Guizhi Zhu

Guizhi Zhu (Julian) is an Associate Professor in the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences at the University of Michigan — Ann Arbor. He is also a Center Member at the Rogel Cancer Center and Biointerfaces Institute. His research focuses on RNA-based therapeutics and vaccines at the intersection of immunology, nucleic acid engineering, and functional biomaterials.

Dr. Zhu earned a B.S. from Nankai University (China), a Ph.D. from the University of Florida (USA), and completed postdoctoral training at the National Institutes of Health. His work has been continuously supported by federal grants from NIH, DoD, and ACS, including a $2.3M NIH/NCI R01 grant (2022-2027) and a DoD Breast Cancer Research Breakthrough Award (2022-2025).

• Developing circRNA and mRNA vaccines for cancer and infectious diseases
• Designing nucleic acid immunotherapeutics (circRNA, gene-editing gRNA, siRNA)
• Engineering cGAS-STING-targeted immunomodulators for cancer and autoimmune diseases
• Creating biomaterials delivery systems: lipid nanoparticles, polymeric microneedles, hydrogels

His 15 most recent publications (2020-2025) demonstrate expertise in circular RNA vaccines, nucleic acid delivery, and combination immunotherapy. His 2022 review in Journal of Controlled Release has been cited 231 times, highlighting his leadership in RNA therapeutics.

• 2022: Mary Ann Liebert Young Investigator Award, AAPS Emerging Leader Award
• 2021: NIH MIRA R35 grant ($1.9M), METAvivor Early Career Award
• 2019: KL2 Scholar (NCATS, NIH)

The Zhu Research Group includes 15+ members working on projects like tumor therapeutic mRNA vaccines and RNA editing. They currently accept PhD students, postdocs, and visiting scholars.