Introduction:

Dr. Shen is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Neurobiology of School of Life Sciences. He joined SUSTech full-time in June 2026 and holds a joint appointment at the Center for Complex Flows and Soft Matter Research. He received his B.S. from the University of Science and Technology of China in 2017 and his Ph.D. from the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) in 2022, where he then continued as a postdoctoral researcher until May 2026. During his doctoral and postdoctoral training, he established the theoretical framework of “percolated molecular networks” in phase separation, revealing how molecular networks within biomolecular condensates govern material properties, molecular dynamics, and biological functions. His work has introduced the study of biomolecular phase separation into the interdisciplinary field of “Condensed Matter Biology,” which integrates condensed matter physics, soft matter, complex systems, and biology. His research findings have been published as first or co-first author in journals including Cell, Science, Molecular Cell, and eLife.

Research Interests：

Biomolecular phase separation is a fundamental mechanism for membrane-free compartmentalization within cells. Numerous condensates have been identified and their functions characterized; however, a fundamental question remains unresolved: how do microscopic intermolecular interactions bridge across scales to determine the mesoscopic material properties and functions of condensates? Built upon a novel discovery, a physical network spanning the entire condensate driven by multivalent strong interactions, termed the "percolated molecular network". Our group integrates interdisciplinary approaches including cell biology, structural biology, biophysics, and condensed matter biology to pursue the following research directions:

1. Fundamental mechanisms, emergent properties, and theoretical underpinnings of phase separation and percolated molecular networks:

· Physical basis and quantitative theory of emergent properties of percolated molecular networks;

· Energy landscape of inter-condensate interactions and cross-scale principles.

2. Applications and implications of phase separation and percolated molecular networks in cell biology:

· Phase separation modulation based on percolated networks and its applications in cell biology;

· Mechanisms and modulation of aberrant phase separation.

Professional Experience：

◆ 202605-present: Southern University of Science and Technology, Assistant Professor

◆ 202209-202605: The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Postdoc

Educational Background：

◆ 201708-202208: The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Ph.D. in Life Science

◆ 201309-201706: University of Science and Technology of China, B.Sc. in Biological Science

Selected Publication：

◆ Bowen Jia#; Zeyu Shen#; Shihan Zhu; Jingguo Huang; Zhitao Liao; Shuaizhu Zhao; Hao Li; Shiwen Chen; Yang Xu; Yu Wang; Haitang Peng; Guanhua Bai; Youming Lu; Penger Tong; Wucheng Tao; and Mingjie Zhang. Shank3 oligomerization governs material properties of the postsynaptic density condensate and synaptic plasticity, Cell, 2025, 188 (23), 6473-6491. e21. DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2025.07.047

◆ Shihan Zhu#; Zeyu Shen#; Xiandeng Wu; Wenyan Han; Bowen Jia; Wei Lu; Mingjie Zhang. Demixing is a default process for biological condensates formed via phase separation, Science, 2024, 384(6698): 920-928. DOI: 10.1126/science.adj7066

◆ Zeyu Shen; Bowen Jia; Yang Xu; Jonas Wessén; Tanmoy Pal; Hue Sun Chan; Shengwang Du; Mingjie Zhang. Biological condensates form percolated networks with molecular motion properties distinctly different from dilute solutions, eLife, 2023, 12, e81907. DOI: 10.7554/eLife.81907

◆ Bowen Jia#; Shihan Zhu#; Zeyu Shen#; Xiumin Chen; Hao Li; Shuaizhu Zhao; Qixu Cai; Yu Wang; Ziqi Wang; Roger A. Nicoll; Youming Lu; Mingjie Zhang. Modulating synaptic glutamate receptors by targeting network nodes of the postsynaptic density condensate, Molecular Cell, 2025, 85 (16), 3166-3183. e10. DOI: 10.1016/j.molcel.2025.07.017

◆ Weidi Chen#; Zeyu Shen#; Sabrina Asteriti; Zijing Chen; Fei Ye; Ziling Sun; Jun Wan; Craig Montell; Roger C. Hardie; Wei Liu; Mingjie Zhang. Calmodulin binds to Drosophila TRP with an unexpected mode, Structure, 2021, 29(4): 330-344.e4. DOI: 10.1016/j.str.2020.11.016

#: Co-first authors.