Understanding the principles of human brain development is critical for revealing the formation of brain functions, human-unique features, and the causes of brain diseases (refer to our review: Nature Reviews Genetics 2024). The hippocampus, the “memory center” of the adult mammalian brain, can continuously generate new immature neurons from neural stem cells throughout the lifetime, a phenomenon known as adult neurogenesis. It plays crucial roles in regulating plasticity, memory, emotion, cognition, and other important brain functions, whereas its abnormalities have been linked to various human brain disorders, such as epilepsy and Alzheimer’s disease. Understanding the mechanisms regulating adult neural stem cells and newly born immature neurons can not only elucidate principles of brain development and disease but also provide new insights for regenerative medicine for brain disorders and trauma. However, little is known about the characteristics and regulation of hippocampal neurogenesis in the human brain, and understanding of its regulatory mechanisms in the adult mammalian brain is incomplete.

Our research group uses hippocampal neurogenesis as a biological system and employs cutting-edge technology platforms, such as single-cell multimodal and multiomic sequencing, spatial omics, multiple human brain cell-based culture models, and time-lapse confocal imaging, in combination with computational biology tools such as deep learning, to reveal mechanisms underlying brain development and disorders. Our previous work using mouse models focused on regulatory mechanisms underlying multiple key steps during adult hippocampal neurogenesis, including adult neural stem cell quiescence and maintenance of stem cell pool (Cell Stem Cell 2018), neural stem cell differentiation and fate choice (Nature Neuroscience 2015), and migration of newborn immature neurons (PNAS 2015). Our recent research revealed the multimodal characteristics and regulation of this process in the human brain. We demonstrated the capacity for the hippocampus to generate new neurons in adult humans. We mapped the molecular landscapes of several important human brain cell types at the single-cell level, including hippocampal immature neurons, across the lifespan and in Alzheimer’s disease (Nature 2022; Cell Stem Cell 2022). We also performed cross-species comparative analysis to reveal their human-specific features (Nature Neuroscience 2025).

We aim to uncover the molecular and cellular mechanisms modulating neural development and how they vary across species, ages, and disease states. By integrating and expanding our technology platforms, we plan to investigate the molecular diversity, intrinsic and extrinsic signaling, and developmental tempo of key cell types involved in neurogenesis, such as neural stem cells and newborn immature neurons, and how diseases can lead to their dysregulation. Ultimately, we hope to reveal the molecular and cellular basis of neural development and regeneration and provide new insights that can inform treatment strategies for brain disorders and injuries.

Our research group welcomes outstanding doctoral, master’s, undergraduate students, and postdocs to join our team.