UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School
Center for Advanced Biotechnology and Medicine (CABM) Room 240
679 Hoes Lane
Piscataway, NJ 08854

Tel: 732-235-4491
FAX: 732-235-4466

xiang@cabm.rutgers.edu

• Targeted gene disruption in mice
• Transgenic analysis in mice
• Microarray
• Overexpression analysis in mice and chick embyos
• RNA and protein expression
• Transcription and DNA-protein interaction assays

The research interests of my laboratory center on understanding the molecular events that lead to the determination, differentiation and survival of sensory neurons/cells. The mammalian sensory system carries external and internal sensory information to the central nervous system, where it is processed to coordinate motor responses. The establishment of these sensory circuits in the adult depends critically on the generation of distinct neuronal types and sensory receptors at proper times and positions during embryogenesis as well as on their maintenance throughout life. Despite the importance of sensory neurons/cells, however, the molecular basis of their formation and survival is still poorly understood. My laboratory employs molecular genetic and bioinformatic approaches to identify and study transcription factors that are required for programming development of the retina, inner ear, somatosensory ganglia, spinal cord, and brain. A major focus of our work is to develop knockout and transgenic animal models to study roles of transcription factor genes in normal sensorineural development, as well as to elucidate how mutations in these genes cause sensorineural disorders such as blindness and deafness.

For complete list: PubMed

Li, S., Misra, K., Matise, M. and Xiang, M. (2005) Foxn4 acts synergistically with Mash1 to specify subtype identity of V2 interneurons in the spinal cord. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 102:10688-10693.

Li, S., Mo, Z., Yang, X., Price, S. M., Shen, M.M. and Xiang, M. (2004) Foxn4 controls the genesis of amacrine and horizontal cells by retinal progenitors. Neuron 43:795-807.

Li, S., Qiu, F., Xu, A., Price, S. M., and Xiang, M. (2004) Barhl1 regulates migration and survival of cerebellar granule cells by controlling expression of the neurotrophin-3 gene. J. Neurosci. 24:3104-3114.

Mo, Z., Li, S., Yang, X., and Xiang, M. (2004) Role of the Barhl2 homeobox gene in the specification of glycinergic amacrine cells. Development 131:1607-1618.

Li, S., Price, S. M., Cahill, H., Ryugo, D. K., Shen, M. M., and Xiang, M. (2002) Hearing loss caused by progressive degeneration of cochlear hair cells in mice deficient for the Barhl1 homeobox gene. Development 129:3523-3532.

Liu, W., Mo, Z., and Xiang, M. (2001) The Ath5 proneural genes function upstream of Brn3 POU domain transcription factor genes to promote retinal ganglion cell development. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA. 98:1649-1654.