Guanshu Liu, MS, PhD
Highlights
Languages
- English
Gender
MaleJohns Hopkins Affiliations:
- Johns Hopkins School of Medicine Faculty
About Guanshu Liu
Primary Academic Title
Professor of Radiology and Radiological Science
Background
Dr. Guanshu Liu is a Professor in the Russell H. Morgan Department of Radiology at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and F.M. Kirby Center at Kennedy Krieger Institute. Dr. Liu is also a faculty member of the Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center and an affiliated member of the Institute for NanoBioTechnology (INBT). Dr. Liu received his bachelor’s degree from the University of Science and Technology of China (USTC) in 1998 and Ph.D. degree from the Department of Biomedical Engineering at Case Western Reserve University in 2008. Dr. Liu has been a faculty member in the Department of Radiology and the F. M. Kirby Research Center for Functional Brain Imaging at the Kennedy Krieger Institute since February 2008.
Dr. Liu has been actively working in the fields of molecular imaging, chemical exchange saturation transfer (CEST) MRI contrast technology, and image-guided drug delivery and intervention. He has pioneered the development of various novel and translatable theranostic MRI technologies. These technologies integrate MRI contrast with a therapeutic agent for directly visualizing the delivery of therapeutics and monitoring treatment response. Dr. Liu has published more than 100 peer-reviewed research articles with an H index of 47 on Google Scholar. He also has more than 10 patents and provisional disclosures. He serves as a Senior Editor for the journal Molecular Imaging and Biology, Associate Editor for Cancer Imaging and Image-directed Interventions of Frontiers in Oncology, and editorial board member for the journal Biosensors. He received Johns Hopkins Discovery Award (2016), Marilyn Hilton MS Research Fund (2020), and the Distinguished Investigator (DI) Award, Academy for Radiology & Biomedical Imaging Research (2022).
Additional Academic Titles
Professor of Oncology
Research Interests
theranostics, molecular imaging, CEST MRI, extracellular vesicles, nanomedicine
Research Summary
Dr. Liu's primary research focus lies in developing innovative theranostics that seamlessly integrate advanced MRI and other cutting-edge molecular imaging technologies with targeted therapeutics, enabling image-guided drug delivery and real-time treatment monitoring. With a broad, interdisciplinary research background spanning molecular imaging, nanomedicine, radiological science, medicinal chemistry, and regenerative medicine, Dr. Liu brings a unique perspective to his work. His current research endeavors encompass three key areas: 1) Precision imaging and theranostics for cancer and other diseases, where he aims to develop highly specific and effective diagnostic and therapeutic strategies; 2) Multifunctional nanoparticles and biomaterials, which serve as versatile platforms for drug delivery, imaging, and tissue engineering applications; and 3) Multimodal imaging and theranostic applications of stem cells and extracellular vesicles, harnessing their inherent regenerative potential while leveraging advanced imaging techniques to monitor their biodistribution and therapeutic effects in real-time. Through these synergistic research efforts, Dr. Liu strives to push the boundaries of personalized medicine and improve patient outcomes across a wide range of diseases.
Selected Publications
Liu G, Bettegowda C, Qiao Y, Staedtke V, Chan KW, Bai R, Li Y, Riggins GJ, Kinzler KW, Bulte JW, McMahon MT, Gilad AA, Vogelstein B, Zhou S, van Zijl PC. “Noninvasive imaging of infection after treatment with tumor-homing bacteria using Chemical Exchange Saturation Transfer (CEST) MRI.” Magn Reson Med. 2013 Dec;70(6):1690-8. doi: 10.1002/mrm.24955. Epub 2013 Oct 7
Bar-Shir A, Liu G, Chan KW, Oskolkov N, Song X, Yadav NN, Walczak P, McMahon MT, van Zijl PC, Bulte JW, Gilad AA. “Human protamine-1 as an MRI reporter gene based on chemical exchange.” ACS Chem Biol. 2013 Oct 25. [Epub ahead of print].
Bar-Shir A, Liu G, Greenberg MM, Bulte JW, Gilad AA. “Synthesis of a probe for monitoring HSV1-tk reporter gene expression using chemical exchange saturation transfer MRI.” Nat Protoc. 2013 Dec;8(12):2380-91. doi: 10.1038/nprot.2013.140. Epub 2013 Oct 31
Bar-Shir A, Gilad AA, Chan KW, Liu G, van Zijl PC, Bulte JW, McMahon MT. “Metal ion sensing using ion chemical exchange saturation transfer 19F magnetic resonance imaging.” J Am Chem Soc. 2013 Aug 21;135(33):12164-7. doi: 10.1021/ja403542g. Epub 2013 Aug 6
Yang X, Song X, Li Y, Liu G, Ray Banerjee S, Pomper MG, McMahon MT. “Salicylic acid and analogues as diaCEST MRI contrast agents with highly shifted exchangeable proton frequencies.” Angew Chem Int Ed Engl. 2013 Jul 29;52(31):8116-9. doi: 10.1002/anie.201302764. Epub 2013 Jun 21. No abstract available
Graduate Program Affiliations
Biomedical Engineering