Publications

Lead-author cards use * for equal contribution and # for corresponding author. Collaborative publications use † for equal contribution and * for corresponding author.

Lead author publications (11):

Nature Biomedical Engineering2026

Lipid nanoparticle composition directs systemic trafficking and tissue-specific T cell immunity after intramuscular injection

Wei C*, Zhu Y*#, Lu X, Goodier KD, Yu D, Liu X, Choy J, Téllez Calderón A, Su Y, Ma J, Lin J, Li S, Schneck JP, Murphy SC#, Mao HQ#.

3 citations News

• Lipid nanoparticle composition governs their movement from muscle to distant organs, enabling organ-specific antigen expression and driving the formation of tissue-resident cytotoxic T cells.

Nature Chemical Engineering2026

Crosslinking of lipid nanoparticles enhances the delivery efficiency and efficacy of mRNA vaccines

Liu X*, Zhu Y*, Wei C, Lin J, Yu D, Kong J, Shao F, Ma J, Xu T, Lu X, Su Y, Goodier KD, Cheng L, Toh WH, Erb CJ, Li S, Wang TH, Mao HQ#.

News 2 citations

• A reversible post-assembly crosslinking strategy enhances LNP-mediated mRNA delivery while preserving intracellular release, enabling improved endosomal escape, sustained in vivo expression, and robust immune and antitumor responses.

Materials Today2026

Imidazolium lipid-based nanoparticles enable effective mRNA delivery and cellular immune response

Lin J*, Zhu Y*, Cheng L, Wei C, Kong J, Choy J, Lu X, Yu D, Ma J, Liu X, Su Y, Naganand S, Gueguen C, Huaulme Q, Urguia P, Mao HQ#.

0 citations

• Screening 1,944 formulations identified LipidBrick® LNPs that outperform the clinical benchmark ALC-0315, producing stronger antigen-specific T-cell responses while maintaining low cytotoxicity.

Nature Communications2025

An mRNA lipid nanoparticle-incorporated nanofiber-hydrogel composite for cancer immunotherapy

Zhu Y*, Yao ZC*, Li S*, Ma J, Wei C, Yu D, Stelzel JL, Ni BYX, Miao Y, Van Batavia K, Lu X, Lin J, Dai Y, Kong J, Shen R, Goodier KD, Liu X, Cheng L, Vuong I, Howard GP, Livingston NK, Choy J, Schneck JP, Doloff JC, Reddy SK, Hickey JW, Mao HQ#.

27 citations

• An mRNA LNP-incorporated microgel matrix recruits immune cells, supports antigen expression and presentation, and elicits potent antitumor efficacy with a single administration.

Science Advances2025

A multistep platform identifies spleen-tropic lipid nanoparticles for in vivo T cell-targeted delivery of gene-editing proteins

Lu X*, Zhu Y*, Wei C, Cheng L, Goodier KD, Kong J, Gao X, Yu D, Liu X, Long Y, Lin J, Ma J, Su Y, Mao HQ#.

News 3 citations

• A multistep in vivo screening platform identified LNPs that preferentially target the spleen and deliver CRISPR-Cas9 ribonucleoproteins directly to T cells, enabling efficient gene editing without ex vivo manipulation.

Nature Biomedical Engineering2024

Screening for lipid nanoparticles that modulate the immune activity of helper T cells towards enhanced antitumour activity

Zhu Y, Ma J, Shen R, Lin J, Li S, Lu X, Stelzel JL, Kong J, Cheng L, Vuong I, Yao ZC, Wei C, Korinetz NM, Toh WH, Choy J, Reynolds RA, Shears MJ, Cho WJ, Livingston NK, Howard GP, Hu Y, Tzeng SY, Zack DJ, Green JJ, Zheng L, Doloff JC, Schneck JP, Reddy SK, Murphy SC#, Mao HQ#.

News 120 citations

• An LNP screening strategy optimized helper lipid identity and component ratios to enhance dendritic cell delivery of tumour-antigen-encoding mRNA and improve immune activation toward stronger antitumour responses.

Biomaterials2024

Optimization of lipid nanoparticles for gene editing of the liver via intraduodenal delivery

Zhu Y*, Cai SS*, Ma J, Cheng L, Wei C, Aggarwal A, Toh WH, Shin C, Shen R, Kong J, Mao SA, Lao YH, Leong KW#, Mao HQ#.

22 citations

• A multi-step screening strategy identified pDNA LNP formulations for intraduodenal delivery and non-viral gene editing in mouse liver, reducing PCSK9 and ANGPTL3 to lower LDL cholesterol.

