Xu Lab Members

My long-term professional goal entails continued experience as a physician-scientist in the field of endocrinology to better impact patient lives. Specifically, my research interests involve the development of a comprehensive understanding of how the alterations in vitamin D pathways lead to the pathologic disease states of obesity and diabetes in children.

I was born in Canada but primarily grew up in Texas. I graduated with a bachelor’s of science in psychology with a minor in biology from the University of Texas at Austin. I then went to medical school at the University of North Texas Health Science Center – Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine in Fort Worth. I completed my pediatric residency at the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston and became a board-certified pediatrician in 2019. I graduated from the Pediatric Endocrinology Fellowship at Texas Children’s Hospital – Baylor College of Medicine in 2022. It was at this time that I joined the TOP lab as a postdoctoral research fellow. Under the direction of Dr. Stephanie Sisley, I was able to pursue basic science to truly explore the role of vitamin D in the pathophysiological mechanisms in obesity and diabetes

I am an instructor in the Department of Pediatrics in the Children’s Nutrition Research Center at Baylor College of Medicine/Texas Children’s Hospital. I joined the Xu Lab to translate my clinical and prior research training in obesity and vitamin D into a mouse model to allow me to address pertinent clinical questions related to the neural role of vitamin D in obesity and diabetes.

When not in the lab or clinic, you can find me running, cooking, spending time with family, or cheering on the Texas Longhorns!

I received my B.S. in 1995 from Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, and my Ph.D. in 2006 from Shanghai Institute of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Shanghai, China. Then I moved to Houston, Texas and joined Dr. Qiang Tong’s lab at the Children’s Nutrition Research Center for my postdoctoral training, working on the metabolic role of Sirtuins and aging. From 2012 to now, I have worked in Dr. Yong Xu’s lab to study how the central nervous system regulates the appetite, metabolism and body weight. My research focuses on the neurons and neural circuits, especially the central melanocortin system, and the key intracellular molecules that regulate the energy homeostasis.

I joined Dr. Yong Xu’s Lab in 2020 as a lab manager, where I supervise the management of a large mouse colony in addition to the lab management. I also investigate the function of neural networks through stereotaxic brain surgeries and histology studies. Previously, I pursued my postdoctoral training at the Department of Pediatrics at University of Louisville and continued my research in New Orleans as a research supervisor focusing on Type 2 diabetes research. Before I joined Dr. Xu’s lab, I was a research associate in Dr. Li Zhang’s lab at Baylor College of Medicine. I received my Ph.D. in China in Medical Genetics originally.

I did my graduate training with professor Lin Mei while he was at the Medical College of Georgia. During this time, I mastered the use of mouse genetic models, many behavioral assays, histology, and microscopy. I also gained experience in general molecular biology techniques and made a foray into the use of high-performance liquid chromatography with electrochemical detection (HPLC-EC). I used these techniques to study two schizophrenia susceptibility genes, Neuregulin-1 and ErbB4. I used a genetic labeling technique to resolve long-standing controversies in the field about which brain cells express ErbB4 and identified its expression in several previously unpublished cell types.

After graduate school I trained with professor Stanley McKnight at the University of Washington as a postdoctoral fellow. During this time, I was awarded a National Research Service Award grant. I studied a set of neurons integral to the control of fertility, Kisspeptin neurons. I found that a population of Kiss1 neurons in the rostral periventricular region of the third ventricle (RP3V) thought to be diminished in males, were present in nearly equal quantity, had similar gene expression profiles, and were able to elicit a surge of testosterone when stimulated. During my time at UW I set up two collaborations with other labs adding RNA-Seq to their projects.

My research interests include understanding how sex differences, environmental factors, and their interactions contribute to feeding behavior and metabolism. I am particularly interested in using novel sequencing strategies to understand the biology of neurons and their functions in circuits that control feeding behavior and metabolism. I enjoy working with large data sets, visualizing data, designing figures, slide shows, and writing.

