There are many moments in the human experience when tragedy elicits not only compassion, but inspiration. When Mike Zhang heard the story of a mother whose son died of an opioid overdose just one month after the teenager’s introduction to the drug at a party, the Virginia Tech researcher wanted to help.

Fueled by the gravity of an epidemic that claims 130 lives each day from overdose, the Department of Biological Systems Engineering scientist and expert on protein expression, bio-nanoparticles, and vaccine development is combining his specialties in order to potentially save millions of lives. Zhang and his team are developing what could be the next generation treatment – a vaccine to counteract opioid addiction. Read more