Nature Chemical Engineering2024

Tuning extracellular fluid viscosity to enhance transfection efficiency

Ma J*, Zhu Y*, Kong J, Yu D, Toh WH, Jain M, Ni Q, Ge Z, Lin J, Choy J, Cheng L, Konstantopoulos K, Konig M, Sun S#, Mao HQ#.

News 11 citations

• Matching cell culture viscosity to that of biological fluids substantially improves transfection efficiency across multiple gene delivery platforms and cell types.

Nature Communications2022

Multi-step screening of DNA/lipid nanoparticles and co-delivery with siRNA to enhance and prolong gene expression

Zhu Y, Shen R, Vuong I, Reynolds RA, Shears MJ, Yao ZC, Hu Y, Cho WJ, Kong J, Reddy SK, Murphy SC#, Mao HQ#.

News 163 citations

• A multi-step platform identified optimized plasmid DNA LNPs for liver-targeted delivery and prolonged transgene expression, addressing a major gap in systematic pDNA LNP design.

Nano Letters2021

Size-controlled and shelf-stable DNA particles for production of lentiviral vectors

Hu Y*, Zhu Y*, Sutherland ND, Wilson DR, Pang M, Liu E, Staub JR, Berlinicke CA, Zack DJ, Green JJ, Reddy SK, Mao HQ#.

News 32 citations

• Size-controlled pDNA/PEI particles improved lentiviral vector production, with an optimal particle size of 400-500 nm linked to enhanced cellular uptake and transfection efficiency.

Journal of Controlled Release2020

Albumin-biomineralized nanoparticles to synergize phototherapy and immunotherapy against melanoma

Zhu Y*, Xue J, Chen W, Bai S, Zheng T, He C, Guo Z, Jiang M, Du G, Sun X#.

103 citations

• Albumin-biomineralized nanoparticles co-delivering a photosensitizer and immunoadjuvant were engineered to couple tumor ablation with immune activation for melanoma therapy.

Collaborative publications (22):

• S Schiffers†, BW Nelson†, M Prigge, S Krishna, L Watkins, Y Zhu, N Tyagi, H Beiki, S Das, A Raman, J Ma, T Andresson, HQ Mao, B Wu*, S Oberdoerffer*. N⁴-Acetylcytidine enhances synthetic mRNA translation yield and fidelity. Nature, 2026.

• J Lin†, Y Hu†*, TH Pial, KD Goodier, D Yu, P Brailsford, M Choi-Ali, JT Feng, S Li, Y Zhu, et al., HQ Mao*. Trivalent ions kinetic-gating for producing high-concentration and shelf-stable plasmid DNA/PEI particles. Nature Communications, 2026.

• J Choy, L Cheng, M Patel, Y Zhu, J Ma, SS Kang, M Jain, et al., HQ Mao*. Class II peptide-major histocompatibility complex lipid nanoparticles enable in vivo mRNA delivery to antigen-specific CD4+ T cells. ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, 2026.

• J Choy, S Shannon, Y Zhang, SS Kang, Y Zhu, et al., J Schneck*. Nanoscale artificial antigen-presenting cells reveal metabolic interventions modulate clonal composition of CD8+ T cells. Cell Biomaterials, 2026.

• B Torkzaban, Y Zhu, C Lopez, JM Alexander, J Ma, Y Sun, KR Maschhoff, et al., J Coller*. Use of poly adenosine tail mimetics to enhance mRNA expression from genes associated with haploinsufficiency disorders. Molecular Therapy Nucleic Acids, 2025.

• A Greco, L Cheng, KD Goodier, Y Zhu, J Kong, S Gong, C Erb, J Lin, X Lu, et al., HQ Mao*. Adipocyte-selective mRNA lipid nanoparticles for cell programming with machine learning analysis. Journal of Controlled Release, 2025.

• Z Guo, F Wu, C Guo, R Hu, Y Ou, Y Zhu, S Luo, Y Song, P He, C He, Y Xu, et al., X Sun*. Metalloparticle-Engineered Pickering Emulsion Displaying AAV-Vectored Vaccine for Enhancing Antigen Expression and Immunogenicity Against Pathogens. Advanced Materials, 2025.

• L Cheng, Y Zhu, J Ma, A Aggarwal, WH Toh, C Shin, et al., HQ Mao*. Machine learning elucidates design features of plasmid deoxyribonucleic acid lipid nanoparticles for cell type-preferential transfection. ACS nano, 2024.

