Mohammad Javad Hajipour, PhD, MSc
Assistant Professor of Research in Nanomedicine
VA Building 119, Room 2-39B
423.439.6376
Doctoral: National Institute of Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (NIGEB), PhD, Biology,
Molecular Genetics, 2015 Postdoc: Michigan State University, USA, 2019–2021, Nanomedicine;
University of Michigan, USA, 2021–2022, Nanomedicine
Research scientist: Stanford University, USA, 2022–2024, Nanomedicine
Senior scientist: Stanford University, USA, 2024–2025, Nanomedicine
Brief Bio:
Dr. Mohammad J. Hajipour, an assistant professor in ETSU’s Department of Internal
Medicine, completed postdoctoral training at the University of Michigan and Michigan
State University, and spent three years as a research scientist, project leader and
senior scientist at the Stanford University School of Medicine before joining ETSU.
Dr. Hajipour ranks among the top 1% of scientists worldwide in nanomedicine based
on citation impact.
Dr. Hajipour has established the Drug Delivery Center at ETSU to develop clinically
translatable platforms for the targeted delivery of drugs and nucleic acids—including
CRISPR–Cas and siRNA—for therapy and gene editing.
RESEARCH INTERESTS: Nanomedicine
Nanoparticles are widely used for drug delivery because they traverse biological barriers
and can selectively target specific cells, tissues, and organs. Once administered,
they rapidly adsorb proteins and other biomolecules, forming a protein corona that
reshapes their physicochemical properties and confers a biological identity distinct
from their synthetic design. This corona strongly governs therapeutic efficacy and
potential toxicity: depending on the composition and abundance of adsorbed proteins,
nanoparticles exhibit different blood-circulation times, biodistribution profiles,
cellular-uptake pathways and efficiencies, immune responses, cell–tissue interactions,
and overall targeting performance.
Dr. Hajipour’s work centers on nanoparticle–protein interactions and the biological consequences of the protein corona. Across multiple publications, he has shown how corona formation modulates nanoparticle efficacy and safety, and he has investigated corona-coated nanoparticles for treating neurodegenerative diseases and cancer. He has also developed strategies to tune the protein corona to deliberately regulate nanoparticle behavior in vivo.
He introduced the concepts of personalized protein corona and disease-specific protein
corona, demonstrating that chemically identical nanoparticles can elicit different
therapeutic or toxic responses across individuals and disease states. These insights
established corona profiling as a critical step toward personalized nanomedicine.
In parallel, he developed nanosensor arrays that detect and distinguish disease types
based on their disease-specific corona signatures.
Dr. Hajipour has developed molecular imaging strategies, including novel probes and radiotracers for targeted in vivo imaging. His work includes clinically translatable nanoparticle probes for MRI and a radiotracer designed to image senescent cells.
At ETSU, he is enhancing the organ-specific targeting of nanoparticles for drug delivery and creating next-generation lipid nanoparticles to enable precise gene editing, including delivery of CRISPR–Cas systems. His research focuses on nanotechnology-based approaches to gene editing and the treatment of HIV, HBV, and cancer.
He has established two laboratories: a nanochemistry lab, where he formulates a range
of nanoparticles—especially lipid nanoparticles—and a nanomedicine lab, where he investigates
the biological effects of nano-objects in vitro and in vivo. His program is strongly
interdisciplinary: he collaborates with faculty across domains and engages undergraduate
and graduate students from diverse backgrounds in cross-cutting research.
Dr. Hajipour is always open to collaborating on interdisciplinary research.
Mohammad Javad Hajipour - Google Scholar
Publications:
1. Hajipour, M. J. *; Rezvantalab, S.; Mohammad-Beigi, H.; Maleki, R.; et al. cis
and trans isomers of phospho-tubulin-associated unit proteins differently affect amyloid
aggregation. International Journal of Biological Macromolecules, 2025, 14550.
2. Nernekli, K.; Mangarova, D. B.; Suryadevara, V.; Hajipour, M.; Tang, J. H.; Wang,
J.; et al. MRI detection of senescent cells in porcine knee joints with a β-galactosidase–responsive
Gd-chelate. npj Imaging, 2025, 3(1), 18.
3. Suryadevara, V.; Hudgins, A. D.; …; Hajipour, M. J.; … SenNet recommendations for
detecting senescent cells in different tissues. Nature Reviews Molecular Cell Biology,
2025, 1–23.
