Qizhou Lian is a Distinguished Professor under the National Major Talent Program at Shenzhen University of Advanced Technology (SUAT) and an adjunct Principal Investigator at the Institute of Synthetic Biology, Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology (SIAT), Chinese Academy of Sciences. With over 25 years of experience in stem cell and gene therapy research at the National University of Singapore, the University of Hong Kong, and the Scottish National Blood Transfusion Service in Edinburgh, he also serves as a grant reviewer for international agencies such as ANR, ISF, UKRI, NSFC, and HKSPInCUBIO, and has been an Associate Editor for the journal Transplantation.

Professor Lian’s research focuses on Stem Cells, Cell & Gene Therapy, and Synthetic Enabling Technology.

1. Stem Cells: He has a longstanding interest in the directed differentiation of pluripotent stem cells into therapeutically useful cells and tissues. He is one of the pioneers in establishing clinical-grade mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) derived from pluripotent sources and exploring their applications. Additionally, he utilizes synthetic biology approaches to enhance the immunomodulatory functions of MSCs.

2. Cell and Gene Therapy: He has developed innovative technologies and led Asia’s first hematopoietic stem cell gene therapy for metachromatic leukodystrophy (MLD), a fatal lipid storage disorder causing white matter degeneration. Patients treated with this therapy have experienced long-term recovery.

3. Synthetic Enabling Technology: One of his major interests is integrating synthetic biology strategies with AI-assisted methods to develop novel in vivo approaches for delivering mRNA, proteins, and CAR-T therapeutics.

He received his early undergraduate and postgraduate education in the integration of Western and Chinese medicine from Fujian University of Traditional Chinese Medicine. He earned his Doctor of Medicine (M.D.) and Ph.D. degrees in 1999 from Harbin Medical University. After completing fellowship training in Cardiology, he also conducted postdoctoral research in stem cell and developmental biology at the Singapore Genomic Institute and Utrecht Medical Centre in the Netherlands. He started his independent career as an Assistant Professor at The University of Hong Kong in 2010.

1. Established clinically compliant mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) derived from human pluripotent stem cells and explored their applications (Stem Cells 2008;Circulation 2011, etc.).

2. Led Asia's first hematopoietic stem cell gene therapy for symptoms of metachromatic leukodystrophy, resulting in long-term recovery (Protein & Cell 2024; Molecular Therapy Nucleic Acids 2025; Molecular Therapy - Methods & Clinical Development 2025).

3. Established the first Cell Therapy GMP manufacturing facilities at HKU (Medicinal Research Review 2024).

4. Developed synthetic biology enabling technology to construct engineered immune cells with diverse regulatory modules.

Awards:

2004: Young Scientist Award, Society of Chinese Bioscientists in America (SCBA), USA; 

2012: Travel Award, 10th International Society for Stem Cell Research (ISSCR), Japan;

2023: Excellent Research Award, LKS faculty of Medicine, the University of Hong Kong;

2024: Scientific Research Contribution Award, Shenzhen University of Advanced Technology.

Projects

1. 2023-2028: National Key R&D Program: Spatiotemporal Intervention Techniques for Tumor Cell Death by using Synthetic Biology Strategies (In progress)

2. 2022-2027: National Key R&D Program: Role of Stem Cells in the Pathogenesis and Damage Repair Mechanisms of COVID-19 (In progress)

3. 2025-2027: Shenzhen-Hong Kong Joint Funding Program (Type A): Study on Postoperative Hepatic Injury Repair via Pluripotent Stem Cell Therapy and Mitochondrial Function Restoration (in Progress)  

Representative Publications

Publication Records >190 research articles have been published.

To view the full publication list of Prof Lian, please visit ：

PubMed： https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/?term=Lian+Qizhou&sort=date

Google Scholar: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=I1j8ZWcAAAAJ&hl=en

Representative Papers (* Corresponding / Co-Corresponding Author)

1. Zhang Z, Jiang H, Huang L, Liu S, Zhou X, Cai Y, Li M, Gao F, Liang X, Tsang KS, Chen G, Ma CY, Chai YH, Liu H, Yang C, Yang M, Zhang X, Han S, Du X, Chen L, Hwu WL, Zhuo J, Lian Q*. Lentivirus-modified hematopoietic stem cell gene therapy for advanced symptomatic juvenile metachromatic leukodystrophy: A long-term follow-up pilot study. Protein Cell, 2025, 16(1): 16- 27; doi: 10.1093/procel/pwae037.

