Professor Junfeng Zhao received his Ph.D. in organic chemistry from Nanyang Technological University (NTU), Singapore, in 2010. From 2010 to 2011, he worked as a postdoctoral researcher at the School of Biological Sciences at NTU. Between 2011 and 2013, he conducted research in organic chemistry and chemical biology in Germany as a Humboldt Research Fellow. In May 2013, he was appointed as an Assistant Professor (Research) in the Department of Chemistry at the University of Hong Kong. In April 2014, he was recruited as a Distinguished Professor and Ph.D. supervisor to Jiangxi Normal University as part of China’s recruitment program for high-level overseas talent. In 2021, he joined Guangzhou Medical University.
Professor Zhao has published over 40 papers as the first author or corresponding author in prestigious international journals such as the Journal of the American Chemical Society, Angewandte Chemie International Edition, Chemical Science, Chemical Communications, Organic Letters, and Advanced Synthesis & Catalysis. He serves as a review editor for renowned journals like Frontiers in Chemistry and Frontiers in Biomolecular Sciences.
Currently, he leads multiple projects, including a major research program of the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC), general and regional projects, major projects from the Jiangxi Provincial Department of Science and Technology, and key projects from the Jiangxi Provincial Department of Education. In 2015, he was named an Outstanding Young Scientist in Jiangxi Province. In 2017, he was selected for Jiangxi Normal University's High-End Talent Cultivation Program, and in 2018, he was included in China’s High-Level Overseas Talent Support Program by the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security (only 30 scholars nationwide were selected). In 2020, he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry (FRSC).
Professor Zhao has won numerous international academic awards and honors, including:
