EDUCATION EXPERIENCE
2007.09 – 2010.06 Ph.D. degree in Medicinal Chemistry, School of Pharmacy, China Pharmaceutical University, Nanjing, Jiangsu, P. R. China.
Supervisor: Prof. Qizheng Yao and Prof. Ao Zhang
2005.09 – 2007.08 Postgraduate in Medicinal Chemistry, School of Pharmacy, China Pharmaceutical University, Nanjing, Jiangsu, P. R. China
Supervisor: Prof. Qizheng Yao and Prof. Ao Zhang
2001.09 – 2005.07 Bachelor of Science in Basic Pharmacy and Medicinal Chemistry, School of Pharmacy, China Pharmaceutical University, Nanjing, Jiangsu, P. R. China
RESEARCH EXPERIENCE
2020–Current Professor, School of Pharmacy, Shanghai Jiaotong University, Shanghai, China
2019–-2020 Professor, CAS Key Laboratory of Receptor Research, Synthetic Organic & Medicinal Chemistry Laboratory, Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China
2014–-2019 Associate Professor, CAS Key Laboratory of Receptor Research, Synthetic Organic & Medicinal Chemistry Laboratory, Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China
2013–2014 Assistant Professor, CAS Key Laboratory of Receptor Research, Synthetic Organic & Medicinal Chemistry Laboratory, Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China
2010–2013 Postdoctoral research in medicinal chemistry, Chemical Biology Program, Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Center for Addiction Research, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX, USA

RESEARCH ACTIVITIES
My research interests are broadly based on the interface of synthetic organic chemistry and medicinal chemistry, and in particular on the drug discovery of bioactive molecules to probe biological systems or act as potential therapeutic agents in inflammation and oncology. With this general idea in mind, and in active collaboration with other biologists and pharmacologists, I would like to apply state-of-the-art chemical approaches to biological problems impacting diagnosis, prevention and treatment of human diseases.
Specifically, I am devoted to developing a research system of medicinal chemical biology based on natural products to disclose their action targets and mechanism by means of multidisciplinary technologies including total synthesis based structural optimization, chemical proteomics, bioinformatics and molecular imaging, and has obtained several original drug candidates for anti acute lung injury and tumor immunotherapy. Among them, two class 1.1 new drug candidates are under preclinical research, and one has been licensed out. As PI, I am granted by 5 scientific research projects including the Youth and General Programs of NSFC. In last five years, I have published 19 first or co-corresponding-author SCI-indexed papers including Chem Sci, Cancer Res, J Med Chem, Anal Chem and so on. I was selected into Pujiang Talent Program of Shanghai in 2014. I am also the recipient of Sanofi-SIBS Distinguish Young Scientist Award and in 2019, respectively.
GRANT SUPPORT
[1] National Natural Science Foundation of China, Design, Synthesis and Anti-inflammation Activity Evaluation of Tanshinone hybridization Derivatives, Grant No. 21877120. PI (Ding Chunyong).
[2] National Natural Science Foundation of China, Design, Synthesis and Anticancer Evaluation of Tanshinone Derivatives, Grant No. 81402790. PI (Ding Chunyong).
[3] Pujiang Talent Project of Shanghai, Design, Synthesis and Anticancer Evaluation of Artemisinin Derivatives, Grant No. 14PJ1410700. PI (Ding Chunyong).
[4] "Personalized Medicines—Molecular Signature-based Drug Discovery and Development", Strategic Priority Research Program of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Grant No. XDA12020320. PI (Ding Chunyong).
SCHOLARSHIPS & AWARDS
2019 Sanofi-SIBS Distinguish Young Scientist Award
2019 Young Scholar Innovation Achievement showcase at China Precision Medical Conference
2014 Pujiang Talent Program of Shanghai.
2013 Outstanding Youth Paper Award at China National Medicinal Chemistry Symposium.
2012 Behavior, Biology and Chemistry (BBC) Meeting Travel Awards.
PUBLICATIONS IN PEER-REVIEWED JOURNALS (#co-first author, *corresponding author)
1. Ding C., Song Z., Shen A., Chen T., Zhang A.* “Small molecules targeting the innate immune cGAS‒STING‒TBK1 signaling pathway.” Acta Pharm. Sin. B, 2020, https:// doi.org/10.1016/j.apsb.2020.03.001.
2. Xiao R.#, Ding C.#, Zhu H., Liu X., Gao J., Liu Q., Lu D., Zhang N.*, Zhang A.*, Zhou H.* “Suppression of asparagine synthetase enhances the antitumor potency of ART and artemalogue SOMCL-14-221 in non-small cell lung cancer.” Cancer Lett. 2020, 475, 22-33.
3. Dang Y., Wang F., Li L., Lai Y., Xu Z.*, Xiong Z., Zhang A., Tian Y., Ding C.*, Zhang W.*. “An activatable near-infrared fluorescent probe for methylglyoxal imaging in Alzheimer's disease mice.” Chem. Commun. 2020, 56, 707-710.
4. Mao X., Ni J., Xu B.*. Ding C.*. “K2S2O8-promoted direct thiocyanation of pyrazolin-5-ones with ammonium thiocyanate at room temperature.” Org. Chem. Front. 2020, 7, 350-354.
