Jinming Gao, Ph.D. Titles and Appointments Professor Endowed Title Elaine Dewey Sammons Distinguished Chair in Cancer Research, in Honor of Eugene P. Frenkel, M.D. School Medical School Department Harold C. Simmons Comprehensive Cancer Center | Biomedical Engineering | Cell Biology | Otolaryngology - Head & Neck Surgery | Pharmacology Graduate Programs Biomedical Engineering, Cancer Biology Biography Download Curriculum Vitae Jinming Gao is a distinguished researcher and professor at UT Southwestern Medical Center, where his research focuses at the intersection of nanotechnology and cancer. With an academic background in chemistry and biomedical engineering, Dr. Gao leads a research group that aims to develop innovative nanotechnology to improve cancer diagnosis and therapy. One notable achievement of the Gao Group is the development of proton transistor nanoparticles, such as Pegsitacianine, which can digitize tumor acidotic signals stemming from dysregulated cancer cell metabolism. This nanosensor has received Breakthrough Therapy Designation from the Food and Drug Administration for identifying unresected residual diseases in cancer patients. In cancer therapy, the Gao Group discovered synthetic polymers that non-canonically activate the stimulator of interferon genes (STING) pathway, leading to increased tumor and immune cell selectivity and improved antitumor immunity. A 'shock-and-lock' nanoparticle STING agonist has entered first-in-human trial in late 2023. Currently, the Gao Group is investigating tumor acidotic biology and its role on immune suppression, as well as developing immune-engineering strategies to activate innate and adaptive immunity for a safe and effective cancer immunotherapy. Education Undergraduate Peking University , Chemistry Graduate School Harvard University (1996) Research Interest Acidotic transistor medicine (ATOM) Immune-engineering STING immunity Publications Featured Publications Severely polarized extracellular acidity around tumor cells Feng Q, Bennett Z, Grichuk A, Huang T, Faubert B, Huang G, Chen M, DeBerardinis RJ, Sumer BD, Gao J. Nature Biomed. Eng. 2024 Doi.org/10.1038/s41551-024-01178-7 STING Licensing of Type I Dendritic Cells Potentiates Antitumor Immunity Wang J, Li S, Wang M, Wang X, Chen SQ, Sun ZC, Ren XB, Huang G, Sumer BD, Yan N, Fu YX, Gao J. Science Immunol. 2024 9 3945 Polyvalent design in the cGAS-STING pathway Bennett ZT, Li S, Sumer BD, Gao J. Semin. Immunol. 2022 doi.org/10.1016/j.smim.2021.101580 Lactate increases stemness of CD8+ T cells to augment anti-tumor immunity Feng Q, Liu Z, Yu X, Huang T, Chen J, Wang J, Wilhelm J, Li S, Song J, Li W, Sun Z, Sumer BD, Li B, Fu YX, and Gao J. Nature Comm. 2022 13 4981 Prolonged activation of innate immune pathways by a polyvalent STING agonist Li S, Luo M, Wang ZH, Feng Q, Wilhelm J, Wang X, Li W, Wang J, Cholka A, Fu YX, Sumer BD, Yu HT, Gao J. Nature BME 2021 5 455-466 Polycarbonate-based ultra-pH sensitive nanoparticles improve therapeutic window Wang X, Wilhelm J, Li W, Li S, Wang ZH, Huang G, Wang J, Tang H, Khorsandi S, Sun Z, Evers B, Gao J. Nature Comm. 2020 11 5828 PET Imaging of Occult Tumors by Temporal Integration of Tumor-Acidosis Signals Huang G, Zhao T, Wang C, Nham K, Xiong Y, Gao X, Wang Y, Hao G, Ge WP, Sun X, Sumer BD, Gao J. Nature BME 2020 4 314 Exploiting metabolic acidosis in solid cancers using a tumor-agnostic pH-activatable nanoprobe for fluorescence-guided surgery Voskuil FJ, Steinkamp PJ, Zhao T, van der Vegt B, Koller M, Doff JJ, Jayalakshmi Y, Hartung JP, Gao J, Sumer BD, Witjes MJH, van Dam GM. Nature Comm. 2020 11 3257 Transistor-like Ultra-pH-Sensitive Polymeric Nanoparticles Feng Q, Wilhelm J, Gao J. Acc. Chem. Res. 2019 52 1485-1495 Cooperativity Principles in Self-Assembled Nanomedicine Li Y, Wang Y, Huang G, Gao J. Chem. Rev. 2018 118 5359-5391 Results 1-10 of 17 1 2 Next Last Honors & Awards Fellow, American Institute of Medical and Biological Engineering (2024) Fellow, National Academy of Inventors (2023) Immuno-engineering to Improve Immunotherapy (I3) Center Award, Beau Biden Cancer Moonshot Initiative, National Cancer Institute (2019) Outstanding Investigator Award, National Cancer Institute (2024)