2. Ma CY, Zhai Y, Li CT, Liu J, Xu X, Chen H, Tse HF*, Lian Q*. Translating mesenchymal stem cell and their exosome research into GMP compliant advanced therapy products: Promises, problems and prospects. Medicinal Research Reviews. 2024 May;44(3):919-938

3. Jin L, Geng L, Ying L, Shu L, Ye K, Yang R, Liu Y, Wang Y, Cai Y, Jiang X, Wang Q, Yan X, Liao B, Liu J, Duan F, Sweeney G, Woo CWH, Wang Y, Xia Z, Lian Q*, Xu A*. FGF21-Sirtuin 3 Axis Confers the Protective Effects of Exercise Against Diabetic Cardiomyopathy by Governing Mitochondrial Integrity. Circulation. 2022 Nov 15;146(20):1537-1557.

4. Geng L, Liao B, Jin L, Yu J, Zhao X, Zhao Y, Zhong L, Wang B, Li J, Liu J, Yang JK, Jia W, Lian Q*, Xu A*. β-Klotho promotes glycolysis and glucose-stimulated insulin secretion via GP130. Nature Metabolism. 2022 May;4(5):608-626. doi: 10.1038/s42255-022-00572-2.

5. Lian Q*, Zhang K, Zhang Z, Duan F, Guo L, Luo W, Mok BW, Thakur A, Ke X, Motallebnejad P, Nicolaescu V, Chen J, Ma CY, Zhou X, Han S, Han T, Zhang W, Tan AY, Zhang T, Wang X, Xu D, Xiang J, Xu A, Liao C, Huang FP, Chen YW, Na J, Randall G, Tse HF, Chen Z, Chen Y, Chen HJ*. Differential effects of macrophage subtypes on SARS-CoV-2 infection in a human pluripotent stem cell-derived model. Nature Communications. 2022 Apr 19;13(1):2028. doi:10.1038/s41467-022-29731-5.

6. Zhang Z, Guo L ,Huang L, Zhang C.., Tse HF, Xia H, Lian Q*. Distinct disease severity between children and older adults with COVID-19: Impacts of ACE2 expression, distribution, and lung progenitor cells . Clin Infect Dis. 2021 Jan 3:ciaa1911. doi: 10.1093/cid/ciaa1911

7. Zhang Z, Yan B, Gao F, Li Q, Meng X, Chen P, Zhou L, Deng W, Li C, Xu W, Han S, Feng H, Li Y, Chen J, Yin Z, Liao C, Tse HF*, Xu A*, Lian Q*. Pluripotent Stem Cells Reveal Poly-unsaturated Fatty Acids-provoked Mitochondrial Stress as a Central Node Potentiating Retinal Pigmented Epithelium Degeneration in Bietti’s Crystalline Dystrophy . Molecular Therapy 2020 Jul 25;S1525-0016(20)30375-0

8. Zhang Y, Zhang Z, Chen P, Ma CY, Li C, Au TYK, Tam V, Peng Y, Wu R, Cheung KMC, Sham PC, Tse HF, Chan D, Leung VY, Cheah KSE*, Lian Q*. Directed Differentiation of Notochord-like and Nucleus Pulposus-like Cells Using Human Pluripotent Stem Cells. Cell Reports 2020 Feb 25;30(8):2791-2806.e5

9. Fu QL, Chow YY, Sun SJ ,Zeng QX, Li HB, Shi JB, Sun YQ, Wen W, Tse HF, Lian Q*, Xu G*. Mesenchymal stem cells derived from human induced pluripotent stem cells modulate T-cell phenotypes in allergic rhinitis. Allergy. 2012 Oct;67(10):1215-22.doi: 10.1111/j.1398-9995.2012.02875.x.

10. Lian Q*, Zhang Y, Zhang J, Zhang HK, Wu X, Zhang Y, Lam FF, Kang S, Xia JC, Lai WH, Au KW, Chow YY, Siu CW, Lee CN, Tse HF*. Functional mesenchymal stem cells derived from human induced pluripotent stem cells attenuate limb ischemia in mice. Circulation. 2010 Mar 9;121(9):1113-20