Zhang, Ye, Ph.D.

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

1. Wang, L, Zhang, J, Liu, Y, Liu, X, Yin, Y, Zhang, Y et al.. The superiority of one-day dietary preparation over three-day dietary preparation for high-intensity focused ultrasound treatment: a retrospective study. Int J Hyperthermia. 2026;43 (1):2653779. doi: 10.1080/02656736.2026.2653779. PubMed PMID:42020927 .
2. Zhang, Y, Motahari, S, Woods, EV, Zaefferer, S, Schweizer, P, Zhang, Z et al.. Mechanically driven Li dendrite penetration in garnet solid electrolyte. Nature. 2026;652 (8111):912-918. doi: 10.1038/s41586-026-10415-9. PubMed PMID:42020864 .
3. Zhang, Y, Zhao, Y, Luo, Y, Wang, L, Liao, J, Lu, H et al.. Adipose-Derived Proinflammatory Visfatin Promotes Vascular Calcification via TLR4 and is Suppressed by Empagliflozin. Inflammation. 2026; :. doi: 10.1007/s10753-026-02507-5. PubMed PMID:42020826 .
4. Yang, H, Hu, M, Shen, B, Liu, Y, Liu, L, Zhang, Y et al.. Clinical research analysis of [²²⁵Ac]Ac-DOTATATE therapy for neuroendocrine neoplasms. Eur J Nucl Med Mol Imaging. 2026; :. doi: 10.1007/s00259-026-07883-6. PubMed PMID:42020813 .
5. Yan, X, Zheng, G, Wang, J, Liu, M, Chen, J, Xie, Y et al.. [⁶⁸Ga]Ga-NY104 PET/CT for the detection of clear cell renal cell carcinoma in presurgical patients with renal masses (NYCRPS): a prospective, single-centre, phase II study. Eur J Nucl Med Mol Imaging. 2026; :. doi: 10.1007/s00259-026-07896-1. PubMed PMID:42020811 .

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