Yu Zhou, Stealing Trade Secrets, Ohio 2020

Yu Zhou, 50, a former Dublin, Ohio, man, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court to conspiring to steal exosome-related trade secrets concerning the research, identification and treatment of a range of pediatric medical conditions.

Zhou admitted to conspiring to steal scientific trade secrets related to exosomes and exosome isolation from Nationwide Children’s Hospital’s Research Institute for his own personal financial gain in China.

The couple, Yu Zhou and his wife, Li Chen, 47, worked in separate medical research labs at the Research Institute for 10 years each. They conspired to steal trade secrets related to exosome research from Nationwide Children’s Hospital.

Exosomes play a key role in the research, identification and treatment of a range of medical conditions, including necrotizing enterocolitis (a condition found in premature babies), liver fibrosis and liver cancer.

Zhou and Chen conspired to steal and then monetize one of the trade secrets by creating and selling exosome ‘isolation kits.’

According to his plea agreement, Zhou’s research at Nationwide Children’s included a novel isolation method in which exosomes could be isolated from one drop of blood. This method was vital to the research being conducted in Zhou’s lab because necrotizing enterocolitis is a condition found primarily in premature babies, only small amounts of fluid can safely be taken from them.

Yu Zhou and Li Chen were arrested in California in July 2019. Their case was unsealed in August 2019 when they appeared in federal court in Columbus.

Chen pleaded guilty in July 2020 to conspiring to steal trade secrets and commit wire fraud.

As part of their pleas, the couple has agreed to forfeit property or gains associated with their crimes. For Chen, this included approximately $1.4 million, 500,000 shares of common stock of Avalon GloboCare Corp. and 400 shares of common stock of GenExosome Technologies, Inc.

The details of Zhou’s forfeiture will be finalized through the sentencing process.

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