Chao Zhong, Ph.D.

Boya Distinguished Young Professor at Peking University

Recipient of the National Science Fund for Distinguished Young Scholars

Deputy Head of the Immunology Department

Tenured Professor at Peking University

Research Focus:  Immune regulation in local tissues during health and disease

zhongc@pku.edu.cn

Room B702-3, Medical Science and Technology Building

38 Xueyuan Road, Haidian District, Beijing 100191, China

Research Summary

Dr. Zhong is a tenured professor and doctoral supervisor at Peking University. He also serves as a concurrently-appointed professor at both Peking University First Hospital and Peking University Third Hospital. Dr. Zhong completed his doctoral research training at the Institute of Biophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences focusing on the role of granzymes during anti-infectious and anti-tumor immune responses. Following that, he undertook his post-doctoral fellowship training at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Dieases, National Institute of Health, US, where he conducted his research training in examining the critical regulatory mechanisms for the development and function of a freshly identified immune cell population, innate lymphoid cells (ILCs). In 2017, Dr. Zhong was recognized as a high-level overseas young talent in China, and joined the School of Basic Medical Sciences at Peking University to initiate his independent research endeavors. By 2024, he had achieved the promotion to a tenured professor at Peking University.

Dr. Zhong’s laboratory addresses the pivotal regulatory mechanisms of tissue regional immunity. The regional immune homeostasis of tissues is an important guarantee for the body’s health. Regional immune imbalance leading to tissue inflammation is a major cause of immune-related diseases such as infections, tumors, allergies, and autoimmune diseases, as well as chronic non-infectious diseases such as atherosclerosis, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, and Parkinson’s disease. The key regulatory mechanisms of regional immunity related to these pathogenic processes still need to be explored urgently.

Dr. Zhong’s laboratory starts with the urgent scientific questions refined from the clinical diagnosis and treatment of these major immune-related diseases. Using cutting-edge technology such as CRISPR screening, experimental animal models, single-cell and spatial-temporal omics, the laboratory aims to deeply elucidate the key regulatory cells and molecules of tissue regional immunity related to the occurrence and development of major immune-related diseases, with the hope of providing new targets and strategies for the prevention and treatment of clinical diseases. Specific research directions include, (1) analysis of the key cells and molecular mechanisms of immune regulation in tissue regions such as the intestine, lung, skin, and uterus under physiological and pathological conditions; (2) exploration of the important mechanisms by which the microbiome cross-regulates tissue-regional immunity and affects tissue homeostasis and disease occurrence and development; (3) developing new strategies for targeted regulation of tissue-regional immunity based on AI-empowered small molecule drug screening.

The representative studies from Dr. Zhong’s laboratory have been published in authoritative academic journals across immunology, metabolism, and comprehensive research fields, including Immunity (2 papers), Nature Immunology, Developmental Cell, Nature Metabolism (2 papers), and Nature Communications (2 papers). Dr. Zhong has presided over various projects, including the National Science Fund for Distinguished Young Scholars, key projects of the Regional Innovation Joint Fund, cultivation projects of major research programs, and general projects. As the project leader, he has undertaken key projects of the National Key R & D Program and the Beijing Natural Science Foundation. He also holds several academic positions, serving as a standing committee member of the Autoimmune Diseases Branch of the Chinese Society for Immunology, a committee member of the Reproductive Immunology Branch of the Chinese Society for Immunology, and a committee member of the Gut Microbiome Professional Committee of the Chinese Physiological Society.

Selected publications

(#Co - first author, *Co-corresponding author)

1. Zhao X#, Li J#, Zhang Y#, Hu L, Wu D, Wu J, Lyu R, Li P, An G, Cui R, Sun T, Zhu P, Bai L, Jiang C, Zhong C. Elevated nitric oxide during colitis restrains GM-CSF production in ILC3 cells via suppressing an AhR-Cyp4f13-NF-kappaB axis. Nature Communications. 2025 Jul; 16(1):5654. doi: 10.1038/s41467-025-60969-x

2. Li P#, Zhang Y#, Shen Y#, Zhao X, Mu R, Zhong C. RORγt is crucial for gut homeostasis by regulating the expression of HB-EGF rather than IL-22 in activated ILC3s. Cell Reports. 2025 Jun, 44(6):115793. doi: 10.1016/j.celrep.2025.115793

3. Ren G#, Zhang Y#, Liu J#, Cheng W#, Wu D, Han M, Zeng Y, Zhao X, Hu L, Zeng M, Gurram RK, Hu X, Zhou B, Hou Z, Zhu J, Jin W*, Zhong C*. GATA3 exerts unique regulatory roles in cutaneous innate lymphoid cells to promote hair follicle recycling. Developmental Cell. 2024 Jul; 59(14):1809-1823.e6. doi: 10.1016/j.devcel.2024.04.015.

