Education
2011–2015 Jilin University B.S.
2015–2018 Peking University M.S.
2018–2023 École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) Ph.D.
Research Experience
2023–2026 Stanford University, Postdoctoral Fellow
2023–2026 Cancer Research Institute (CRI), CRI Irvington postdoctoral Fellow
2026–Present, Tsinghua University, Assistant Professor
Research Field
Dr. Zhao’s research focuses on the development of synthetic immunotherapy strategies for cancer treatment, with an emphasis on engineering biomolecular components and synthetic signaling modules to construct programmable immune systems. Her work aims to enhance T cell adaptability, signaling integration, and sustained anti-tumor responses within complex tumor microenvironments through the rational design of engineered cytokines, immune receptor systems, and synthetic protein platforms. A key goal is to establish modular and precisely controllable immune engineering frameworks that improve the programmability and functional plasticity of cancer immunotherapy.
Scientific Contributions
Dr. Zhao has conducted systematic studies in synthetic immunotherapy and T cell functional reprogramming, focusing on engineered cytokines, receptor signaling rewiring, and synthetic protein platforms. Her work has provided mechanistic insights into T cell metabolic regulation, signaling pathway remodeling, and cell fate determination. Key contributions include:
(1) Demonstration that IL-10 reprograms CAR-T cell metabolism, significantly enhancing their survival and sustained anti-tumor activity in solid tumor microenvironments (Nature Biotechnology, 2024).
(2) Discovery that the common γ-chain can form functional pairings with non-natural receptors, broadly expanding the JAK/STAT signaling landscape and enabling directed reprogramming of T cell states and lineages, leading to enhanced therapeutic efficacy in solid tumor models (Nature, 2025).
(3) Development of a synthetic cytokine-based signaling platform enabling controllable and programmable activation of non-native STAT signaling, providing a modular molecular framework for T cell functional enhancement and signal engineering (Science, 2026).
(4) Development of immune target imaging and dynamic monitoring technologies for real-time assessment of immune responses and prediction of therapeutic outcomes (PNAS, 2021; Cancer Research, 2017).
Publications
(#Co-first author; *Corresponding author)
1. Zhao Y, Ogishi M, Pal A, Su LL, Jiang H, Tao P, Rodriguez GE, Sun Q, Rysavy LW, Limsuwannarot S, Waghray D, Kalbasi A*, Garcia KC*. Expanding the cytokine receptor alphabet in T cells generates diverse cell states. Nature, 2025, 645, pages 1039–1050 (2025).
2. Rodriguez GE#, Zhao Y#, Abhiraman GC, Ogishi M, Zhang C, Saco J, Torres L, Simone BW, Waghray D, Su L, Wilson S, Yang A, Sun Q, Obenaus M, Picton L, Saxton RA, Bhandarkar V, Andrews E, Jiang H, Yen M, Atajanova T, Dougan M, Spranger S, Wherry EJ, Ribas A, Raulet DH, Kalbasi A, Garcia KC*. Rewiring STAT signaling from the cell surface with Trikines enhances immunotherapy. Science, 2026, May 14;392(6799).
3. Broerman A, Pollmann C, Zhao Y, Lichtenstein MA, Jackson MD, Tessmer MH, Ryu WH, Ogishi M, Abedi MH, Sahtoe DD, Allen A, Kang A, Cruz JDL, Brackenbrough E, Sankaran B, Bera AK, Zuckerman DM, Stoll S, Garcia KC, Praetorius F*, Piehler J*, Baker D*. Design of Induced Acceleration of Protein Complex Dissociation. Nature. 2025, 647, pages 528–535.
4. Householder KD, Xiang X, Jude KM, Deng A, Obenaus M, Zhao Y, Wilson SC, Chen X, Wang N, Garcia KC*. De novo design and structure of a peptide-centric TCR mimic binding module. Science, 2025 July; 389 (6758): 375-379.
5. Sun Q, Lyu H, Ogishi M, Jiang H, Zhao Y, Liu H, Rodriguez GE, Tao P, Obenaus M, Householder KD, Tang Q, Garcia KC*. Facile Induction of Peripheral Immune Tolerance by an IL-2-TGF-β Surrogate Agonist. Nature, 653, pages888–899 (2026)
6. Zhao Y#, Chen J#, Andreatta M, Feng B, Xie YQ, Wenes M, Wang Y, Gao M, Hu X, Romero P, Carmona S, Sun J*, Guo Y*, Tang L*. IL-10-expressing CAR T cells resist dysfunction and mediate durable clearance of solid tumors and metastases. Nature Biotechnology 2024, Jan; 42, 1693–1704. (Cover story)
7. Feng B#, Bai Z#, Zhou X, Zhao Y, Xie YQ, Huang X, Wang Y, Li R, Gao M, Bonati L, Charmoy M, Held W, Fan R*, Guo Y*, Tang L*. A type 2 cytokine Fc–IL-4 reinvigorates terminally exhausted CD8+ T cells to potentiate anticancer immunotherapy. Nature. 2024 Sept; 634, 712–720.
