talk, I will address these challenges through the development of targeted non-viral delivery vehicles using molecular design and engineering strategies. I will first highlight the rational design and synthesis of porous metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) as single-molecule traps for enzyme encapsulation, with a focus on thermodynamic and kinetic controls over the porosity and particle size of these materials. Next, I will introduce the development of lipid nanoparticles (LNPs) as targeted delivery vehicles for RNA therapeutics and CRISPR gene editors, specifically for applications in bone marrow, lungs, liver, and eyes. Key topics will include compositional and surface engineering of LNPs, structure–activity relationship (SAR) analyses, and the characterization of the material–biology interface. Overall, this talk will provide insights into the design principles of nanomaterials for targeted delivery and their therapeutic potential across diverse biological contexts and disease models.
BIO: Xizhen Lian
Xizhen Lian was born and raised in Tianjin, China. He obtained a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry from Nankai University and a Ph.D. in Chemistry from Texas A&M University. He then completed postdoctoral training in Biomedical Engineering at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center under the mentorship of Prof. Daniel Siegwart. During this time, his research focused on the development of lipid nanoparticles for in vivo mRNA delivery and gene editing targeting the bone marrow, lung, and liver.
In May 2024, Xizhen Lian joined Johns Hopkins University as an Assistant Research Scientist with joint appointments in the Whiting School of Engineering and the School of Medicine. His research interests lie in the design and engineering of non-viral delivery systems for in vivo gene therapies aimed at treating diseases in the blood, lungs, eyes, and central nervous system. His work has been supported by the Johns Hopkins Hemophilia Treatment Center and the Orphan Disease Center, with a focus on treating rare bleeding and thrombotic disorders as well as Ataxia Telangiectasia.