4. Tavakol, M.#; Hajipour, M. J.#*; Ferdousi, M.; Zanganeh, S.; Maurizi, L.* Competition
of opsonins and dysopsonins on the nanoparticle surface. Nanoscale, 2023.
5. Marques, C.†; Hajipour, M. J.†*; Marets, C.; Oudot, A.; Safavisohi, R.; Guillemin,
M.; Borchard, G.; Jordan, O.; Saviot, L.; Maurizi, L. Identification of the proteins
determining the blood circulation time of nanoparticles. ACS Nano, 2023 (June 28).
6. Suryadevara, V.#; Hajipour, M. J.#; Adams, L. C.; Aissaoui, N. M.; Rashidi, A.;
Kiru, L.; Theruvath, A. J.; Huang, C.-H.; Maruyama, M.; Tsubosaka, M.; Lyons, J. K.;
Wu, W. (Emma); Roudi, R.; Goodman, S. B.; Daldrup-Link, H. E. MegaPro, a clinically
translatable nanoparticle for in vivo tracking of stem cell implants in pig cartilage
defects. Theranostics, 2023, 13(8), 2710–2720.
7. Hajipour, M. J*.; Safavi-Sohi, R.; Sharifi, S.; Mahmoud, N.; Ashkarran, A. A.;
Voke, E.; Serpooshan, V.; Ramezankhani, M.; Milani, A. S.; Landry, M. P.; Mahmoudi,
M. An overview of nanoparticle protein corona literature. Small, 2023, 2301838.
8. Ghaemi, B.; Hajipour, M. J.* Tumor acidic environment directs nanoparticle impacts
on cancer cells. Journal of Colloid and Interface Science, 2023, 15, 684–692.
9. Hajipour, M. J.; Serpooshan, V.; Vali, H.; Sheibani, S.; Mahmoudi, M. Sex as an
important factor in nanomedicine. Nature Communications, 2021, 12, 2984.
10. Hajipour, M. J.*; Mohammad-Beigi, H.; Nabipour, I.; Mahmoudi, N.; Azhdarzadeh,
M.; Derakhshankhah, H.; El Dawud, D.; Mohammadinejad, R.; Otzen, D. E. Amyloid fibril
inhibition, acceleration, or fragmentation: Are nano-based approaches advancing in
the right direction? Nano Today, 2020, 35, 100983.
11. Hajipour, M. J.; Mehrani, M.; Abbasi, S. H.; Amin, A.; Kassaian, S. E.; Garbern,
J. C.; Caracciolo, G.; Zanganeh, S.; Chitsazan, M.; Aghaverdi, H.; Kamali, S. S. M.;
Ashkarran, A. A.; Raoufi, M.; Bauser-Heaton, H.; Zhang, J.; Muehlschlegel, J. D.;
Moore, A.; Lee, R. T.; Wu, J. C.; Serpooshan, V.; Mahmoudi, M. Nanoscale technologies
for prevention and treatment of heart failure: Challenges and opportunities. Chemical
Reviews, 2019, 119(21), 11352.
12. Mohammad-Beigi, H.; Hosseini, A.; Adeli, M.; Ejtehadi, M. R.; Christiansen, G.;
Sahin, C.; Tu, Z.; Tavakol, M.; Dilmaghani-Marand, A.; Nabipour, I.; Farzadfar, F.;
Otzen, D. E.; Mahmoudi, M.; Hajipour, M. J.* Mechanistic understanding of the interactions
between nano-objects with different surface properties and α-synuclein. ACS Nano,
2019, 13(3), 3243.
13. Caracciolo, G.; Safavi-Sohi, R.; Malekzadeh, R.; Poustchi, H.; Vasighi, M.; Chiozzi,
R. Z.; Capriotti, A. L.; Laganà, A.; Hajipour, M. J.; Di Domenico, M.; Di Carlo, D.;
Damiano, C.; Aghaverdi, H.; Papi, M.; Palmieri, V.; Santoni, A.; Palchetti, S.; Digiacomo,
L.; Pozzi, D.; Suslick, S. K.; Mahmoudi, M. Disease-specific protein corona sensor
arrays may have disease detection capacity. Nanoscale Horizons, 2019, 4(5), 1063.
14. Ghaemi, B.; Moshiri, A.; Herrmann, I. K.; Hajipour, M. J.; Wick, P.; Amani, A.;
Kharrazi, S. Supramolecular insights into domino effects of Ag@ZnO-induced oxidative
stress in melanoma cancer cells. ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, 2019, 11(50),
46408.
