Stem Cell · Gene Editing · Organogenesis

Jia Huang Laboratory

Exploring the diversity of life through interspecies organogenesis and evolutionary biology

Explore Our Research

Research

Elucidating inter-species chimeric mechanisms and exploring the frontiers of organogenesis and species diversity

Our laboratory is dedicated to utilizing stem cell and gene editing technologies to investigate organogenesis mechanisms across different species and to explore the diversity of life throughout evolutionary processes. Our research directions include, but are not limited to:

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Interspecies Chimeric Barriers

Elucidating the molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying interspecies chimeric barriers to advance the generation of human organs in large animals.

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Chimeric Models & Disease

Constructing chimeric models for systematic investigation of organ development processes and the pathogenic mechanisms of associated diseases.

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Gene Editing & Species Diversity

Integrating gene editing with comparative biology techniques to explore the genetic basis of species diversity.

Publications

Selected research outputs from the laboratory

2026

Mitigating xenogeneic barriers to chimerism through Cas13-induced host attenuation

He, B., Lv, S., Li, L., Zhang, L., Hu, Y., Okamura, D., Huang, J.*, & Wu, J.*

Developmental Cell

Paper 1 DOI: 10.1016/j.devcel.2026.01.001 →
2025

Recent advances in interspecies chimeras and organogenesis

Huang, J., He, B., & Wu, J.

Current Opinion in Genetics & Development, 93, 102368

Paper 2 DOI: 10.1016/j.gde.2025.102368 →
2024

Generation of rat forebrain tissues in mice

Huang, J., He, B., Yang, X., Long, X., Wei, Y., Li, L., Tang, M., Gao, Y., Fang, Y., Ying, W., Wang, Z., Li, C., Zhou, Y., Li, S., Shi, L., Choi, S., Zhou, H., Guo, F., Yang, H., & Wu, J.

Cell, 187(9), 2129–2142.e17

Featured in: Nature (2024) "Rat neurons repair mouse brains — and restore sense of smell" · Labanimal (2024) "Crossing species boundaries in regenerative neuroscience with rat–mouse brain chimeras"

Paper 3 DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2024.03.017 →
2024

Humanizing pig kidneys via chimeric complementation

Huang, J., & Wu, J.

Cell Research, 34(3), 189–190

Paper 4 DOI: 10.1038/s41422-023-00881-5 →
2024

Chimeric Monkey Born Alive with a High Contribution of Donor Cells

Huang, J., & Wu, J.

Neuroscience Bulletin, 40(6), 849–851

DOI: 10.1007/s12264-024-01192-4 →
2024

Incompatibility in cell adhesion constitutes a barrier to interspecies chimerism

Ballard, E., Sakurai, M., Yu, L., Liu, L., Oura, S., Huang, J., & Wu, J.

Cell Stem Cell, 31(10), 1419–1426.e7

Paper 6 DOI: 10.1016/j.stem.2024.07.010 →
2023

High-fidelity Cas13 variants for targeted RNA degradation with minimal collateral effects

Tong, H., Huang, J.*, Xiao, Q., He, B., Dong, X., Liu, Y., Yang, X., Han, D., Wang, Z., Wang, X., Ying, W., Zhang, R., Wei, Y., Xu, C., Zhou, Y., Li, Y., Cai, M., Wang, Q., Xue, M., Li, G., … Yang, H.*

Nature Biotechnology, 41(1), 108–119

DOI: 10.1038/s41587-022-01419-7 →
2021

Endogenous promoter-driven sgRNA for monitoring the expression of low-abundance transcripts and lncRNAs

Gao, N., Hu, J., He, B., Ji, Z., Hu, X., Huang, J., Wei, Y., Peng, J., Wei, Y., Zhou, Y., Shen, X., Li, H., Feng, X., Xiao, Q., Shi, L., Sun, Y., Zhou, C., Zhou, H., & Yang, H.

Nature Cell Biology, 23(1), 99–108

DOI: 10.1038/s41556-020-00610-9 →
2020

Modulation of metabolic functions through Cas13d-mediated gene knockdown in liver

He, B., Peng, W., Huang, J., Zhang, H., Zhou, Y., Yang, X., Liu, J., Li, Z., Xu, C., Xue, M., Yang, H., & Huang, P.

Protein & Cell, 11(7), 518–524

DOI: 10.1007/s13238-020-00700-2 →
2017

Protective effect of arctigenin on ethanol-induced neurotoxicity in PC12 cells

Huang, J., Xiao, L., Wei, J. X., Shu, Y. H., Fang, S. Q., Wang, Y. T., & Lu, X. M.

Molecular Medicine Reports, 15(4), 2235–2240

DOI: 10.3892/mmr.2017.6222 →

Team

Bringing together interdisciplinary talents in stem cell and developmental biology

Principal Investigator

Jia Huang

Jia Huang, Ph.D.

Principal Investigator

Staff

Si Zhou

Si Zhou

Lab Manager

Ning Jiang

Ning Jiang

Research Assistant

Shixu Zhang

Shixu Zhang

Research Assistant

Students

Xueyong Chen

Xueyong Chen

Ph.D. Student

dingkun Peng

dingkun Peng

Ph.D. Student

Xuejia Feng

Xuejia Feng

Ph.D. Student

Qiming Zou

Qiming Zou

M.S. Student

Xiang Tang

Xiang Tang

M.S. Student

Xiaoxuan Fan

Xiaoxuan Fan

M.S. Student

Xinyu Yang

Xinyu Yang

M.S. Student

Moments

Lab memories and special moments

17 Jul 2026

Welcome Party for New Lab Members

Lab members gathered to welcome new students joining the team.

30 Jan 2026

Lab New Year Party

Lab members gathered for a celebration to welcome the new year together.

09 Jan 2026

Institute of Modern Biology Annual Meeting

Lab members attended the Institute of Modern Biology annual meeting to celebrate the year's achievements.

10 Sep 2025

First Teachers' Day

Celebrating Dr. Huang's first Teachers' Day with the lab members.

01 Jul 2025

Jia Huang Laboratory Officially Established

The Jia Huang Laboratory is officially launched at Nanjing University.

Contact

We welcome inquiries from scholars, students, and collaborators interested in our research

Our Address

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Address 南京大学仙林校区基础实验楼甲区203-2
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Email jiahuang2022@163.com

Join Us

We are seeking motivated postdoctoral researchers and students to join our team. If you are passionate about stem cell and gene editing technologies, studying the mechanisms of organogenesis across different species, and about exploring the diversity of life during evolution, we'd love to hear from you! For inquiries, please contact Dr. Jia Huang at: jiahuang2022@163.com.

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