5. Ding C.*,#, Wang F.#, Dang Y.#, Xu Z.*, Li L., Lai Y., Yu H., Luo Y., Huang R., Zhang A., Zhang W.*. “Imaging tumorous methylglyoxal by an activatable near-infrared fluorescent probe for monitoring glyoxalase 1 activity.” Anal. Chem. 2019, 91, 15577-15584.
6. Ding C.#, Chen H.#, Liang B., Jiao M., Liang G.*, Zhang A.* “Biomimetic synthesis of the natural product salviadione and its hybrids: discovery of tissue-specific anti-inflammatory agents for acute lung injury.” Chem Sci. 2019, 10, 4667-4672.
7. Ding C. #, Tian Q. #, Li J., Jiao M., Song S., Wang Y.*, Miao Z.-H.*, Zhang A.* “Structural modification of natural product tanshinone I leading to discovery of novel nitrogen-enriched derivatives with enhanced anticancer profile and improved drug-like properties.” J. Med. Chem. 2018, 61, 760-776.
8. Wang F., Yu S., Xu Z.*, Li L., Dang Y., Xu X., Luo Y., Cheng Z., Yu H., Zhang W., Zhang A., Ding C.*. “Acid-promoted D-A-D type far-red fluorescent probe with high photostability for lysosomal nitric oxide imaging.” Anal Chem. 2018, 90, 7953-7962.
9. Li R.,# Ding C.,# Zhang J.,# Xie M., Park D., Ding Y., Chen G., Zhang G., Gilbert-Ross M., Zhou W., Marcus A. I., Sun S. Y., Chen Z. G., Sica G. L., Ramalingam S. S., Magis A. T., Fu H., Khuri F. R., Curran W. J., Owonikoko T. K., Shin D. M., Zhou J.*, Deng X.* “Modulation of bax and mTOR for cancer therapeutics.” Cancer Res. 2017, 77, 3001-3012.
10. Tian Q.#, Ding C.#, Song S., Wang Y.*, Zhang A.*, Miao Z.*. “New tanshinone I derivatives S222 and S439 similarly inhibit topoisomerase I/II but reveal different p53-dependency in inducing G2/M arrest and apoptosis.” Biochem. Pharmacol. 2018, 154, 255-264.
11. Li J., Xue Y., Fan Z., Ding C. *, Zhang A.* “Difluorination of furonaphthoquinones.” J. Org. Chem. 2017, 82, 7388-7393.
12. Ding C.#, Li J.#, Jiao M., Zhang A.*. “Catalyst-free sp3 C-H acyloxylation: regioselective synthesis of 1-acyloxy derivatives of the natural product tanshinone IIA.” J. Nat. Prod. 2016, 79, 2514-2520.
13. Liu G., Song S., Shu S., Miao Z., Zhang A., Ding C.* “Novel spirobicyclic artemisinin analogues (artemalogues): synthesis and antitumor activities.” Eur. J. Med. Chem. 2015, 103, 17-28.
14. Ding C., Zhang Y., Chen H., Yang Z., Wild C., Ye N., Ester C. D., Xiong A., White M. A., Shen Q.*, Zhou J.* “Oridonin ring a-based diverse constructions of enone functionality: identification of dienone analogues effective for highly aggressive breast cancer by inducing apoptosis.” J Med Chem. 2013, 56, 8814-8825.
15. Ding C., Zhang Y., Chen H., Wild C., Wang T., White M. A., Shen Q., Zhou J.* “Overcoming synthetic challenges of oridonin a-ring structural diversification: regio- and stereoselective installation of azides and 1,2,3-triazoles at the C-1, C-2, or C-3 position.” Org. Lett. 2013, 15, 3718-3721.
16. Ding C., Zhang Y., Chen H., Chu L., Yang Z., Wild C., Liu H., Shen Q.*, Zhou J.* “Novel nitrogen-enriched oridonin analogs with thiazole-fused a-ring: orotecting group-free synthesis, enhanced anticancer profile, and improved aqueous solubility.” J. Med. Chem. 2013, 56, 5048-5058.
17. Ding C., Bremer N. M., Smith T. D., Seitz P. K., Anastasio N. C., Cunningham K. A., Zhou J.* “Exploration of synthetic approaches and pharmacological evaluation of PNU-69176E and its stereoisomer as 5-HT2C receptor allosteric modulators.” ACS Chem. Neurosci. 2012, 3, 538-545.
18. Ding C., Tu S., Yao Q.*, Li F., Wang Y., Hu W., Zhang A.*. “One-pot three-step synthesis of naphtho[2,3-a]carbazole-5,13-diones using tandem radical alkylation-cyclization-aromatization reaction sequence.” Adv. Synth. Catal. 2010, 352, 847-853.
19. Ding C., Tu S., Wang Y., Hu W., Meng L., Yao Q.*, Zhang A.* “Synthesis study on Marmycin A: preparation of the C3’-desmethyl analogues.” J. Org. Chem. 2009, 74, 6111-6119.
20. Wang F., Yang H., Yu S., Xue Y., Fan Z., Liang G., Geng M., Zhang A., Ding C.* “Total synthesis of (±)-tanshinol B, tanshinone I, and (±)-tanshindiol B and C.” Org. Biomol. Chem. 2018, 16, 3376-3381.
21. Jiao M., Liu G., Xue, Y., Ding C.* “Computational drug repositioning for cancer therapeutics.” Curr. Top. Med. Chem. 2015, 15, 767-775.