15. Sanati, M.; Khodagholi, F.; Aminyavari, S.; Ghasemi, F.; Gholami, M.; Kebriaeezadeh,
A.; Sabzevari, O.; Hajipour, M. J.; Imani, M.; Mahmoudi, M. Impact of gold nanoparticles
on amyloid β-induced Alzheimer’s disease in a rat model: Involvement of STIM proteins.
ACS Chemical Neuroscience, 2019, 10(5), 2299.
16. Derakhshankhah, H.; Hosseini, A.; Taghavi, F.; Jafari, S.; Lotfabadi, A.; Ejtehadi,
M. R.; Shahbazi, S.; Fattahi, A.; Ghasemi, A.; Barzegari, E.; Evini, M.; Saboury,
A. A.; Kamali, S. S. M.; Ghaemi, B.; Ng, E.-P.; Awala, H.; Omrani, F.; Nabipour, I.;
Raoufi, M.; Dinarvand, R.; Mintova, S.; Hajipour, M. J.*; Mahmoudi, M. Molecular interaction
of fibrinogen with zeolite nanoparticles. Scientific Reports, 2019, 9(1), 1.
17. Naserkhaki, R.; Zamanzadeh, S.; Baharvand, H.; Nabavi, S. M.; Pakdaman, H.; Shahbazi,
S.; Vosough, M.; Ghaedi, G.; Barzegar, A.; Mirtorabi, D.; Hedayatshodeh, M.; Ehsani,
E.; Falahati, M.; Hajipour, M. J.; Shahpasand, K. cis pT231-tau drives neurodegeneration
in bipolar disorder. ACS Chemical Neuroscience, 2019, 10(3), 1214.
18. Sasanpour, P.; Dilmaghani-Maran, A.; Montazeri, H.; Ivani, S.; Hajipour, M. J.*;
Mahmoudi, M. Nanoparticles affect bacterial colonies’ optical diffraction patterns.
Nanoscale, 2019, 11(6), 2594.
19. Badieyan, S.; Dilmaghani-Marand, A.; Hajipour, M. J.*; Ameri, A.; Razzaghi, M.
R.; Rafii-Tabar, H.; Mahmoudi, M.; Sasanpour, P. Detection and discrimination of bacterial
colonies with Mueller matrix imaging. Scientific Reports, 2018, 8(1), 1.
20. Hajipour, M. J.; Saei, A. A.; Walker, E. D.; Conley, B.; Omidi, Y.; Lee, K.-B.;
Mahmoudi, M. Nanotechnology for targeted detection and removal of bacteria: Opportunities
and challenges. Advanced Science, 2021, 8, 2100556.
21. Lotfabadi, A.; Hajipour, M. J.*; Derakhshankhah, H.; Peirovi, A.; Saffar, S.;
Shams, E.; Fatemi, E.; Barzegari, E.; Sarvari, S.; Moakedi, F.; Ferdousi, M.; Atyabi,
F.; Saboury, A. A.; Dinarvand, R. Biomolecular corona dictates Aβ fibrillation process.
ACS Chemical Neuroscience, 2018, 9(7), 1725.
22. Tavakol, M.; Montazeri, A.; Naghdabadi, R.; Hajipour, M. J.; Zanganeh, S.; Caracciolo,
G.; Mahmoudi, M. Disease-related metabolites affect protein–nanoparticle interactions.
Nanoscale, 2018, 10(15), 7108.
23. Raoufi, M.; Hajipour, M. J.*; Shahri, S. M. K.; Schoen, I.; Linn, U.; Mahmoudi,
M. Probing fibronectin conformation on a protein-corona layer around nanoparticles.
Nanoscale, 2018, 10(3), 1228.
24. Hajipour, M. J.; Santoso, M. R.; Rezaee, F.; Aghaverdi, H.; Mahmoudi, M.; Perry,
G. Advances in Alzheimer’s diagnosis and therapy: The implications of nanotechnology.
Trends in Biotechnology, 2017, 35(10), 937.
