Heemin Kang
Korea University · Engineering
About the Lab
Professor Heemin Kang's research lab specializes in the design and application of smart nanomaterials for advanced cancer therapy and diagnosis, with a strong focus on stimuli-responsive systems. The lab pioneers innovative strategies that leverage endogenous and exogenous stimuli—such as light, ultrasound, magnetic fields, and biochemical signals—to enable precise, on-demand control over therapeutic responses in deep-seated and intractable tumors. A key research direction involves developing convertible and reversible nanosystems that dynamically interact with immune cells, particularly macrophages, to modulate their adhesion and polarization for enhanced anti-tumor immunity. The lab also explores the unique properties of one-dimensional nanomaterials and mechanical stimulation for synergistic, patient-friendly cancer treatments.
Research Overview
Research Output Trend
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Selected Papers
15) as exogenous stimuli that can provide on-demand remote controllability for customized deep tumor therapy with a low inter-patient variation. Strikingly, the utilization of dual endogenous and/or exogenous stimuli provides a new direction for efficient cancer therapy. This review highlights recent advances in the utilization of various endogenous and exogenous stimuli to activate the reactions of nanocarriers for ferroptosis-based cancer therapy that can inspire the field of cancer therapy, par
Light-based phototherapy has been developed for cancer treatment owing to its non-invasiveness and spatiotemporal control. Despite the unique merits of phototherapy, one critical disadvantage of light is its limited penetration depth, which restricts its application in cancer treatment. Although many researchers have developed various strategies to deliver light into deep-seated tumors with two-photon and near-infrared light irradiation, phototherapy encounters the peculiar limitations of light.
This review summarizes a novel perspective on emerging 1-D nanomaterials for cancer therapy and diagnosis, highlighting the unique shape-dependent properties, recent advancements, and unexplored nanomaterial types and therapeutic applications.
Mechanical stimulation utilizing deep tissue-penetrating and focusable energy sources, such as ultrasound and magnetic fields, is regarded as an emerging patient-friendly and effective therapeutic strategy to overcome the limitations of conventional cancer therapies based on fundamental external stimuli such as light, heat, electricity, radiation, or microwaves. Recent efforts have suggested that mechanical stimuli-driven cancer therapy (henceforth referred to as "mechanical cancer therapy") cou
Abstract Macrophages regulate host responses to implants through their dynamic adhesion, release, and activation. Herein, we employ bisphosphonate (BP)-coated gold nanoparticle template (BNP) to direct the swift and convertible formation of Mg 2+ -functional Mg 2+ -BP nanoparticle (NP) on the BP-AuNP surface via reversible Mg 2+ -BP coordination, thus producing (Mg 2+ -BP)-Au dimer (MgBNP). Ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid-based Mg 2+ chelation facilitates the dissolution of Mg 2+ -BP NP, thus en
Macrophages play crucial roles in various immune-related responses, such as host defense, wound healing, disease progression, and tissue regeneration. Macrophages perform distinct and dynamic functions in vivo, depending on their polarization states, such as the pro-inflammatory M1 phenotype and pro-healing M2 phenotype. Remote manipulation of the adhesion of host macrophages to the implants and their subsequent polarization in vivo can be an attractive strategy to control macrophage polarizatio
Ferroptosis offers a novel method for overcoming therapeutic resistance of cancers to conventional cancer treatment regimens. Its effective use as a cancer therapy requires a precisely targeted approach, which can be facilitated by using nanoparticles and nanomedicine, and their use to enhance ferroptosis is indeed a growing area of research. While a few review papers have been published on iron-dependent mechanism and inducers of ferroptosis cancer therapy that partly covers ferroptosis nanopar
The abilities of human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) to proliferate without phenotypic alteration and to differentiate into tissue-specific progeny make them a promising cell source for regenerative medicine and development of physiologically relevant in vitro platforms. Despite this potential, efficient conversion of hPSCs into tissue-specific cells still remains a challenge. Herein, we report direct conversion of hPSCs into functional osteoblasts through the use of adenosine, a naturally occu
Remote, noninvasive, and reversible control over the nanoscale presentation of bioactive ligands, such as Arg-Gly-Asp (RGD) peptide, is highly desirable for temporally regulating cellular functions in vivo. Herein, we present a novel strategy for physically uncaging RGD using a magnetic field that allows safe and deep tissue penetration. We developed a heterodimeric nanoswitch consisting of a magnetic nanocage (MNC) coupled to an underlying RGD-coated gold nanoparticle (AuNP) via a long flexible
Macrophages are key immune cells that perform various physiological functions, such as the maintenance of homeostasis, host defense, disease progression, and tissue regeneration. Macrophages adopt distinctly polarized phenotypes, such as pro-inflammatory M1 phenotype or anti-inflammatory (pro-healing) M2 phenotype, to execute disparate functions. The remotely controlled reversible uncaging of bioactive ligands, such as Arg-Gly-Asp (RGD) peptide, is an appealing approach for temporally regulating
Ferroptosis, an iron-dependent form of regulatory cell death, has garnered significant interest as a therapeutic target in cancer treatment due to its distinct characteristics, including lipid peroxide generation and redox imbalance. However, its clinical application in oncology is currently limited by issues such as suboptimal efficacy and potential off-target effects. The advent of nanotechnology has provided a new way for overcoming these challenges through the development of activatable magn
Research Areas
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