Dr. Zhao completed his medical degree from Shanxi Medical University in Jinzhong, China, in 2000. Then, he completed an anesthesiology residency at the First Affiliated Hospital of Shanxi Medical University and later serving as an instructor and attending physician there in the Department of Anesthesiology. He continued serving at the Shanxi Medical University as an Associate Professor for a decade before joining the Thomas Jefferson University’s Department of Medicine as a research associate. In 2018, he earned ECFMG board certification and went on to complete postdoctoral training in Thomas Jefferson University’s Cardiovascular Program in 2020.

      Dr. Zhao's research investigates the signaling mechanisms responsible for APN-mediated cardioprotection, with the ultimate goal of identifying new therapeutic targets at the molecular, cellular, and organ level in in vivo animal models, for the purpose of ameliorating cardiovascular complications caused by type-2 diabetes. As part of the research team, his publish reporting the critical role of Cav3/AdipoR1 signaling complex in cardioprotection, and its pathological alteration by diabetes. Besides, he investigates the inter-organ signaling between dysfunctional adipocyte and diabetic heart, with the ultimate goal of identifying new therapeutic targets at the molecular, cellular, and organ level in in vivo animal models, for the purpose of ameliorating diabetic cardiovascular complications.