Education & Experience
2016-present Principle Investigator, Peking University, Shenzhen Graduate School
2015 -2016 Senior Research Scientist (permanent position), Astex Pharmaceuticals, Cambridge, UK
2011 -2015 Postdoctoral Fellow, Mount Sinai Hospital-Toronto & University of Toronto, Canada (Supervisor: Dr. Frank Sicheri)
2006-2011 Ph. D in Biochemistry, University of Calgary, Canada (Supervisor: Dr. Hans Vogel)
2004-2005 M.Sc. in Chemistry, McMaster University, Canada
1999-2002 M.Sc. in Analytical Chemistry, Tsinghua University
1995-1999 B.Sc. in Biology, Sichuan University
Awards & Honors
2017 Bayer-PKU Investigator
2014 Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) postdoctoral fellowship
2008 Alberta Heritage Foundation for Medical Research (AHFMR) Ph.D studentship
Research Fields
The Hao Huang lab aims to discover small molecular anticancer/antiviral drug leads. We employ Fragment Based Drug Discovery (FBDD) and structure-based drug design (SBDD) to discover inhibitors targeting important proteins in cancer signaling pathways. In the process of discovering novel anticancer drugs, we use integrative approaches of structural biology, chemical biology and computational chemistry. Specifically, we pursue drug discovery in the ubiquitin-proteasome system (UPS).
We are also conducting cell biology research on signal transduction closely related to cancers in the UPS, hoping to understand the regulatory roles of oncogenes and tumor suppressors, as well as to identify new anti-cancer drug targets.
In the field of kinases, we are interested in the discovery small molecular inhibitors for disease-related target proteins and their working mechanisms. We have experiences in the research of pseudokinase-ribonuclease L (RNase L), and we are currently testing some unique ideas.
Self-motivated students, postdocs and research associates are encouraged to contact me if you are interested in joining our research lab.
Selected Publications
Fu Z#, Huang B#, Tang J#, Liu S#, Liu M, Ye Y, Liu Z, Xiong Y, Zhu W, Cao D, Li J, Niu X, Zhou H, Zhao YJ, Zhang G*, Huang H*, The complex structure of GRL0617 and SARS-CoV-2 PLpro reveals a hot spot for antiviral drug discovery, Nat Commun. 2021;12(1):488.
Ye Y#, Xiong Y#, Huang H., Substrate-binding destabilizes the hydrophobic cluster to relieve the autoinhibition of bacterial ubiquitin ligase IpaH9.8, Commun Biol. 2020;3(1):752.
Tang J#, Wang Y#, Zhou H#, Ye Y, Talukdar M, Fu Z, Liu Z, Li J, Neculai D, Gao J, Huang H, Sunitinib inhibits RNase L by destabilizing its active dimer conformation , Biochem J . 2020;477(17):3387-3399.
Daou S#, Talukdar M#, Tang J#, Dong B, Banerjee S, Li Y, Duffy NM, Ogunjimi AA, Gaughan C, Jha BK, Gish G, Tavernier N, Mao D, Weiss SR, Huang H*, Silverman RH*, Sicheri F*, A phenolic small molecule inhibitor of RNase L prevents cell death from ADAR1 deficiency, Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2020;117(40):24802-24812.
Huang H, Zeqiraj E, Dong B, Jha BK, Duffy NM, Orlicky S, Thevakumaran N, Talukdar M, Pillon MC, Ceccarelli DF, Wan LC, Juang YC, Mao DY, Gaughan C, Brinton MA, Perelygin AA, Kourinov I, Guarné A, Silverman RH, Sicheri F, Dimeric structure of pseudokinase RNase L bound to 2-5A reveals a basis for interferon induced antiviral activity. Mol. Cell. 2014; 53, 221-34 Recommended in F1000, http://f1000.com/prime/718246713;
Highlighted in Cell 157, 2014: http://www.cell.com/cell/pdf/S0092-8674(14)00487-5.pdf
Huang H*, Ceccarelli DF*, Orlicky S*, St-Cyr DJ, Ziemba A, Garg P, Plamondon S, Auer M, Sidhu S, Marinier A, Kleiger G, Tyers M, Sicheri F, E2 enzyme inhibition by stabilization of a low-affinity interface with ubiquitin. Nat. Chem. Biol. 2014 10, 156-63
Fradet-Turcotte A, Canny MD, Escribano-Díaz C, Orthwein A, Leung CC, Huang H, Landry MC, Kitevski-LeBlanc J, Noordermeer SM, Sicheri F, Durocher D. 53BP1 is a reader of the DNA-damage-induced H2A Lys15 ubiquitin mark. Nature. 2013, 499, 50-54.
Rivkin E, Almeida SM, Ceccarelli DF, Juang YC, MacLean TA, Srikumar T, Huang H, Dunham WH, Fukumura R, Xie G, Gondo Y, Raught B, Gingras AC, Sicheri F, Cordes SP. The linear ubiquitin-specific deubiquitinase gumby regulates angiogenesis. Nature. 2013, 498, 318-24
Huang H and Vogel HJ, Structural Basis for the Activation of the Cytoplasmic Domain of the Human Platelet Integrin AlphaIIb-beta3 by CIB1. J. Am. Chem. Soc., 2012, 134, 3864-72（Highlighted in Science Daily， http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/03/120319095011.htm）
Huang H, Ishida H, Yamniuk, AP, Vogel HJ, The Solution Structures of Ca2+- CIB1 and Mg2+-CIB1 and their interactions with the Platelet Integrin αIIb Cytoplasmic Domain. J. Biol. Chem., 2011, 286, 17181-92
Patents
Tyers M, Sicheri F, Ceccarelli DF, Huang H, et al., Screening methods to identify compounds inhibiting the activity of E2 enzym es by stabilization of non-covalent ubiquitin-E2 complexes and pharmaceutical applications related to E2 inhibitors. Application #: PCT/CA2013/001079;
