Hao Zhu Lab

Somatic mutations accumulate in “normal” non-cancerous tissues (blood, skin, liver). But why are mutant clones selected? Do they merely proliferate more, selfishly? Or can clones adapt to disease? Could they protect tissues? We shed light on this: authors.elsevier.com/a/1gua9L7PXmc1- 1/10

Delighted to have contributed a comment piece and cover illustration to a @NatureEcoEvo focus issue on "Evolution in medicine". I discuss how the field of somatic evolution is providing new opportunities to understand disease and promote healthy ageing doi.org/10.1038/s41559…

New paper from Kimberley Evason @huntsmancancer & co shows that microRNA-21 is a target of activated β-catenin that mediates some of its effects during liver tumorigenesis 📰 doi.org/10.1242/dmm.05…

Big update to @TheMarkFdn 's Emerging Leader Award Program: international applications now accepted and funding volume and duration increased. For me, the ELA program was a game changer, cannot recommend the foundation enough. Apply by April 30: themarkfoundation.org/emerging-leade…

Learn more about CRI's newest investigator @Henry_de_belly and his #relentlessdiscovery to define the molecular controls of membrane fluidity in order to influence immune and #cancer cell function. 👇 cri.utsw.edu/meet-dr-henry-…

We're chock full of somatic mutations in our cells and tissue as we age. Some even protect us from disease! And we can learn from them to discover new medications. @CellCellPress sciencedirect.com/science/articl…

Somatic mutations provide insights into disease, inspiring novel therapeutic strategies. Check out our @CellPressNews review of #SomaticGenomics & the field’s advancement towards genetically-validated drug target identification & clinical translation: bit.ly/4sqRGtE

We are excited to share our vision for the biomedical and translational implications of somatic mosaicism, published in @CellCellPress. This was a fun team effort with @sfbrunner @imartincorena PJ Campbell and others @CRI_UTSW @QuotientTx @sangerinstitute cell.com/cell/fulltext/…

Registration is now open for the @DMM_Journal 2026 meeting on Innovative Preclinical Models for Pediatric Cancer Research, organised by James Amatruda, Pratiti (Mimi) Bandopadhayay, Ana Banito and Elaine Mardis. Find out more and register at bit.ly/3OCi1q9

Congress rejected massive cuts to US science budgets for 2026, but much of the money still isn’t flowing to researchers. The culprit? The White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) is quietly slow-walking the release of funds. 🧵👇 For @Nature: nature.com/articles/d4158…

Federal funding for US biomedical research is moribund. Since October 1 2025, NIH is -80% in new grants and -70% in values (total dollars). Labs are closing down and researchers are leaving science. To what end?

@OlzmannLab @Nature @apsarruda @alymathiowetz @EmilyMeymand congrats beautiful story!

1/ Thrilled to share our new paper in @Nature: “CLCC1 promotes hepatic neutral lipid flux and nuclear pore complex assembly.” From our lab together with @apsarruda, led by co–first authors @alymathiowetz and @EmilyMeymand. 🥳 nature.com/articles/s4158…

@leonard_zon congrats Len!

Honored to be selected as this year’s March of Dimes Prize awardee. Grateful for the incredible work my lab has done over the years. I embraced developmental biology when I started my lab and am excited to see its principles translate to patients. marchofdimes.org/about/news/ren….

Become a CRI #postdoc & be part of CRI's #relentlessdiscovery. Apply at cri.utsw.edu/careers #jobs #opentowork #jobopenings #sciencejobs #HiringNow

@EsraAkbay_ amazing ! congrats on this cool work!

The day is finally here. We present a comprehensive characterization of KRAS G12C and G12D driven lung cancers. science.org/doi/10.1126/sc…

Grateful to @JianXuLab for this perspective highlighting how oncogenes, developmental ontogeny, and cellular plasticity intersect in pediatric leukemia, alongside the JMML study by @mp_hartmann and @dblipka1. @BCD_AACR @CD_AACR aacrjournals.org/bloodcancerdis…

🚨NEW PI ALERT🚨 @Henry_de_belly is in the house, and look at that *fresh* new office. Clean slate for his next #relentlessdiscovery in CRI's Tissue Regeneration Program (TRP). Onward! Read more about his new lab 👉 cri.utsw.edu/faculty/henry-…

Happy to share our new review, written with @RobertoZoncu, now out in @MolecularCell. We discuss how lysosomes act as hubs that link nutrient transport to sensing, with a focus on immune- and neuron-specific programs. Hope you find it useful! authors.elsevier.com/c/1mWb73vVUPZN…