Dr. Zitong Shao is the founder & CEO of CereThera and a pharmaceutical scientist with specialized expertise in inhalation drug delivery and formulation development. She earned her bachelor’s degree in Pharmacy from Sun Yat-sen University in 2019 and completed her PhD in the Department of Pharmacology and Pharmacy at the University of Hong Kong (HKU) in 2024.

Her PhD research focused on inhalable drug delivery systems for antimicrobial agents targeting pulmonary infectious diseases, supported by a comprehensive understanding of particle engineering techniques. During her postdoctoral work at the Advanced Biomedical Instrumentation Centre (ABIC), she further expanded her research to novel nose-to-brain delivery systems and translational research. Driven by the goal of translating the first inhalable nanomedicine from laboratory research to clinical practice, she now leads the project ‘NanoPowder Nasal Spray for Rapid Stroke Rescue.’

This award-winning project has received multiple awards at both international and local competitions, including the Special Grand Prize of the Chinese Delegation & a Gold Medal with Jury Congratulations at the 51^st International Exhibition of Inventions Geneva, as well as the Grand Prize & First Place Winner at the 12^th Hong Kong University Student Innovation & Entrepreneurship Competition. In 2026, she also led and founded CereThera Limited, a start-up spin-off from HKU and ABIC, dedicated to developing next-generation therapies for central nervous system (CNS) diseases such as stroke and Alzheimer’s disease. CereThera focuses on “nose-to-brain” inhalation products using an innovative “nano-in-micron” platform, providing faster, safer and more effective treatments to enhance patient outcomes