Biomedical engineer tapped for MIT Technology Review’s Innovators Under 35

ZHEN GU, an assistant professor in the Joint NC State/UNC Department of Biomedical Engineering, has been named one of MIT Technology Review’s “Innovators Under 35” for his work on developing novel drug-delivery systems for treating cancer and diabetes.

The annual list, which Tech Review has issued since 1999, was created to highlight exceptionally talented young innovators from around the world in a variety of fields. Previous winners include Facebook cofounder Mark Zuckerberg and Google cofounders Larry Page and Sergey Brin.

Gu joined the Joint Department in 2012, and has since created dozens of technologies and techniques aimed at delivering the right drug to the right place at the right time to maximize the impact of therapeutic medications. Gu’s work is truly interdisciplinary, drawing on biomolecular engineering, materials chemistry, nanotechnology and other fields in his efforts to develop more effective drug delivery tools and techniques. Gu has also developed a suite of new approaches for targeting the delivery of anti-cancer drugs directly to tumors.

Gu’s research on regulating insulin in diabetic patients was recognized by the American Diabetes Association earlier this year with $1.6 million in funding under its Pathway to Stop Diabetes initiative. Gu’s work on diabetes includes the development of a “smart insulin patch” and multiple injectable nanoscale systems that can help to regulate insulin. He is currently working with pharmaceutical companies to move these inventions into clinical trials.