Dr. Jingwei Sun | Immunotechnology | Biotechnology Trailblazer Award
Vice President at Grit Biotechnology | China
Dr. Jingwei Sun, Vice President of Grit Biotechnology, is an accomplished biotechnology researcher specializing in immuno-oncology, cell therapy, and gene editing, with a distinguished academic foundation and global research impact. He earned his Ph.D. in Immunology from Yale University, where he trained under Professor Lieping Chen, the discoverer of PD-L1, and contributed to pioneering immune-oncology research that has been published in high-impact journals such as Nature Medicine, Cell, Cancer Discovery, and Molecular Therapy. Professionally, Dr. Sun has transitioned seamlessly from academia to industry, spearheading the development of next-generation cell and gene therapies, including tumor-infiltrating lymphocyte (TIL) therapies, CRISPR-based products, and cancer vaccines, many of which are currently advancing through pivotal clinical trials in the U.S. and China. His research interests focus on immune pathway discovery, novel antibody drugs, targeted lipid nanoparticle (LNP) delivery, and clinically translatable gene-editing platforms, exemplified by his groundbreaking AaCas12bMAX system that achieved over 80% on-target editing efficiency with undetectable off-target events, now enabling GT307, the world’s first Cas12b-edited dual knockout TIL product submitted to the FDA. With over 50 patents filed and granted in regions including Australia, Japan, and South Korea, his innovative methods for treating cancers and autoimmune diseases have also been licensed to industry partners such as NextCure, Inc. His skills span translational immunology, CRISPR screening, antibody drug development, and clinical trial design, supported by collaborations with leading institutions and companies such as Instil Bio. Dr. Sun’s work has resulted in multiple clinical-stage assets, including NC318, GT101, GT201, GT307, GT601, and GT801, representing first-in-class approaches to tackling solid tumors. His achievements are recognized by a strong citation record on Google Scholar and a significant publication footprint across SCI and Scopus-indexed journals. As a trailblazing scientist, he has bridged fundamental research with clinical application, ensuring his discoveries directly impact patient care. In conclusion, Dr. Sun’s career exemplifies scientific leadership, innovation, and translational excellence in biotechnology, and his contributions to developing advanced immunotherapies and gene-edited products highlight his role as a global leader driving the future of cancer treatment.
Featured Publications
Wang, J., Sanmamed, M. F., Datar, I., Su, T. T., Ji, L., Sun, J., Chen, L., Chen, Y., … (2019). Fibrinogen-like protein 1 is a major immune inhibitory ligand of LAG-3. Cell, 176(1), 334–347.e12.
Wang, J., Sun, J., Liu, L. N., Flies, D. B., Nie, X., Toki, M., Zhang, J., Song, C., Zarr, M., … (2019). Siglec-15 as an immune suppressor and potential target for normalization cancer immunotherapy. Nature Medicine, 25(4), 656–666.
Flies, D. B., Han, X., Higuchi, T., Zheng, L., Sun, J., Ye, J. J., & Chen, L. (2014). Coinhibitory receptor PD-1H preferentially suppresses CD4+ T cell–mediated immunity. The Journal of Clinical Investigation, 124(5), 1966–1975.
Wang, S., Sun, J., Chen, K., Ma, P., Lei, Q., Xing, S., Cao, Z., Sun, S., Yu, Z., Liu, Y., … (2021). Perspectives of tumor-infiltrating lymphocyte treatment in solid tumors. BMC Medicine, 19(1), 140.
Sun, J., Lu, Q., Sanmamed, M. F., & Wang, J. (2021). Siglec-15 as an emerging target for next-generation cancer immunotherapy. Clinical Cancer Research, 27(3), 680–688.
Sanmamed, M. F., Nie, X., Desai, S. S., Villaroel-Espindola, F., Badri, T., Zhao, D., … (2021). A burned-out CD8+ T-cell subset expands in the tumor microenvironment and curbs cancer immunotherapy. Cancer Discovery, 11(7), 1700–1715.
Wang, J., Yuan, R., Song, W., Sun, J., Liu, D., & Li, Z. (2017). PD-1, PD-L1 (B7-H1) and tumor-site immune modulation therapy: The historical perspective. Journal of Hematology & Oncology, 10(1), 34.