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
- Li, Z, Li, Z, Chu, L, Hu, S, Xue, C, Lin, H et al.. A novel Curcuma wenyujin-derived fructan modulates gut microbiota and metabolic pathways to ameliorate DSS-induced colitis. Carbohydr Polym. 2026;382 :125292. doi: 10.1016/j.carbpol.2026.125292. PubMed PMID:42002357 .
- Wang, T, Zhang, C, Zhang, Y, Jafari, M, Merz, KM, Hu, J et al.. Zinc-induced exposure of an LxL motif drives clathrin-mediated endocytosis of the zinc transceptor ZIP4. J Biol Chem. 2026; :111472. doi: 10.1016/j.jbc.2026.111472. PubMed PMID:42001942 .
- Shen, X, Zhang, Y, Wei, J. Effect of a combination of Ginkgo biloba leaf extract and triangle health management in patients with ischemic vertigo- An exploratory investigation. Pak J Pharm Sci. 2026;39 (6):1881-1887. doi: 10.36721/PJPS.2026.39.6.179.1. PubMed PMID:42001293 .
- Ma, C, Hu, H, Li, Y, Zhong, C, Dong, Y, Chang, Z et al.. The B7 family subgroup reflects tumor cell heterogeneity and patient post-operative prognosis in gallbladder cancer. Biol Direct. 2026; :. doi: 10.1186/s13062-026-00802-7. PubMed PMID:42001193 .
- Zhang, Y, Yu, J, Sun, F, Yao, Y, Li, W, Bai, Z et al.. Do pigs have altruistic behaviour based on cognitive empathy?. BMC Vet Res. 2026; :. doi: 10.1186/s12917-026-05495-8. PubMed PMID:42001178 .