Xianhua Piao, MD, PhD

Professor in Residence
Primary Thematic Area
M_PEDS-NEONATOLOGY
Secondary Thematic Area
Research Summary
Neuro-immune interplay in brain development and disease.
+1 415 502-3460

During development, cells of the brain execute an astonishingly intricate choreographed process that culminates in the precise localization of neurons wired in functional networked circuitry. After the formation and wiring completed, various cells continue to dialogue to maintain normal brain function. Errors in such interactions contribute to neurodevelopmental conditions including autism, schizophrenia, and cerebral palsy as well as neurodegeneration, such as Alzheimer’s disease. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying these dynamic interactions remain largely unknown. The Piao Lab seeks to understand how cells in the brain communicate with each other and with the extracellular matrix (ECM) during development and brain homeostasis and how perturbation of the communications leads to neurological disorders. Our current ongoing projects are centered on:

  1. Central Nervous System (CNS) Myelination
  2. Neuro-immune interplays during interneuron development 
  3. The impact of maternal immune activation on brain development 
  4. Molecular mechanisms underlying microglia-mediated synaptic pruning 
  5. Glial-glial and glial-neuronal interactions in Alzheimer’s disease
     

Publications

The expanding functional roles and signaling mechanisms of adhesion G protein-coupled receptors.

Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences

Morgan RK, Anderson GR, Araç D, Aust G, Balenga N, Boucard A, Bridges JP, Engel FB, Formstone CJ, Glitsch MD, Gray RS, Hall RA, Hsiao CC, Kim HY, Knierim AB, Kusuluri DK, Leon K, Liebscher I, Piao X, Prömel S, Scholz N, Srivastava S, Thor D, Tolias KF, Ushkaryov YA, Vallon M, Van Meir EG, Vanhollebeke B, Wolfrum U, Wright KM, Monk KR, Mogha A