Hao Zhu, M.D.

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Hao Zhu earned his bachelor’s degree in biology from Duke University, followed by an M.D. from Harvard Medical School and MIT. He underwent clinical training in internal medicine at University of California, San Francisco, and medical oncology at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. Dr. Zhu performed postdoctoral research in George Daley’s laboratory at Boston Children’s Hospital from 2008 to 2012. He joined the faculty of the Children’s Medical Center Research Institute at UT Southwestern in 2012. Dr. Zhu is the director of the CRI Tissue Regeneration Program and a co-leader of the Simmons Comprehensive Cancer Center Development and Cancer Research Program. As a medical oncologist, he treats hepatocellular carcinoma patients in the Multidisciplinary Liver Cancer Clinic at Parkland Memorial Hospital.

Dr. Zhu is the recipient of a Burroughs Wellcome Career Award for Medical Scientists (2012), a CPRIT Scholar Award (2012), a Stand Up To Cancer Innovative Research Grant (2016), and Mark Foundation Emerging Leader Award (2021). Dr. Zhu holds the Nancy B. and Jake L. Hamon Distinguished Chair in Therapeutic Oncology Research.

The Zhu laboratory is interested in understanding the relationship between injury, regeneration, and cancer. They are focused on identifying the genes and mechanisms that regulate regenerative capacity in the liver and understanding how these contribute to hepatocellular carcinoma development – the third leading cause of cancer death in the world.

Zhu Laboratory

Medical School

Harvard Medical School (2005)

Residency

University of California, San Francisco (2007), Internal Medicine

Fellowship

Dana-Farber Cancer Institute (2011), Hematology Oncology

• Chronic liver disease
• In vivo genetic screening
• Liver cancer
• Liver regeneration
• Mechanisms of organ regeneration

Featured Publications

IGFBP2 expressing midlobular hepatocytes preferentially contribute to liver homeostasis and regeneration.

Lin YH, Wei Y, Zeng Q, Wang Y, Pagani CA, Li L, Zhu M, Wang Z, Hsieh MH, Corbitt N, Zhang Y, Sharma T, Wang T, Zhu H, Cell Stem Cell 2023 May 30 5 665-676.e4

Positive selection of somatically mutated clones identifies adaptive pathways in metabolic liver disease.

Wang Z, Zhu S, Jia Y, Wang Y, Kubota N, Fujiwara N, Gordillo R, Lewis C, Zhu M, Sharma T, Li L, Zeng Q, Lin YH, Hsieh MH, Gopal P, Wang T, Hoare M, Campbell P, Hoshida Y, Zhu H, Cell 2023 Apr 186 9 1968-1984.e20

In vivo CRISPR screening identifies BAZ2 chromatin remodelers as druggable regulators of mammalian liver regeneration.

Jia Y, Li L, Lin YH, Gopal P, Shen S, Zhou K, Yu X, Sharma T, Zhang Y, Siegwart DJ, Ready JM, Zhu H, Cell Stem Cell 2022 Jan

Liver homeostasis is maintained by midlobular zone 2 hepatocytes.

Wei Y, Wang YG, Jia Y, Li L, Yoon J, Zhang S, Wang Z, Zhang Y, Zhu M, Sharma T, Lin YH, Hsieh MH, Albrecht JH, Le PT, Rosen CJ, Wang T, Zhu H, Science 2021 02 371 6532

Somatic Mutations Increase Hepatic Clonal Fitness and Regeneration in Chronic Liver Disease.

Zhu M, Lu T, Jia Y, Luo X, Gopal P, Li L, Odewole M, Renteria V, Singal AG, Jang Y, Ge K, Wang SC, Sorouri M, Parekh JR, MacConmara MP, Yopp AC, Wang T, Zhu H, Cell 2019 Apr

The Polyploid State Plays a Tumor-Suppressive Role in the Liver.

Zhang S, Zhou K, Luo X, Li L, Tu HC, Sehgal A, Nguyen LH, Zhang Y, Gopal P, Tarlow BD, Siegwart DJ, Zhu H Dev. Cell 2018 Feb

Knockdown of Anillin Actin Binding Protein Blocks Cytokinesis in Hepatocytes and Reduces Liver Tumor Development in Mice without Affecting Regeneration.

Zhang S, Nguyen LH, Zhou K, Tu HC, Sehgal A, Nassour I, Li L, Gopal P, Goodman J, Singal AG, Yopp A, Zhang Y, Siegwart DJ, Zhu H Gastroenterology 2017 Dec

Arid1a Has Context-Dependent Oncogenic and Tumor Suppressor Functions in Liver Cancer.

Sun X, Wang SC, Wei Y, Luo X, Jia Y, Li L, Gopal P, Zhu M, Nassour I, Chuang JC, Maples T, Celen C, Nguyen LH, Wu L, Fu S, Li W, Hui L, Tian F, Ji Y, Zhang S, Sorouri M, Hwang TH, Letzig L, James L, Wang Z, Yopp AC, Singal AG, Zhu H Cancer Cell 2017 Nov 32 5 574-589.e6

Suppression of the SWI/SNF Component Arid1a Promotes Mammalian Regeneration.

Sun X, Chuang JC, Kanchwala M, Wu L, Celen C, Li L, Liang H, Zhang S, Maples T, Nguyen LH, Wang SC, Signer RA, Sorouri M, Nassour I, Liu X, Xu J, Wu M, Zhao Y, Kuo YC, Wang Z, Xing C, Zhu H Cell Stem Cell 2016 Mar

Lin28b is sufficient to drive liver cancer and necessary for its maintenance in murine models.

Nguyen LH, Robinton DA, Seligson MT, Wu L, Li L, Rakheja D, Comerford SA, Ramezani S, Sun X, Parikh MS, Yang EH, Powers JT, Shinoda G, Shah SP, Hammer RE, Daley GQ, Zhu H Cancer Cell 2014 Aug 26 2 248-61

• Mark Foundation Emerging Leader Award
  (2021-2024)
• Member of the American Society of Clinical Investigation
  (2018)
• SU2C Innovative Research Grant
  (2016-2019)
• Burroughs Wellcome Fund Career Award for Medical Scientists
  (2012)
• CPRIT Scholar in Cancer Research
  (2012)