• Y Hu, B Eder, J Lin, S Li, Y Zhu, et al., HQ Mao*. Liter-scale manufacturing of shelf-stable plasmid DNA/PEI transfection particles for viral vector production. Molecular Therapy Methods & Clinical Development, 2024.

• Y Hu, S Tzeng, L Cheng, J Lin, A Rueda, S Yu, S Li, Z Schneiderman, Y Zhu, et al., HQ Mao*. Supramolecular assembly of polycation/mRNA nanoparticles and in vivo monocyte programming. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 2024.

• J. Kong, Z.-C. Yao, J. L. Stelzel, Y.-H. Yang, J. Chen, H. Feng, C. Schmidt, C. Zhang, K. Krishnan, L. Chen, J. Pan, K. Ding, Y. Zhu, X. Li, J. C. Doloff, H.-Q. Mao, S. K. Reddy. Granular Nanofiber-Hydrogel Composite-Programmed Regenerative Inflammation and Adipose Tissue Formation. Advanced Healthcare Materials, 2024.

• W Chen, Y Song, S Bai, C He, G Zhao, Y Zhu, et al., X Sun*. Cloaking mesoporous polydopamine with bacterial membrane vesicles to amplify local and systemic antitumor immunity. ACS nano, 2023.

• W Chen, Y Zhu, J Chen, X Jing, Y Xiong, L Zou, J Li, Q Liu, Y Li, Y Huang, et al., J He*. Potentiating the systemic immunity by bacteria-delivered STING activation in a tumor microenvironment. Advanced Functional Materials, 2023.

• Z Guo, Y Zhu, G Du, M Qin, C He, P He, Y Song, W Chen, S Bai, F Wu, et al., X Sun*. Rapid development of a subunit nano-vaccine against drug-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa with effective cross-protection. Nano Today, 2022.

• J Xue, Y Zhu, S Bai, C He, G Du, Y Zhang, Y Zhong, W Chen, H Wang, et al., X Sun*. Nanoparticles with rough surface improve the therapeutic effect of photothermal immunotherapy against melanoma. Acta Pharmaceutica Sinica B, 2022.

• ZC Yao, YH Yang, J Kong, Y Zhu, L Li, C Chang, C Zhang, J Yin, J Chao, et al., HQ Mao*. Biostimulatory micro-fragmented nanofiber-hydrogel composite improves mesenchymal stem cell delivery and soft tissue remodeling. Small, 2022.

• S Bai, H Jiang, Y Song, Y Zhu, M Qin, C He, G Du, X Sun*. Aluminum nanoparticles deliver a dual-epitope peptide for enhanced anti-tumor immunotherapy. Journal of Controlled Release, 2022.

• S Li, Y Hu, A Li, J Lin, K Hsieh, Z Schneiderman, P Zhang, Y Zhu, et al., HQ Mao*. Payload distribution and capacity of mRNA lipid nanoparticles. Nature Communications, 2022.

• X Zhong, G Du, X Wang, Y Ou, H Wang, Y Zhu, X Hao, Z Xie, Y Zhang, et al., X Sun*. Nanovaccines mediated subcutis-to-intestine cascade for improved protection against intestinal infections. Small, 2022.

• W Chen, Z Guo, Y Zhu, N Qiao, Z Zhang, X Sun*. Combination of bacterial‐photothermal therapy with an anti‐PD‐1 peptide depot for enhanced immunity against advanced cancer. Advanced Functional Materials, 2020.

• X Ke, L Shelton, Y Hu, Y Zhu, E Chow, H Tang, JL Santos, HQ Mao*. Surface-functionalized PEGylated nanoparticles deliver messenger RNA to pulmonary immune cells. ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, 2020.

• C Li, X Chen, X Luo, H Wang, Y Zhu, G Du, W Chen, Z Chen, X Hao, et al., X Sun*. Nanoemulsions target to ectopic lymphoids in inflamed joints to restore immune tolerance in rheumatoid arthritis. Nano Letters, 2020.

Reviews (3):

• W Chen, Y Zhu, J He, X Sun*. Path towards mRNA delivery for cancer immunotherapy from bench to bedside. Theranostics, 2024.

• W Chen, Y Zhu, Z Zhang, X Sun*. Advances in Salmonella Typhimurium-based drug delivery system for cancer therapy. Advanced Drug Delivery Reviews, 2022.

• S Huang, Y Zhu, L Zhang, Z Zhang*. Recent advances in delivery systems for genetic and other novel vaccines. Advanced Materials, 2022.