Research
Astrocyte development and the roles of astrocytes in diseases
Appointments
- Assistant Professor
- Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Research Center
- Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior
Biography
Astrocytes constitute at least a third of all cells in human brains. Long thought to be passive support cells, astrocytes are recently found to be critical for the development and function of the central nervous system. Accumulating evidence show that astrocytes are involved in almost every type of neurological and psychiatric disorder.
The cellular and molecular mechanisms that control astrocyte development as well as dysfunction of astrocytes in neurological and psychiatric disorders remains poorly understood.
We combine cell culture and mouse genetic approaches to study the following questions:
- What signals regulate astrocyte maturation?
- How is astrocyte differentiation regulated?
- Can we improve treatment of glioblastoma by studying astrocyte development?
- Are astrocytes involved in intellectual disability and autism?
Publications
- Zhang, Y, Zhang, J, Liu, H, Elayah, SA, Tang, W, Liu, L et al.. Magnetic resonance imaging interpretation of temporomandibular joint disc position in mandibular condylar fractures: A fossa-based reference approach. J Craniomaxillofac Surg. 2026;54 (9):104652. doi: 10.1016/j.jcms.2026.104652. PubMed PMID:42418928 .
- Xu, J, Wang, M, Chen, S, Fu, X, Xie, X, Shao, JH et al.. Sodium pyrophosphate-induced actomyosin dissociation, thick filament depolymerization and protein conformation changes synergistically enhance the solubility of myofibrillar proteins. Food Chem. 2026;524 :150330. doi: 10.1016/j.foodchem.2026.150330. PubMed PMID:42418882 .
- Yue, D, Huang, M, Song, P, Chen, Y, Li, B, Fu, J et al.. Ensartinib in Resected ALK-Positive Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer. N Engl J Med. 2026;395 (2):151-161. doi: 10.1056/NEJMoa2518990. PubMed PMID:42418775 .
- Chen, Y, Wang, JT, Yuan, DH, Zeng, YL, Ma, XS, Liang, XT et al.. A GmOIL2 allele separates fertility and seed traits in soybean. J Integr Plant Biol. 2026; :. doi: 10.1111/jipb.70345. PubMed PMID:42418716 .
- Yang, S, Chen, Y, Liu, S, Zuo, A, Ba, Y, Zhang, Y et al.. Macrophage-Induced Senescent Cancer-Associated Fibroblasts Promote SASP-Mediated Chemoresistance in Colorectal Cancer. Cancer Res. 2026; :. doi: 10.1158/0008-5472.CAN-25-4870. PubMed PMID:42418705 .