I started my research training with Dr. Kaixun Huang at Huazhong University of Science and Technology in 2009, focusing my research interest on the function of selenoproteins and their associated roles in diseases involved with oxidative stress and endoplasmic reticulum stress. During my Ph.D. study, I received a one-year Student Intern opportunity by joining Dr. Vadim Gladyshev’s lab, who pioneered the research of redox biology, specifically in selenoproteins, at Harvard Medical School.

Afterwards, I joined Dr. Zhou Songyang’s group to start my postdoctoral training at the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at Baylor College of Medicine from 2016 to 2020. My research activities have been utilizing proteomic approaches to study protein-to-protein interaction, specifically, screening novel regulatory proteins modulating telomerase function and thereby providing promising target for cancer diagnosis and therapy. Currently, I continue to pursue my research interests in utilizing cellular, molecular, and proteomic tools to delineate the mechanisms in the specific neural networks that are critical for control of body weight, feeding behavior and glucose balance in Dr. Yong Xu’s group, as a research associate.

In my free time, I enjoy spending time with my family and friends to take outdoor adventures, such as hiking, camping, kayaking, and fishing, skiing, etc. I also love to spend my spare time in my edible garden. Working in nature has such a calming effect on me. All these enrich my life and refresh myself.

I grew in the Mojave Desert of Southern California and then moved to Pomona, Calif. where I graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Animal Sciences from Cal Poly, Pomona. I then went on to pursue my master’s degree in Biomedical Sciences from Western University of Health Sciences. It was at WesternU where I developed my love for neuroscience. I moved to New Brunswick, New Jersey to obtain my Ph.D. in Neuroscience, and finally made my way to Houston, Texas to work with Dr. Yong Xu at the Children’s Nutrition Research Center for my postdoctoral training. My research focuses on understanding neurocircuits related to the development of obesity and identifying novel targets for therapeutic interventions for the treatment of obesity. In my free time, I enjoy spending time with my fiancé, being a local tourist, spending time with my family, and attending comedy shows, concerts, and professional athletic events.

My scientific career started from Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Science, where I received my Master degree in Neuropharmacology. Then I moved to United States and obtained a Ph.D. in Neuroscience from Medical College of Georgia. I have some postdoctoral experience in University of Southern California and Baylor College of Medicine before I joined Dr. Xu’s lab. My research involve a comprehensive understanding of the neural mechanisms underlying psychiatric disorders and how changes in neural circuits impact these diseases. My research uses electrophysiological, pharmacological, imaging and behavioral approaches to meet these objectives. In my free time, I enjoy spending time with fruit trees and vegetables in my backyard.

I received my B.S. in the Department of Biotechnology, College of Life Sciences, Nanjing Agriculture University in 2012. I then studied at the Department of Neurobiology, Institute for Neuroscience, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, receiving my Ph.D. in 2018. I came to Houston in 2018 for my postdoctoral training at the Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine. I am currently working in the field of neuroendocrinology and neurodegenerative disease. My research focus on identifying the novel neural circuits, neurotransmitters and intracellular molecules in central nerve system that are essential for the regulation of energy homeostasis, feeding behavior, learning and memory.

I enrolled in graduate studies in Dr. Qingyan Jiang’s lab at South China Agricultural University. I received my Ph.D. degree in 2021. During my Ph.D. study, my research largely focused on the effect of TLR4 in different neurons on feeding behaviors and energy homeostasis in rodent models. I moved to the United States and joined Dr. Yong Xu’s laboratory at Baylor College of Medicine for postdoctoral training at the end of October of 2021. Now, my study is to explore molecules in the brain, like Grb10 and SK3 in the regulation of energy balance under physiological conditions. I also explore neural substrates on the effect of mouse behaviors using multiple behavioral tests. I believe being a postdoctoral fellow in Dr. Yong Xu’s lab will provide me with the perfect training environment and skills that will give me the tools necessary to grow as a true scientist.

