About Us
Milky Way Life Sciences’ mission is to end global diseases by promoting public health, starting with cultivating individual wellbeing. It uses leading-edge medical science to formulate high-quality nutritional treatments that are efficacious, convenient and affordable.
Founders/Board Members
Jianshe Zhang
Co-Founder, Board CHAIR
Mr. Jianshe Zhang is a leading innovator in today's agricultural industry. He is founder, Chairman of the Board, and CEO of ZhongDi Dairy, which in 2003 became the first and largest importer of dairy cattle in China. Managing nearly 100,000 Holstein cows and 8 feed farms, ZhongDi Dairy oversees the entire industrial chain of dairy farming - from importing cows to raw milk production.
Mr. Zhang has led several world-class innovative research programs, for which he has received numerous awards including a National Science and Technology Progress Award, two Agricultural Science and Technology Awards, and the Innovation Team of China Award. He holds 19 patents and rights to 19 IP filings. He is the inventor of 4 industry-wide operating standards.
Mr. Zhang is committed to a future with better nutrition for all by integrating technological innovation and worldwide resources to maximize the curative potential of dairy. Mr. Zhang cofounded Milky Way Life Sciences in 2017.
Weishu Zhu, MD,
Co-Founder, Board Member
Dr. WeiShu Zhu is co-Founder and President of Milky Way Life Sciences. Dr. Zhu received her medical degree from the West China University of Medical Sciences. For over 20 years, Dr. Zhu has worked in mucosal immunology and infant gastrointestinal nutrition. A significant part of her study has been with Dr. Allan Walker, a leading scientist and world-renown thinker in pediatric nutrition with Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School.
Dr. Zhu is a seasoned leader in both academia and the biomedical industry. As faculty with Harvard University Medical School, Dr. Zhu specializes in pediatric gastroenterology research including intestinal stem cell and organoid research, immunology, and pediatric nutrition. Dr. Zhu is committed to translating her medical research into practical products, bringing innovations to market that improve patient health. Dr. Zhu is co-founder of TaoTe Technology, an R&D company that develops food products that address public health issues.
Xinhua Chen, PhD
Co-Founder, Board Member
Dr. Xinhua Chen is an Assistant Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School. He received his bachelor’s degree in biology from Peking University, PhD in biochemistry from the University of Southern California University Keck School of Medicine and his postdoctoral training at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Massachusetts General Hospital.
Dr. Chen's research focuses on epithelial and vascular barrier function in gut infections, particularly Clostridium difficile infection (CDI). Dr. Chen is credited with developing the first mouse model to resemble human CDI which is now widely used in academic and industrial research. He is the recipient of several awards, including research awards from Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation of America, Young Investigator Award for Probiotic Research from Global Probiotics Council, and the Irving W. and Charlotte F. Rabb Award for outstanding gastrointestinal research at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. Dr. Chen is a co-founder of TaoTe Technology.
Na Chang
Board Member
Ms. Na Chang joined the Milky Way Life Sciences board in 2022. She graduated from China Agricultural University in 2004 and serves as Financial Director of YeGu Investment and Zhongdi Seed Industry Group. She has extensive experience in finance, accounting, investment relations, risk assessment, and legal affairs. She consults to senior management on corporate investments, financing, tax planning and mergers and acquisitions.
Scientific Advisory Board
Ciaran Patrick Kelly MD, MB
Dr. Ciaran Kelly earned his Doctor of Medicine degree from Trinity College in Dublin, Ireland where he was a Foundation Scholar and recipient of numerous academic awards. He received postgraduate clinical and research awards from the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation of America, the American Gastroenterological Association, and the National Institutes of Health (NIH). He is an American Gastroenterology Association Fellow and a Fellow of the American College of Gastroenterology. Dr. Kelly’s long-standing clinical and research interests are in intestinal infection and inflammation, and the pathogenesis and management of Clostridiodes difficile infection. He also has a longstanding interest in Celiac Disease. He has served as a committee member of the NIH, Center for Scientific Review, and led NIH-funded research programs on C. difficile colitis and inflammatory bowel disease. He heads clinical, research and educational programs in Celiac Disease as Medical Director of the Celiac Center at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. Dr. Kelly is author on more than 300 clinical and basic research book chapters, invited reviews, and peer-reviewed publications.
W. Allan Walker, MD
Dr. Allan Walker is former Director of the Division of Nutrition (DON) at Harvard Medical School. He was responsible for all DON activities and worked closely with the Executive and Advisory Committees to implement new initiatives. Within the DON, he chaired the Subcommittee of Medical Student Education Nutrition and coordinated postgraduate educational activities in conjunction with the Department of Nutrition at the Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) and the Clinical Nutrition Research Center at Harvard (HCNRC).
