人类通过丰富的感觉获知外界信息，并对之产生情绪反应和相应决策。当感觉功能发生紊乱，会给个体带来巨大痛苦。例如长期慢性疼痛的折磨会导致患者情绪抑郁，甚至自杀。因此，认识疼痛发生机制，研发镇痛手段，成为麻醉学领域，甚至是整个神经科学领域的研究重点和热点。该导师从事感觉神经机制的研究十余载。早期从分子神经生物学角度，研究了ATP的离子通道型受体P2X在感觉神经末梢上的分布与功能，代表性论文探讨了P2X3与DRG特异性表达的膜蛋白Pirt的相互作用以及对膀胱感觉功能紊乱的影响(Nat Commun 2015)。该成果受到了同行们的广泛认可，并给予“长三角青年科学家奖”的鼓励。随着转基因技术的不断进步，光遗传学和化学遗传学技术的成熟，神经科学研究逐渐从分子微观层面，发展到现今神经环路介观层面。该导师在美国圣路易斯华盛顿大学太阳集团电子游戏期间，接合擅长的膜片钳技术，发现了机械性痒的感觉传入通路，并探讨了慢性痒患者对机械性刺激过度敏感的神经机制(Nat Commun 2020)。回国后，该导师加入太阳集团电子游戏脑功能与人工智能转化研究所，并获得上海市“浦江人才”计划的支持。目前主要采用转基因小鼠、膜片钳、光遗传、化学遗传、组织透明、行为学、形态学等技术，除了继续探究疼痛和镇痛的神经机制，还从事情绪相关脑神经环路的研究。带教的研究生已经在J Pain和Front Mol Neurosci上发表论文。该导师还曾主持国家自然科学基金项目2项，上海市科学基金项目3项，参与国家重点项目3项，目前在研经费百万。相信在浓厚的科研兴趣、严谨的科研态度、先进的研究理念、雄厚的研究平台加持下，不论是立志科研的学子，还是喜爱临床的青衿，不论在研究技术，还是科学思维上，都将受益匪浅。与该导师一起，向着共同的目标努力，必将获得丰硕的成果，不负韶华！
Humans acquire external information through rich sensory nervous systems, produce emotional responses, and make corresponding decisions to them. When the sensory function is disturbed, it will bring great hurt to the individual. For example, the suffering of chronic pain leads to depression and even suicide. Therefore, understanding the mechanism of pain and developing analgesic methods have become the research hotspot in the field of anesthesiology and even neuroscience. This instructor has been engaged in the research of sensory nervous systems for over a decade. In the early days, from the perspective of molecular neurobiology, he studied the distribution and functions of P2X, ion-channel receptors of ATP, on sensory nerve endings. The representative paper discussed the interaction between P2X3 and DRG-specifically expressed membrane protein Pirt and their role in bladder sensation and dysfunction (Nat Commun 2015). This achievement had been widely recognized by peers and he was encouraged by the "Yangtze River Delta Young Scientist Award". With the advancement of transgenic technology and the maturity of optogenetics and chemogenetics, neuroscience research has gradually developed from the molecular microscopic level to the current neural circuit mesoscopic level. When he was in the School of Medicine, Washington University in St. Louis, engaging the patch clamp technique that he is good at, he discovered the sensory afferent pathway of mechanical itch and explored the neural mechanism of hypersensitivity to mechanical stimuli in patients with chronic itch (Nat Commun 2020). After returning to China, he joined the Translational Research Institute of Brain and Brain-Like Intelligence, School of Medicine, Tongji University, and was supported by the Shanghai Pujiang Program. Currently, they mainly use transgenic mice, patch clamp, optogenetics, chemogenetics, tissue clearing, behavior, morphology, and other technologies to explore the neural mechanisms of pain and analgesia, and the brain neural circuits of emotion. The graduate students under his guidance have published papers in J Pain and Front Mol Neurosci. He has also been the principal investigator of two projects of the National Natural Science Foundation of China, three projects of the Natural Science Foundation of Shanghai, and participated in three projects of the Major Program of the National Natural Science Foundation of China. Currently, his research funding is over one million yuan. He believes that with the support of strong research interests, rigorous research attitudes, advanced research concepts, and reliable research platforms, you will get great benefits in research technologies and scientific ideas, no matter whether you are determining to bench or clinical work. Together with him, you will work hard towards the common goal, and you will surely obtain fruitful results and live up to your time!
