Synopsis
The hippocampus is essential for memory and emotion and is a major site of pathology in numerous neurological and psychiatric disorders. A defining feature of this region is its capacity for adult neurogenesis, whereby new neurons are continually generated from neural stem cells (NSCs) in the dentate gyrus (DG). Rodent studies have demonstrated that adult-born neurons derived from NSCs play causal roles in hippocampus-dependent memory and affective behaviors, and that disruptions in their development or activity contribute to cognitive and emotional deficits across multiple disease states. A central focus of our research is to elucidate how the healthy adult brain regenerates neurons from endogenous NSCs and to translate these principles to promote regeneration and functional recovery in disease. Over the past decade, my lab has made significant advances in identifying the neural circuit and signaling mechanisms that regulate this endogenous process in adult brain, and in uncovering how a small population of newborn neurons modulate local circuit function and brain-wide network dynamics across behavioral states in both health and disease (Song et al., Nature 2012; Song et al., Nat. Neurosci. 2013; Bao et al., Cell Stem Cell 2017; Yeh et al., Neuron 2018; Asrican et al., Neuron 2020; Li et al., Nat. Neurosci. 2022; Li et al., Cell Stem Cell 2023; Luo et al., Cell Rep. 2024; Chen et al., PNAS 2024; Bao et al., Mol. Psychiatry 2025).
The DG is both a neurogenic niche and the primary input gateway to the hippocampus, supporting cognitive functions such as learning and memory as well as affective processes including anxiety- and depression-like behaviors. In parallel, my lab also investigates the neural circuit and signaling mechanisms governing these diverse DG- and hippocampus-dependent functions in both healthy and diseased mouse models, including Alzheimer’s disease (AD), epilepsy, and obesity (Li et al., eLife 2021; Wander et al., J. Transl. Med. 2023; Xie et al., Nat. Commun. 2025; Luo et al., Neuron 2025; Landry et al., Neuron 2025). Through these studies, we aim to identify molecular and network-level biomarkers of AD/epilepsy/obesity and advance therapeutic strategies to improve both memory and mood in patients with these conditions.
The Song lab is currently recruiting motivated postdoctoral fellows, graduate students, research associates, and undergraduates.