I started my Ph.D. program at Xiangya Medical College in 2017 and joined Dr. Yong Xu’s lab as a visiting student in 2018. I received my Ph.D. degree in 2021. My Ph.D. work focused on central regulation of energy homeostasis. Now, I continue to pursue my research in the field of neuroendocrinology and metabolism. In particular, I am working on identifying novel neural circuits and molecules in the control of food intake and energy balance.

I received my Bachelor’s degree in Clinical Pharmacy in Harbin, China, where I developed my interests in pharmaceutical research. I then came to the United States to pursue graduate degrees. Subsequent to my graduation from the Master’s program in Pharmacological and Pharmaceutical Sciences at the University of Pittsburgh, I strongly affirmed my desire to pursue a career in neuroscience research. I joined graduate program at the University of Houston for Ph.D. training and obtained my Ph.D. degree in Neuropharmacology. Currently, I am doing my postdoctoral training under Dr. Yong Xu’s supervision. My research topics include: Understanding the correlation between 5-HT decline and cognitive impairments during both aging and AD and exploring the function of 5-HTergic neural circuit in cognitive function; How hunger stimulates cognitive functions by activating certain neural circuit. Outside of work, I enjoy working with animal rescue groups, yoga, and art.

I received my Ph.D. degree from the Chinese University of Hong Kong, and then moved to the United States in late 2019. My previous research in Hong Kong primarily focused on nausea and vomiting induced by motion and chemotherapy from the perspective of neuropharmacology. Now I am working on central mechanisms of glucose homeostasis, as well as feeding behavior in the lab. I am very thrilled to learn and master state-of-the-art techniques in neuroscience, and extremely fascinated by emerging neuroscience studies every day. During my spare time, I like hiking, traveling, pets, photography, reading, writing, etc. Don’t be surprised if one day, I write a book about traveling and other life experiences with beautiful photos I captured!

I grew up in China, where I got my M.D. and M.S. in Pediatrics from Guangxi Medical University. My research journey started when I joined Dr. Zengnan Mo’s group to establish and follow up the Fangchenggang Area Male Health Examination Survey (FAMHES) cohort. When I completed my clinical internship in the Department of Pediatrics with Dr. Dan Lan, I found my research interest in the reproductive endocrinology. To further my studies, I went abroad to pursue my Ph.D. in Molecular Medicine under the guidance of Dr. Jennifer Hill in the University of Toledo, Ohio. In her lab, I gained knowledge of how the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis controls reproduction, the interaction between energy homeostasis and reproduction, and maternal and child health. The more I learned, the more I realize how much I don’t know.

In June 2021, I joined Dr. Yong Xu’s lab as a postdoc. The great mentorship, lab environment and modern chemogenetics/optogenetics, electrophysiology and neurotracing approaches would help me further study physiological relevance of specific neural networks in the regulation of metabolic and reproductive functions. Being a postdoc is challenging and exciting and sometimes stressful. I am learning to keep a healthy work-life balance.

I enjoy spending my spare time with my family and friends, exercising, exploring Texas, cooking, and reading books. The beautiful things in my life always remind me to be happy with what you have, while working hard for what you want.

I received my Ph.D. degree from Fudan University (China) in 2018 and moved to the United States in September 2018. During my Ph.D., I focused on Huntington’s disease, a neurodegeneration disease. I validated and characterized promising genetic targets for therapeutic treatment of Huntington's disease in a broad spectrum of mammalian cellular systems and mouse models, and successfully proved a potential druggable target for Huntington’s disease treatment. After joining Dr. Yong Xu’s lab, my study focuses on the central system regulation of energy homeostasis. One of the ongoing projects is to investigate one small-conductance calcium-activated potassium channels (SK3) in the proopiomelanocortin (POMC) neurons regulating food intake and energy homeostasis. One is to determine the central mechanism by which estrogen regulates lactation physiology. Another direction is to determine the role of retinoid X receptor gamma (RXRG), a transcription factor, in the development and functions of the hypothalamus on the regulation of energy homeostasis and glucose balance.