8. Zhao Y*. Cytokines 2025: 13th Annual Meeting of the International Cytokine and Interferon Society. Journal of Interferon & Cytokine Research, 2026 Jul;46(7):185-188.
9. Wang Y, Huang C, Cai G, Andreatta M, Kurum A, Zhao Y, Feng B, Gao M, Carmona S, Zhou Z, Sun C, Guo Y, Tang L*. Metabolic reinvigoration of NK cells by IL-21 enhances immunotherapy against MHC-I deficient solid tumors. Cell report. 2026; 45.
10. Guo Y#, Xie YQ#, Gao M, Zhao Y, Franco F, Wenes M, Siddiqui I, Bevilacqua A, Wang H, Yang H, Feng B, Xie X, Sabatel CM, Tschumi B, Chaiboonchoe A, Wang Y, Li W, Xiao W, Held W, Romero P, Ho PC*, Tang L*. Metabolic reprogramming of terminally exhausted CD8+ T cells by IL-10 enhances antitumor immunity. Nature Immunology. 2021 Jun; 22, 746–756.
11. Zhao Y#, Zhang T#, Wang Y, Lu D, Du J, Feng X, Zhou H, Liu N, Zhu H, Qin S, Liu C, Gao X, Yang Z, Liu Z*. ICAM-1 orchestrates the abscopal effect of tumor radiotherapy. PNAS. 2021 Apr 6;118(14):e2010333118.
12. Zhang T#, Zhang Y#, Zhao Y, Song R, Wang Y, Li K, Zhou H, Wang F, Zhou S, Zhu H, Yang Z, Liu Z*. Annotation of CD8+ T-cell function via ICAM-1 imaging identifies FAK inhibition as an adjuvant to augment the antitumor immunity of radiotherapy. Theranostics. 2024 Jan 1;14(2):699-713.
13. Wang Y, Zhang C, Lai J, Zhao Y, Lu D, Bao R, Feng X, Ting Z, Liu Z*. Noninvasive PET tracking of post-transplant gut microbiota in living mice. Eur J Nucl Med Mol Imaging. 2020 Apr;47(4):991-1002.
14. Bao R, Wang Y, Lai J, Zhu H, Zhao Y, Li N, Huang J, Yang Z, Wang F, Liu Z*. Enhancing Anti-PD-1/PD-L1 Immune Checkpoint Inhibitory Cancer Therapy by CD276-Targeted Photodynamic Ablation of Tumor Cells and Tumor Vasculature. Mol Pharm. 2019 Jan;16(1):339-348.
15. Lai J, Lu D, Zhang C, Zhu H, Gao L, Wang Y, Bao R, Zhao Y, Jia B, Wang F, Yang Z, Liu Z*. Noninvasive small-animal imaging of galectin-1 upregulation for predicting tumor resistance to radiotherapy. Biomaterials. 2018 Mar; 158:1-9.
16. Zhao Y, Zhang C, Gao L, Yu X, Lai J, Lu D, Bao R, Wang Y, Jia B, Wang F, Liu Z*. Chemotherapy-induced macrophage infiltration into tumors enhances nanographene-based photodynamic therapy. Cancer Res. 2017 Nov;77(21):6021-6032.
17. Yu X, Gao D, Gao L, Lai J, Zhang C, Zhao Y, Zhong L, Jia B, Wang F, Chen X, Liu Z*. Inhibiting Metastasis and Preventing Tumor Relapse by Triggering Host Immunity with Tumor-Targeted Photodynamic Therapy Using Photosensitizer-Loaded Functional Nanographenes. ACS Nano. 2017 Oct;11(10):10147-10158.
18. Zhang C, Yu X, Gao L, Zhao Y, Lai J, Lu D, Bao R, Jia B, Zhong L, Wang F, Liu Z*. Noninvasive imaging of CD206-positive M2 macrophages as an early biomarker for post-chemotherapy tumor relapse and lymph node metastasis. Theranostics. 2017 Sep 26;7(17):4276-4288.
Patents
• Zhao Y, Tang L, Guo Y. “IL-10-expressing cells for enhanced cancer immunotherapies”. No. PCT/EP2022/073462, 2022
• Zhao Y, Tang L, Enbar T, Feng B. “Engineered type 2 cytokine signalling to improve CAR-T cell effector functions”. No. PCT/EP2025/053232, 2025
