Our general research interest is in unravelling the molecular and cellular organization of the brain and sensory systems with specific attention to molecular mechanisms of neurodevelopment and cell-to-cell interactions.
Currently, our main focus is on environmental and metabolic factors that can influence brain cell composition, identities, and functions, thereby impacting the penetrance of genetically determined neurodevelopmental disorders.
Likewise, we attempt to understand how cell-specific transcriptional programs are induced and act in specific cell types of adult brain to process information and modulate functional outcome, e.g., feeding, circadian activity, social behavior. We use hypothalamus as a model system that contains the highest known local diversity of neurons to underpin an array of individual metabolic and physiological functions.
Our lab combines both experimental (to study brain circuits and brain development) and deep computational competencies (single-cell multi-OMICS analysis, machine learning approaches to resolve cellular heterogeneity and spatial codes in the brain).
