课题组研究方向介绍｜Research Direction Introduction
课题组以果蝇（Drosophila）为模式生物，关注一个核心问题：神经系统如何在复杂且不断变化的环境中，高效地提取、调控并利用感觉信息，从而产生合适的行为反应。课题组重点研究嗅觉系统在感觉信息处理初级阶段的神经机制，以及神经调质如何动态改变感觉神经元活性，并进一步影响下游神经环路与动物行为。
The lab uses the fruit fly (Drosophila) as a model system to study a central question in neuroscience: how does the nervous system efficiently extract and utilize sensory information in complex and constantly changing environments to generate appropriate behavioral responses? Our research focuses on the neural mechanisms underlying early-stage olfactory information processing and how neuromodulators dynamically alter sensory neuron physiology to influence downstream neural circuits and behavior.
这一问题在嗅觉系统中尤具挑战性。与视觉可通过有限波长组合描述颜色不同，气味分子缺乏简单且统一的“维度”定义，天然气味往往由大量复杂化学成分组成，使嗅觉信息编码与识别成为神经科学中的重要难题。嗅觉也是少数难以被直接数字化的感觉系统之一——我们可以通过手机传送图片，却无法真正“传送一种气味”。因此，我们希望理解神经系统如何在有限神经元资源下，高效完成对复杂气味世界的检测、编码与行为决策。
This problem is particularly challenging in the olfactory system. Unlike vision, where colors can be described by wavelengths, odor molecules lack a simple and unified set of dimensions. Natural odors are typically composed of complex mixtures of multiple chemicals, making odor coding and recognition a major challenge in neuroscience. Olfaction is also one of the few sensory modalities that cannot yet be directly digitized—we can send images through smartphones, but we still cannot truly “send a smell.” We therefore seek to understand how the nervous system efficiently detects, encodes, and interprets the complex odor world using limited neural resources.
我们特别关注这样一个问题：为什么像果蝇这样仅拥有远少于哺乳动物神经元数量的简单神经系统，仍能实现高度高效且灵活的信息处理。由于感觉输入层的微小调控即可对后续神经环路与行为产生深远影响，我们希望通过研究感觉系统的“输入端计算”，理解神经系统高效运作的基本原则，并为数据科学中的高效信息处理与计算策略提供启发。
We are particularly interested in why relatively simple nervous systems, such as that of the fruit fly, can nevertheless perform highly efficient and flexible information processing despite containing far fewer neurons than mammalian brains. Because subtle modulation at the sensory input stage can profoundly influence downstream neural circuits and behavior, we study “computations at the sensory input layer” to uncover fundamental principles of efficient neural processing and to provide inspiration for efficient information-processing strategies in data science and artificial intelligence.
课题组结合遗传学、电生理、钙成像、行为分析和电子显微镜等技术，开展从分子、细胞到神经环路层面的综合研究。
The lab combines genetics, electrophysiology, calcium imaging, behavioral analysis, and electron microscopy to investigate neural mechanisms across molecular, cellular, and circuit levels.
课题组PI介绍｜PI Introduction
教授曾任美国加州大学圣地亚哥分校（UC San Diego）神经生物学系教授及副系主任，并将于2026年7月以资深研究员身份加入深圳医学科学院（SMART）。教授于约翰斯·霍普金斯大学获得神经科学博士学位，并在耶鲁大学完成博士后研究，长期致力于探索神经系统如何感知和处理外界信息，以及这些过程如何塑造动物行为。教授的研究聚焦于嗅觉信息处理与神经调质机制，尤其关注感觉系统在信息处理初级阶段的动态调控。相关研究发表于国际神经科学与生物学领域的重要期刊，包括 Nature、Neuron、Nature Communications 和 PNAS。
The PI previously served as Professor and Vice Chair of the Department of Neurobiology at the University of California San Diego, and will join the Shenzhen Medical Academy of Research and Translation (SMART) as a Senior Investigator in July 2026. The PI received his Ph.D. in Neuroscience from Johns Hopkins University and completed postdoctoral training at Yale University. Her research has long focused on understanding how the nervous system senses and processes external information and how these processes shape animal behavior. The PI work centers on olfactory information processing and neuromodulatory mechanisms, with particular emphasis on the dynamic regulation of sensory systems during early stages of information processing. The PI research has been published in leading journals in neuroscience and biology, including Nature, Neuron, Nature Communications, and PNAS.
课题组致力于打造开放、自由且富有探索精神的科研氛围，诚邀充满好奇心与科研热情的青年学者加入团队。
The lab is committed to fostering an open, intellectually free, and curiosity-driven research environment, and warmly welcomes motivated young scientists with strong enthusiasm for discovery to join the team.
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