近期发表文章(Published papers)
Wanrong Li*, Jia Liu*, Aiwen Chen, Danqing Dai, Tiantian Zhao, Qiong Liu, Jianren Song, Lize Xiong#, Xiao-Fei Gao#. Shared nociceptive dorsal root ganglion neurons participating in acupoint sensitization. Front Mol Neurosci. 2022 Vol. 15. doi: 10.3389/fnmol.2022.974007
Wanrong Li, Danqing Dai, Aiwen Chen, Xiao-Fei Gao#, Lize Xiong#. Characteristics of Zusanli Dorsal Root Ganglion Neurons in Rats and Their Receptor Mechanisms in Response to Adenosine. J Pain. 2022 Apr 25; S1526-5900(22)00299-1. doi: 10.1016/j.jpain.2022.04.003.
Danqing Dai, Wanrong Li, Aiwen Chen, Xiao-Fei Gao#, Lize Xiong#. Lateral Habenula and Its Potential Roles in Pain and Related Behaviors. ACS Chem Neurosci. 2022 Apr 20;13(8):1108-1118.
Sihan Chen*, Xiao-Fei Gao*, Yuxi Zhou, Ben-Long Liu, Xian-Yu Liu, Yufen Zhang, Devin M Barry, Kun Liu, Yingfu Jiao, Rita Bardoni, Weifeng Yu#, Zhou-Feng Chen#. A spinal neural circuitry for converting touch to itch sensation. Nat Commun. 2020 Oct 8;11(1):5074. doi: 10.1038/s41467-020-18895-7.
Xiao-Fei Gao*, Ji-Feng Feng*, Wei Wang*, Zheng-Hua Xiang, Xiu-Jie Liu, Chan Zhu, Zong-Xiang Tang, Xin-Zhong Dong, Cheng He. Pirt reduces bladder overactivity by inhibiting purinergic receptor P2X3. Nat Commun. 2015 Jul 7;6:7650. doi: 10.1038/ncomms8650.
Ji-Feng Feng*, Xiao-Fei Gao*, Ying-Yan Pu, Geoffrey Burnstock, Zhenghua Xiang, Cheng He. P2X7 receptors and Fyn kinase mediate ATP-induced oligodendrocyte progenitor cell migration. Purinergic Signal. 2015 Sep;11(3):361-9. doi: 10.1007/s11302-015-9458-3.
主持或参与基金(Funding)
(82130121) 国家自然科学基金委员会重点项目，参与。
Major Program of the National Natural Science Foundation of China. Participant.
(21ZR1450100) 上海市科学技术委员会面上项目，主持
Natural Science Foundation of Shanghai. Principal investigator.
(20PJ1412500) 上海市科学技术委员会浦江人才计划A类，主持
Shanghai Pujiang Program. Principal investigator.
(sykyqd01101) 上海市第四人民医院启动项目，主持
Scientific Research Launch Project of Shanghai Fourth People's Hospital. Principal investigator.
(31271129) 国家自然科学基金委员会面上项目，主持
National Natural Science Foundation of China. Principal investigator.
(12ZR1436800) 上海市科学技术委员会面上项目，主持
Natural Science Foundation of Shanghai. Principal investigator.
(30800430) 国家自然科学基金委员会青年项目，主持
National Natural Science Foundation of China. Principal investigator.
(31130024) 国家自然科学基金委员会重点项目，参与
Major Program of the National Natural Science Foundation of China. Participant.
(30530240) 国家自然科学基金委员会重点项目，参与
Major Program of the National Natural Science Foundation of China. Participant.
