WANG Gan, Ph.D. Current professional technical rank: Associate Researcher (Level 1). Selected for the “Young Researcher Program.” Doctoral supervisor. Long-term research focus on the discovery, design and utilization of biological resources. By studying human pathological or physiological mechanisms in depth and targeting key molecular targets, excavates corresponding active molecules from biological resources (especially toxic animals) and applies them to mechanistic studies and therapeutic research of related diseases.

Education and Appointments:

Education

• Sep 2005 – Jul 2009: Sichuan Agricultural University, Major in Plant Science and Technology, Bachelor of Agronomy.
• Sep 2009 – Jul 2012: Hainan University and Institute of Biotechnology, Chinese Academy of Tropical Agricultural Sciences, Master of Science. Supervisor: Prof. Peng Ming.
• Sep 2013 – Jul 2016: Nanjing Agricultural University and Kunming Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Doctor of Science (Ph.D.). Supervisor: Prof. Lai Ren.

Research and Academic Experience

• Sep 2016 – Apr 2020: Kunming Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Assistant Researcher.
• May 2020 – Oct 2022: Kunming Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Associate Researcher.
• Oct 2022 – Mar 2024: Army Specialty Medical Center, People’s Liberation Army, Associate Researcher.
• Apr 2024 – Present: Chengdu Institute of Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Young Researcher.

1. Mining natural animal toxin resources

A wide variety of toxic animals are distributed in nature; they use toxins for biological functions such as predation and defense. As a result, biological toxins contain functionally diverse and highly active toxin molecules that help these animals adapt to their ecological niches. These highly active toxin molecules often target important elements in physiological and pathological processes, providing excellent molecular tools and drug templates for exploring relevant mechanisms.

2. Development of peptide virtual screening methods

Peptide biosynthesis in vivo is more readily and efficiently regulated, enabling animals to better adapt to changing environments. In addition, through long-term evolution, peptide–target binding often shows higher affinity and selectivity compared with small molecules. Although peptides possess unique pharmacological characteristics, their relatively large size and poor stability make it difficult to predict function using conventional small-molecule virtual screening methods, which has contributed to the much slower development of peptide drugs compared with small molecules. Therefore, developing virtual screening methods for peptides is of great significance for mining peptide natural product resources.

3. Design and modification of peptide drug molecules

Current development of peptide drugs mainly focuses on two directions: (1) activity screening of various naturally derived peptides to obtain peptides with medicinal value; and (2) in-depth study of existing peptide drugs to analyze structure–activity relationships between peptides and receptors, identify key sites for modification, and thereby obtain peptide drugs with greater clinical potential.

(1) Jianhui Sun#, Jun Yang#, Jie Tao, Yifan Yang, Rui Wang, Huacai Zhang, Wenyi Liu, Shulin Zhao, Runze Shao, Yuhui He, Shaolin Tao, Yaxiong Li, Hai Qu, Di Liu, Jingwen Li, Jianxin Jiang, Bo Deng, Chu Gao, Ping Lin, Ling Zeng*, Ping Meng*, Gan Wang*, "Delaying Pyroptosis With AI‑Screened Gasdermin D Pore Blocker Mitigates Inflammatory Response." Nature Immunology, 2025. DOI:10.1038/s41590-025-02280-x (IF2024=27.4, Top Q1). Main content: Using an in‑house AI peptide design tool to design blocking peptides targeting the GSDMD‑NT pore to inhibit pyroptosis and inflammation.

(2) Gan Wang#, Meng‑Li Yang#, Zi‑Lei Duan#, Feng‑Liang Liu#, Lin Jin#, Cheng‑Bo Long, Min Zhang, Xiao‑Peng Tang, Ling Xu, Ying‑Chang Li, Peter Muiruri Kamau, Lian Yang, Hong‑Qi Liu, Jing‑Wen Xu, Jie‑Kai Chen, Yong‑Tang Zheng*, Xiao‑Zhong Peng*, Ren Lai*, "Dalbavancin binds ACE2 to block its interaction with SARS‑CoV‑2 spike protein and is effective in inhibiting SARS‑CoV‑2 infection in animal models." Cell Research, 2021, 31, 17–24. DOI:10.1038/s41422-020-00450-0 (IF2021=46.2, Top Q1). Main content: Using an in‑house peptide virtual screening pipeline to identify inhibitors of the SARS‑CoV‑2–ACE2 interaction and demonstrating that the cyclic peptide can inhibit COVID‑19 symptoms in mouse and macaque models.

(3) Chuanbin Shen#, Ming Liu#, Runjia Xu#, Gan Wang#, June Li, Pingguo Chen, Wenjing Ma, James Mwangi, Qiumin Lu, Zilei Duan, Zhiye Zhang, Fatima Zohra Dahmani, Daniel Thomas Mackeigan, Heyu Ni*, Ren Lai*, "The 14‑3‑3ζ–c‑Src–integrin‑β3 complex is vital for platelet activation." Blood, 2020, 136(8): 974–988. DOI:10.1182/blood.2019002314 (IF2020=25.4, Top Q1). Main content: Designed peptides targeting the newly discovered endogenous platelet activation pathway (14‑3‑3ζ–c‑Src–integrin‑β3) to inhibit platelet aggregation without increasing bleeding risk.

