个人简介

2010-12 Postdoctoral fellow – Northwestern University 2005-2009 Ph.D. – Washington University in St. Louis

研究领域

Polymer Chemistry and Nanobiotechnology

The Zhang lab research is highly interdisciplinary. While our core research is polymer chemistry, we utilize a range of organic reactions, colloidal syntheses, and bioconjugation techniques to access our synthetic targets. Unlike those of an organic chemist, our targets are usually much larger, oftentimes large enough to be visualized by electronic or atomic microscopy (tens to hundreds of nanometers). For example, one of our synthetic aims involves a mimic for a virus capsid which we intend to use as preventive or therapeutic vaccines. Another target of ours is a nanoscopic drug carrier that can release drug molecules at specific times or as an external trigger is applied. These systems will require careful designs: design for connectivity and assembly, design for materials functionalities such as degradation, release, membrane disruption, and encapsulation, and design for biomolecule interactions in particular cell and tissue targets. Students and postdoctoral fellows will gain experience in organic and colloidal syntheses, polymer chemistry, and nanotechnology, while being exposed to interdisciplinary science. From a strategic perspective, it is expected that synergistic combinations of polymer chemistry, bio-, and nanotechnology are likely to remain as priority areas for the foreseeable future in both academia and industry.

近期论文

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Lu, X.; Watts, E.; Jia, F.; Tan, X.; Zhang, K.* “Polycondensation of polymer brushes via DNA hybridization”, J. Am. Chem. Soc., 2014, 136, 10214 Zhang, K.;* Zhu, X.; Jia, F.; Auyeung, E.; Mirkin, C. A. “Temperature-activated nucleic acid nanostructures”, J. Am. Chem. Soc., 2013, 135, 14102 Zhu, J.; Zhang, S.; Zhang, K.; Wang, X.; Mays, J. W.; Wooley, K. L.; Pochan, D. J. “Disk-cylinder and disk-sphere nanoparticles from block copolymer blend solution construction”, Nat. Commun., 2013, doi:10.1038/ncomms3297 Wang, Z.; Zhang, K.; Shen, Y.; Smith, J.; Bloch, S.; Achilefu, S.; Wooley, K. L.; Taylor, J.-S. A. “Imaging mRNA expression levels in living cells with PNA∙DNA binary FRET probes delivered by cationic shell-crosslinked nanoparticles”, Org. Biomol. Chem., 2013, doi:10.1039/C3OB26923J Ibricevic, A.; Gunsten, S. P.; Zhang, K.; Shrestha, R.; Liu, Y.; Sun, J.; Welch, M. J.; Taylor, J.-S. A.; Wooley, K. L.; Brody, S. L. “PEGylation of cationic, shell-crosslinked knedel-like nanoparticles modulates inflammation and enhances cellular uptake in the lung”, Nanomedicine NBM, 2013, doi:10.1016/j.nano.2013.02.006 Shen, Y.; Fang, H.; Zhang, K.; Shrestha, R.; Wooley, K. L.; Taylor, J.-S. A. “Efficient protection and transfection of small interfering RNA by cationic shell-crosslinked knedel-like nanoparticles”, Nuc. Acid Ther., 2013, doi:10.1089/nat.2012.0390 Wang, Z.; Zhang, K.; Wooley, K. L.; Taylor, J.-S. A. “Imaging mRNA expression in live cells via peptide nucleic acid (PNA) strand-displacement activated probes”, J. Nuc. Acids, 2012, doi:10.1155/2012/962652 Zhang, K.; Hao, L.; Hurst, S. J.; Mirkin, C. A. “Antibody-linked spherical nucleic acids for cellular targeting”, J. Am. Chem. Soc., 2012, 134, 16488–16491 Auyeung, E.; Cutler, J. I.; Macfarlane, R. J.; Jones, M. R.; Zhang, K.; Mirkin, C. A. “Synthetically programmable nanoparticle superlattices: The hollow three-dimensional spacer approach”, Nat. Nanotechnol., 2012, 7, 24-28 (Cover article; highlighted by MRS Bulletin) Zhang, K.; Zheng, D.; Hao, L.; Cutler, J. I.; Auyeung, E.; Mirkin, C. A. “ImmunoPods: Polymer shells with native antibody crosslinks”, Angew. Chem. Int. Ed., 2012, 5, 1169-1172 (Hot Paper) Pochan, D. J.; Zhu, J.; Zhang, K.; Wooley, K. L.; Miesch C.; Emrick, T. “Multicompartment and multigeometry nanoparticle assembly”, Soft Matter, 2011, 7, 2500-2506 Cutler, J. I.; Zhang, K.; Zheng, D.; Auyeung, E.; Prigodich, A. E.; Mirkin, C. A. “Polyvalent nucleic acid nanostructures”, J. Am. Chem. Soc., 2011, 133, 9254-9257 (Equal first author; highlighted by C&EN and WTTW Chicago Tonight TV program) Zhang, K.; Cutler, J. I.; Zhang, J.; Zheng, D.; Auyeung, E.; Mirkin, C. A. “Nanopod formation through gold nanoparticle templated and catalyzed crosslinking of polymers bearing pendant propargyl ethers”, J. Am. Chem. Soc., 2010, 132, 15151-15153 Zhang, J.; Langille, M. R.; Personick, M. L.; Zhang, K.; Li, S.; Mirkin, C. A. “Concave cubic gold nanocrystals with high-index facets”, J. Am. Chem. Soc., 2010, 132, 14012-14014 Sun, G.; Berezin, M.; Fan, J.; Lee, H.; Ma, J. Zhang, K.; Wooley, K. L.; Achilefu, S. “Bright fluorescent nanoparticles for developing potential optical imaging contrast agents”, Nanoscale, 2010, 2, 548-558 Zhang, K.; Fang, H.; Wang, Z.; Li, Z.; Taylor, J.-S. A.; Wooley, K. L. “Structure-activity relationships of cationic shell-crosslinked knedel-like nanoparticles: Shell composition and transfection efficiency/cytotoxicity”, Biomaterials, 2010, 31, 1805-1813 Ma, J.; Bartels, J. W.; Li, Z.; Zhang, K.; Cheng, C.; Wooley, K. L. “Synthesis and solution-state assembly or bulk state thiol-ene crosslinking of pyrrolidinone- and alkene-functionalized amphiphilic block fluorocopolymers: from functional nanoparticles to anti-fouling coatings”, Aust. J. Chem., 2010, 63, 1159-1163 Li, Z.; Ma, J.; Cheng, C.; Zhang, K.; Wooley, K. L. “Synthesis of hetero-grafted amphiphilic diblock molecular brushes and their self-assembly in aqueous medium”, Macromolecules, 2010, 43, 1182-1184 Li, Y.; Hindi, K.; Watts, K. M.; Taylor, J. B.; Zhang, K.; Li, Z.; Hunstad, D. A. Cannon, C. L.; Youngs, W. J.; Wooley, K. L. “Shell crosslinked nanoparticles carrying silver antimicrobials as therapeutics”, Chem. Commun., 2010, 46, 121-123 Zhang, K.; Fang, H.; Li, Z.; Ma, J.; Hohlbauch, S. V.; Taylor, J.-S. A.; Wooley, K. L. “Composite soft-matter nanoscale objects: nanocylinder-templated assembly of nanospheres”, Soft Matter, 2009, 5, 3585-3589 (Cover article)