Dr. Walker has a longstanding interest and commitment to nutrition research. He is particularly interested in the role nutritional factors play in maintaining the integrity of the intestinal mucosal barrier and its role to host defense during the perinatal period. He was the first recipient of the Conrad Taff Professorship in Nutrition at Harvard Medical School in 1990. The research efforts of his laboratory have contributed substantially to the understanding of the role of breast milk and its inherent growth factors in development of the gastrointestinal tract and the role of short and long term malnutrition on the integrity of the mucosal barrier to host defense against bacterial colonization and the uptake of macromolecules (antigens and toxins) which may result in neonatal and childhood intestinal disease states (necrotizing enterocolitis and gastrointestinal allergy).
Dr. Walker served for six years on the Committee of Nutrition of the American Academy of Pediatrics (1977-1983) and received the Borden Research Award from the the American Academy of Pediatrics in 1984 and the Hugh Butt Award for Excellence in Clinical Nutrition Research from the American Gastroenterological Association in 1998. He has also served on Nutrition study sections at the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) institutes, and the Advisory Council of NIDDK at NIH. He recently served as a member of the task force to establish a five-year nutrition research plan at NICHD. Dr. Walker is the author of 12 textbooks and over 500 research and review articles.
Alessio Fasano, MD
Dr. Alessio Fasano, a pediatric gastroenterologist, holds several prodigious roles at Massachussetts General Hospital. He is W. Allan Walker Chair in Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition; Division Chief of Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition; Director of the Center for Celiac Research and Treatment; Director of the Mucosal Immunology and Biology Research Center and Associate Chief for Basic, Clinical and Translational In addition, he is Research.Professor of Pediatrics with Harvard Medical School and Professor of Nutrition with Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health.
In 2000, Dr. Alessio's group discovered zonulin, a protein associated with gut dysbiosis that regulates intestinal tight junctions. His basic research focuses on bacterial pathogenesis, gut microbiome composition and function in health and disease, the regulation of gut permeability, intestinal mucosal biology and immunology and SARS-CoV2.
In 2021, Dr. Fasano co-wrote Gut Feelings: The Microbiome and Our Health, with MIT Press.Dr. Fasano is widely sought after as an expert in celiac disease, intestinal permeability and autoimmune disorders.
Steven A. Zinn, PhD
Dr. Steven Zinn received his B.Sc. degree in Animal Science from Cornell University, and his MS and PhD degrees in Animal Science from Michigan State University. He joined the faculty of Animal Science at the University of Connecticut in 1990. Dr. Zinn’s area of research expertise is in growth biology and lactation in cattle, swine, sheep and the interactions of nutrient intake and hormones. His recent research focuses on the effects of maternal nutrition on offspring growth and both pre- and post-natal metabolism. Dr. Zinn was awarded the Tucker Lactation & Endocrinology Award and named an American Society of Animal Science (ASAS) Fellow. His research is seen as having contributed signficantly to the understanding of animal physiology and health.
In addition to his research pursuits, Dr. Zinn has held several leadership roles including president of the American Society of Animal Science. He served as the editor-in-chief of the Journal of Animal Science and was a founding member and Editor-in-Chief of Animal Frontiers. In addition to his research, Dr. Zinn is recognized for his teaching, advising, and mentoring, and is named a University of Connecticut Teaching Fellow. He recently received the 2021 American Society of Animal Science Morrison Award. This lifetime achievement award honors Dr. Zinn’s substantial contributions to livestock production research.
Lei Lu, MD
Dr. Lei Lu received her medical degree in 1987 from the Shanghai First Medical College Fudan University. She received her Master of Science degree from the Harvard School of Public Health where she also received her postdoctoral and fellowship training in Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition. Dr. Lu's scientific focus is in basic biomedical research, including identifying the molecules involved in pathophysiology of necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC), understanding the molecular mechanisms in developmental regulation of inflammatory responses on mucosal surfaces in immature human enterocytes, and how interactions between early microbiota and the developing gut influence function of host brain and enteric nervous system.
J. Thomas Lamont, MD
Dr. Thomas Lamont received his medical degree from the University of Rochester, and was intern, resident and chief resident with the Medical School at University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). Following his Gastroenterology (GI) Fellowship at Massachusetts General Hospital, he joined the faculty of Harvard Medical School. He went on to become Chief of Gastroenterology at Boston University School of Medicine, and served as Gastroenterology Division Chief at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Rabb Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School. Dr. Lamont's research interests are in intestinal infections, particularly the pathophysiology and clinical features of Clostridium difficile infections. He served as Associate Editor for Gastroenterologist and Liver Diseases at the New England Journal of Medicine, and is Editor-in-Chief for Gastroenterology for "Up-To-Date in Medicine".
Investment Partners
Milky Way Life Sciences completed its first round of funding with $8 million dollars from two investment groups, YeGu Investments, China and TaoTe, US.