(4) Wang, Gan#; Zhang, Min#; Meng, Ping#; Long, Chengbo#; Luo, Xiaodong#; Yang, Xingwei; Wang, Yunfei; Zhang, Zhiye; Mwangi, James; Kamau, Peter Muiruri; Dai, Zhi; Ke, Zunfu; Zhang, Yi; Chen, Wenlin; Zhao, Xudong; Ge, Fei; Lv, Qiumin; Rong, Mingqiang; Li, Dongsheng; Jin, Yang*; Sheng, Xia*; Lai, Ren* , "Anticarin‑β shows a promising anti‑osteosarcoma effect by specifically inhibiting CCT4 to impair proteostasis." Acta Pharmaceutica Sinica B, 2022, 12(5), 2268–2279. DOI:10.1016/j.apsb.2021.12.024 (IF2022=14.9, Top Q1). Main content: First discovery of the TRiC (molecular chaperone) inhibitor anticarin‑β and demonstration of its therapeutic effects in osteosarcoma and glioma.

(5) James Mwangi#, Yizhu Yin#, Gan Wang#, Min Yang, Ya Li, Zhiye Zhang*, Ren Lai*, "The antimicrobial peptide ZY4 combats multidrug‑resistant P. aeruginosa and A. baumannii infection." Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 2019, 116(52): 26516–26522. DOI:10.1073/pnas.1909585117 (IF2019=9.8, Top Q1). Main content: Virtually redesigned a clinically approved peptide to extend its in vivo half‑life without compromising efficacy, enhancing its clinical potential.

(6) Fang, Mingqian#; Tang, Xiaopeng#; Zhang, Juan#; Liao, Zhiyi#; Wang, Gan#; Cheng, Ruomei; Zhang, Zhiye; Zhao, Hongwen; Wang, Jing; Tan, Zhaoxia; Kamau, Peter Muiruri; Lu, Qiumin; Liu, Qi; Deng, Guohong; Lai, Ren*, "An inhibitor of leukotriene‑A(4) hydrolase from bat salivary glands facilitates virus infection." Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 2022, 119(10): e2110647119. DOI:10.1073/pnas.2110647119 (IF2022=12.7, Top Q1). Main content: Discovered a novel mechanism of bat virus tolerance and designed peptide therapeutics to inhibit virus transmission.

(7) Zhongxiang Wu#, Ying Cai#, Yajun Han#, Yunhan Su#, Tianyu Zhang, Xingyu Wang, An Yan, Liunan Wang, Sijing Wu, Gan Wang*, Zhiye Zhang*, "Development of α‑Helical Antimicrobial Peptides with Imperfect Amphipathicity for Superior Activity and Selectivity." Journal of Medicinal Chemistry, 2024, 67(21): 19561–19572. DOI:10.1021/acs.jmedchem.4c01855 (IF2024=6.8, Top Q1). Main content: Used molecular dynamics simulations to design and modify amphipathic antimicrobial peptides and demonstrated their activity against resistant bacteria.

(8) Min Xue#, Shaoying Wang#, Changjiang Li#, Yuewei Wang#, Ming Liu#, Xiaoshan Huang#, Gan Wang#, Qikai Yin#, Dandan Xiao, Shuo Yang, Musan Yan, Liyuan Niu, Muhammad Awais, Chuanbin Shen*, Jianxun Wang*, Ren Lai*, Heyu Ni*, Xiaopeng Tang*, "Deficiency of neutrophil gelatinase‑associated lipocalin elicits a hemophilia‑like bleeding and clotting disorder in mice." Blood, 2025, 145(9): 975–987. DOI:10.1182/blood.2024026476 (IF2024=23.1, Top Q1). Main content: Identified a novel coagulation pathway from clinical samples and designed peptide molecules to interfere with the coagulation process for therapeutic purposes.

(9) Dong Yang#; Zhi Dai#; Peifeng Zhu#; Gan Wang#; Bin Sun#; Shirong Li; Junjun Hao; Yifen Wang; Yaping Liu; Shuaishuai Yu; Ren Lai*; Xiao‑Dong Luo*; Xudong Zhao*, "High‑throughput screening of native herbal compounds identifies taccaoside A as a cytotoxic compound that mediates RAS signaling in cancer stem cells." Phytomedicine, 2022, 108, 154492. DOI:10.1016/j.phymed.2022.154492 (IF2022=6.6, Top Q1). Main content: Discovered a novel RAS protein inhibitor and demonstrated its inhibitory effect on glioma stem cells.

(10) Zhang, Min; Dai, Zhi; Zhao, Xudong; Wang, Gan*; Lai, Ren*, "Anticarin beta Inhibits Human Glioma Progression by Suppressing Cancer Stemness via STAT3." Frontiers in Oncology, 2021, 11: 71 (IF2021=6.2, Q2). Main content: Demonstrated that the TRiC inhibitor anticarin‑β shows therapeutic effects in glioma.

1. National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC), Young Scientists Fund, "Molecular mechanism of coumarin β inhibiting osteosarcoma", 2020-01 to 2022-12, RMB 200,000, Principal Investigator.

2. National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC), General Program, "Mechanistic study of how vetiporfinn targets specific cell subpopulations to inhibit post-ARDS fibrosis formation", 2025-01 to 2027-12, RMB 500,000, Principal Investigator.

3. Yunnan Provincial Department of Science and Technology, General Program, "Mechanistic study of the selective antitumor compound LG-1", 2021-04 to 2024-04, RMB 100,000, Principal Investigator.

4. Sichuan Province “Emei Plan” Young Talent Project, 2025-03 to 2027-12, Principal Investigator.

5. Chengdu “Rongpiao Plan” Young Talent Project, 2025-03 to 2027-12, Principal Investigator.

6. Chinese Academy of Sciences, "Light of the West" program, "Mechanistic study of an antitumor compound", 2017-01 to 2020-12, RMB 150,000, Principal Investigator.