4. Wu D#, Li Z#, Zhang Y#, Zhang Y#, Ren G#, Zeng Y, Liu H, Guan W, Zhao X, Li P, Hu L, Hou Z, Gong J, Li J, Jin W, Hu Z, Jiang C, Li H, Zhong C. Proline uptake promotes activation of lymphoid tissue inducer cells to maintain gut homeostasis. Nature Metabolism. 2023 Nov; 5(11):1953-1968. doi: 10.1038/s42255-023-00908-6.

5. Han M#, Hu L#, Wu D#, Zhang Y, Li P, Zhao X, Zeng Y, Ren G, Hou Z, Pang Y, Zhao T, Zhong C. IL-21R-STAT3 signalling initiates a differentiation program in uterine tissue-resident NK cells to support pregnancy. Nature Communications. 2023 Nov; 14(1):7109. doi: 10.1038/s41467-023-42990-0.

6. Hu L#, Han M#, Deng Y, Gong J, Hou Z, Zeng Y, Zhang Y, He J, Zhong C. Genetic distinction between functional tissue-resident and conventional natural killer cells. iScience. 2023 Jun; 26(7):107187. doi: 10.1016/j.isci.2023.107187.

7. Zhang Y#, Hu L#, Ren G, Zeng Y, Zhao X, Zhong C. Distinct regulatory machineries underlying divergent chromatin landscapes distinguish innate lymphoid cells from T helper cells. Frontiers in Immunology, 2023 Dec; 14:1271879. doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1271879.

8. Wu D, # Hu L#, Han M#, Deng Y, Zhang Y, Ren G, Zhao X, Li Z, Li P, Zhang Y, Chen S, Li J, Shi Y, Wang P, Zhong C. PD-1 signaling facilitates LTi activation through restraining fatty acid oxidation. Nature Metabolism. 2022 Jul; 4(7):867-882. doi: 10.1038/s42255-022-00595-9.

9. Hu L#, Zhao X, Li P, Zeng Y, Zhang Y, Shen Y, Wang Y, Lai B*, Zhong C*. Proximal and distal regions of pathogenic Th17 related chromatin loci are sequentially accessible during pathogenicity of Th17. Frontiers in Immunology. 2022 April; 13:864314. doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2022.864314.

10. Zhong C#*, Zheng M#, Cui K#, Martins AJ#, Hu G, Li D, Tessarollo L, Kozlov S, Keller JR, Tsang JS, Zhao K, Zhu J*. Differential Expression of the Transcription Factor GATA3 Specifies Lineage and Functions of Innate Lymphoid Cells. Immunity. 2020 Jan; 52(1):83-95.e4. doi: 10.1016/j.immuni.2019.12.001.

11. Zhong C, Cui K, Wilhelm C, Hu G, Mao K, Belkaid Y, Zhao K, Zhu J. Group 3 innate lymphoid cells continuously require the transcription factor GATA-3 after commitment. Nature Immunology. 2016 Feb; 17(2):169-78. doi: 10.1038/ni.3318.

12. Yagi R#, Zhong C#, Northrup DL#, Yu F, Bouladoux N, Spencer S, Hu G, Barron L, Sharma S, Nakayama T, Belkaid Y, Zhao K, Zhu J. The transcription factor GATA3 is critical for the development of all IL-7Rα-expressing innate lymphoid cells. Immunity. 2014 Mar; 40(3):378-88. doi: 10.1016/j.immuni.2014.01.012.

13. Zhong C, Li C, Wang X, Toyoda T, Gao G, Fan Z. Granzyme K inhibits replication of influenza virus through cleaving the nuclear transport complex importin α1/β dimer of infected host cells. Cell Death&Differentiation. 2012 May; 19(5):882-90. doi: 10.1038/cdd.2011.178.