Winner: 2025 Analytical Science open Prize: Theophilus Redwood Prize
Professor Xingyu Jiang
Southern University of Science and Technology
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2025 Theophilus Redwood Prize: awarded for molecular analysis employing microfluidics involving gold nanoparticles, with applications in human health
Professor Jiang's research area includes microfluidics and gold nanoparticles for biomedical analysis. These analytical tools allow precise manipulation of biomolecules and cells for diagnostics, pharmaceutics, flexible electronics and regeneration of human tissues. His group use very small channels and tiny gold particles to come up with analytical tools that have applications in the diagnostics of disease and discovery of new therapies.
Biography
Xingyu Jiang is a Chair Professor at the Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, China. He obtained his BSc at the University of Chicago in 1999 and his PhD at Harvard University in 2004.
In 2005, he started a lab at the National Center of Nanoscience & Technology, China and in 2018, he moved to the Southern University of Science and Technology. He has published more than 400 peer-reviewed papers and his research has been recognised by many awards and supported by a number of funds, including the National Science Fund for Distinguished Young Scholars and the Human Frontier Science Program Young Investigator Award.
He is a Fellow of the Chinese Chemical Society, the 九州影院 and the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering. He has mentored over 60 post-graduate trainees 鈥� half of them have become independent researchers or faculty members, and several have had success in starting biotechnology companies.
Xingyu served as one of the inaugural members of the editorial board of the RSC鈥檚 Nanoscale journal in 2009 and served as its associate editor until 2018. He is currently an associate editor of the RSC鈥檚 Lab on a Chip journal.
Many of our greatest discoveries are from collaboration with other groups. All our discoveries are results of teamwork 鈥� at least within my research group.
Professor Xingyu Jiang
Q&A with Professor Xingyu Jiang
How did you first become interested in chemistry?
My mother had been a high school chemistry teacher, but by the time I took up chemistry in the ninth grade, she was no longer teaching chemistry and refused to teach me any for the fear that I would not pay attention in class. But she had a lot of chemistry textbooks at home, so I started to read those textbooks and began to appreciate how interesting chemistry was. Then I got hooked 鈥� nothing else could have interested me anymore.
Tell us about somebody who has inspired or mentored you in your career
When I studied at the University of Chicago as an undergraduate student, I had a lot of first-rate teachers in chemistry. The most inspiring one was Professor Milan Mrksich, who was my undergraduate thesis adviser. He opened up his lab to me and was the first person to introduce me to research in chemistry, as well as how to look at a problem and try to come up with innovative ways to solve it.
What motivates you?
Plain curiosity.
What advice would you give to a young person considering a career in chemistry?
Follow your passion: endurance pays off.
Can you tell us about a scientific development on the horizon that you are excited about?
In addition to using microchannels to precisely control the movement of aqueous solutions, we have recently become interested in using microchannels and micropatterns to precisely control liquid metals, such as gallium, to make flexible electronics and other interesting analytical tools. I am blown away everyday by new results in our lab and I think this area is very exciting for chemistry, as well as for biomedical engineering and materials science.
What does good research culture look like/mean to you?
Encourage everybody in the lab to think critically, be innovative and come up with new ideas every day.
How are the chemical sciences making the world a better place?
I have always thought of chemistry as the central science, which helps advance biology, medicine, geosciences, information sciences and so forth. Without chemistry that creates new materials, technological development will come to a stop.
Why do you think collaboration and teamwork are important in science?
Many of our greatest discoveries are from collaboration with other groups. All our discoveries are results of teamwork 鈥� at least within my research group.
What is your favourite element?
Gold