25. Hajipour, M. J.; Ghasemi, F.; Aghaverdi, H.; Raoufi, M.; Linne, U.; Atyabi, F.;
Nabipour, I.; Azhdarzadeh, M.; Derakhshankhah, H.; Lotfabadi, A.; Bargahi, A.; Alekhamis,
Z.; Aghaie, A.; Hashemi, E.; Tafakhori, A.; Aghamollaii, V.; Mashhadi, M. M.; Sheibani,
S.; Vali, H.; Mahmoudi, M. Sensing of Alzheimer’s disease and multiple sclerosis using
nano-bio interfaces. Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease, 2017, 59(4), 1187.
26. Derakhshankhah, H.; Hajipour, M. J.; Barzegari, E.; Lotfabadi, A.; Ferdousi, M.;
Saboury, A. A.; Ng, E.-P.; Raoufi, M.; Awala, H.; Mintova, S.; Dinarvand, R.; Mahmoudi,
M. Zeolite nanoparticles inhibit Aβ–fibrinogen interaction and formation of a consequent
abnormal structural clot. ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, 2016, 8(45), 30768.
27. Safavi-Sohi, R.; Maghari, S.; Raoufi, M.; Jalali, S. A.; Hajipour, M. J.; Ghassempour,
A.; Mahmoudi, M. Bypassing the protein-corona issue in active targeting: Zwitterionic
coatings dictate specific interactions of targeting moieties and cell receptors. ACS
Applied Materials & Interfaces, 2016, 8(35), 22808.
28. Shanehsazzadeh, S.; Lahooti, A.; Hajipour, M. J.; Ghavami, M.; Azhdarzadeh, M.
External magnetic fields affect the biological impacts of superparamagnetic iron nanoparticles.
Colloids and Surfaces B: Biointerfaces, 2015, 136, 1107.
29. Hajipour, M. J.; Raheb, J.; Akhavan, O.; Arjmand, S.; Mashinchian, O.; Rahman,
M.; Abdolahad, M.; Serpooshan, V.; Laurent, S.; Mahmoudi, M. Personalized disease-specific
protein corona influences the therapeutic impact of graphene oxide. Nanoscale, 2015,
7(19), 8978.
30. Mirsadeghi, S.; Dinarvand, R.; Ghahremani, M. H.; Hormozi-Nezhad, M. R.; Mahmoudi,
Z.; Hajipour, M. J.; Atyabi, F.; Ghavami, M.; Mahmoudi, M. Protein-corona composition
of gold nanoparticles/nanorods affects amyloid-beta fibrillation. Nanoscale, 2015,
7(11), 5004.
31. Hajipour, M. J.; Akhavan, O.; Meidanchi, A.; Laurent, S.; Mahmoudi, M. Hyperthermia-induced
protein corona improves the therapeutic effects of zinc-ferrite-spinel/graphene sheets
against cancer. RSC Advances, 2014, 4(107), 62557.
32. Hajipour, M. J.; Laurent, S.; Aghaie, A.; Rezaee, F.; Mahmoudi, M. Personalized
protein coronas: A “key” factor at the nano-bio interface. Biomaterials Science, 2014,
2(9), 1210.
33. Krol, S.; Macrez, R.; Docagne, F.; Defer, G.; Laurent, S.; Rahman, M.; Hajipour,
M. J.; Kehoe, P. G.; Mahmoudi, M. Therapeutic benefits from nanoparticles: The potential
significance of nanoscience in diseases with compromise to the blood–brain barrier.
Chemical Reviews, 2013, 113(3), 1877.
34. Hajipour, M. J.; Fromm, K. M.; Ashkarran, A. A.; de Aberasturi, D. J.; de Larramendi, I. R.; Rojo, T.; Serpooshan, V.; Parak, W. J.; Mahmoudi, M. Antibacterial properties of nanoparticles. Trends in Biotechnology, 2012, 30(10), 499.
Books & Book Chapters:
1. Yu, E.; Sancenón, F.; Aznar, E.; Martínez-Máñez, R.; Marcos, M. D.; Hajipour, M.
J.; Mahmoudi, M.; Stroeve, P. Future perspective on the smart delivery of biomolecules.
In Drug Delivery Systems, 2017, Vol. 1, p. 363.
2. Mashinchian, O.; Alkilany, A.; Hajipour, M. J.*; Tavakol, S. Gold nanoparticles
for biomedical imaging and their biological response. 2016, pp. 65–84.
3. Hajipour, M. J.; Serpooshan, V.; Mahmoudi, M. Atherosclerosis and thrombosis heart
failure. In Nanomedicine for Ischemic Cardiomyopathy, Elsevier, 2020, pp. 23–42.