Shaoyi Jiang joined the Meinig School as Robert S. Langer ’70 Family and Friends Professor in June 2020. Prior to Cornell he was the Boeing-Roundhill Professor of Engineering in the Department of Chemical Engineering and an adjunct professor of Bioengineering at the University of Washington, Seattle.
Jiang’s research focuses on the molecular understanding, design and development of functional zwitterionic materials for biomedical and engineering applications. Since the early 2000s, his group has proposed the concept of super-hydrophilic zwitterionic materials, provided a molecular-level understanding of non-fouling mechanisms and developed several new classes of zwitterionic materials, including poly(carboxybetaine), poly(sulfobetaine), poly(trimethylamine N-oxide), poly(zwitterionic phosphatidylserine), and glutamic acid (E) and lysine (K)-containing poly(peptides). His group has demonstrated no capsule formation upon subcutaneous implantation in mice for one year, expansion of hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HSPCs) without differentiation, no anti-coagulants needed for artificial lungs in sheep, no antibodies generated against zwitterionic polymers, and environmentally benign marine coatings. These highly biocompatible zwitterionic materials are excellent alternatives to widely used poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) counterparts.
At Cornell, his group aims to (a) integrate immunology into his biomaterials and drug delivery research programs; (b) translate his biomaterials and drug delivery technologies into medical and engineering practice. Currently, his group has focused on basic and applied research combining science, engineering and medicine, particularly in two areas: (i) Drug delivery and cancer immunotherapy: his group is developing low-immunogenic and targeted viral and non-viral delivery carriers for mRNAs, DNAs, proteins and small molecules, and cancer and infectious disease vaccines and (ii) Biomaterials and regenerative / precision medicine: His group is developing highly biocompatible and immunomodulating materials, and controlled culture systems for iPSCs and organoids. His group has close collaborations with researchers at Weill Cornell Medicine, Cornell College of Veterinary Medicine, several academic departments at Cornell and beyond.
B.S. (Chemical Engineering), Hua Qiao University, 1985
M.S. (Chemical Engineering) Nanjing Institute of Chemical Technology, 1988
Ph.D. (Chemical Engineering), Cornell University, 1993
Postdoctoral Fellow (Chemistry), University of California at Berkeley, 1993-1994
Research Fellow (Chemistry), California Institute of Technology, 1994-1996
