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.
Critical periods begin after intracortical excitatory synapses mature.
By systematically examining various intracortical synapses within the layer 4 of the developing mouse visual cortex, we demonstrate that temporal dynamics of intracortical excitatory synapses are selectively regulated by visual experience prior to the onset of critical period for experience-dependent synaptic plasticity, while that of intracortical inhibitory synapses and long-range thalamocortical excitatory synapses remains unchanged. These findings provide an additional essential exciatory circuit mechanism underlying the regulation of critical period plasticity. et al.