Contact Us: The NCP Lab is located in the 3rd (Zen) Yard in the campus of Beijing Normal University , Beijing, China. Dr. Xiaohui Zhang ; Phone: (010) 5880-4978.
Exp. Tools: We use multiple approaches including electrophysiology (in vivo and slices), optogenetics, cellular imaging, and transgenic mouse models of brain diseases.
Research Direction
- Our research is focused on elucidating corticohippocampal circuitry mechanisms that underlie associative learning, spatial navigation and critical period plasticity of the brain.
ASD gene Mecp2 in cortical PV cells regulates V1 critical period plasticity
Critical period plasticity describes a developmental process whereby neural circuits are fine-tuned for specific functions. Here, we show that the Rett syndrome protein MeCP2 in GABAergic parvalbumin- expressing neurons is required for maintaining proper inhibitory circuitry functions that underlie the induction of experience-dependent critical period plasticity of the developing visual cortex. The specific locus of cortical synaptic defects caused by MeCP2 loss in inhibitory PV cells was revealed as well.