About
Dr. Hao received his Ph.D. at Xiamen University in Xiamen, China, specializing in cell biology. During his doctoral studies, he engaged in research on tumor cell signal transduction. After obtaining his doctoral degree, Dr. Hao moved to the United States to pursue his postdoc training at Albany Medical Center. At this stage, he focused on the research of non-coding RNA in complex human diseases. Dr. Hao’s 2nd postdoctoral training was at the New York University School of Medicine, working on a kidney stem cell study. He revealed that K14-positive intermediate cells may be progenitors in the adult regenerating urothelium. These observations had important implications for tissue engineering and repair. Due to his interest in cancer research, Dr. Hao came to Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science (CDU) to continue his beloved research on the etiology of tumors. After four years of postdoctoral training at CDU, Dr. Hao was promoted to assistant professor. At CDU, Dr. Hao mainly engaged in cancer research related to metabolic diseases. Meanwhile, he was also discovering new small-molecule drugs for cancer treatment.
Research Interests
Dr. Hao is dedicated to researching the fundamental mechanisms of breast cancer and prostate cancer development.
Specifically, Dr. Hao’s research primarily focuses on the following areas: (1) In-depth investigation of non-coding RNAs (microRNA, long non-coding RNA, and circRNA) and their role in epigenetic regulation of complex human diseases, particularly cancer, (2) unveiling the function of RNA modification in the tumorigenicity of cancer cells and how post-transcriptional modifications influence tumor initiation, maintenance, and progression, (3) elucidating the regulatory mechanisms of exosomes in driving cancer metastasis, and (4) exploring the practical therapeutic approaches for inhibiting metabolic abnormalities (such as obesity, diabetes)-associated cancer and their molecular mechanisms.
Dr. Hao has a broad background in biomedicine, particularly with expertise in molecular genetics and cancer cell biology. He has the expertise, leadership, training, and motivation necessary to complete his research projects.