Project at a glance

How does the nervous system generate and modulate behavior ? What causes abnormal behavior ?

The research in our lab is aiming at answering these questions from the molecular to the neural circuit levels. To this end, we pursue two research foci related to locomotor behavior.

1. Molecular and neural basis of circadian locomotor behavior
2. Mechanisms of neurodegeneration in Parkinson’s disease

We take a multi-disciplinary approach combining molecular biology, high-throughput genomic techniques, genetics, behavioral assays and live-imaging. We have been using Drosophila melanogaster as a principal model system, because its small-scale nervous system and a battery of advanced genetic tools enable the interrogation of neural circuits and molecular mechanisms in vivo. For the study of Parkinson’s disease, we are expanding our work into the research using C. elegans and mice to explore evolutionarily conserved mechanisms of neurodegeneration.