Research

Research Goals

The brain is a complex organ that underlies many important functions such as perception, attention, learning and memory. It is also highly susceptible to disease, degeneration and injury. According to global estimates, disorders of the brain form one of the top disease burdens in developed countries and will only worsen in the next decades. My research goal is to better understand the structure and function of the brain using cutting-edge imaging and physiological techniques. The ultimate hope is to use the expanded scientific knowledge about the brain to better inform individuals and society on issues related to neuropsychiatric diseases, behavior, learning and education.

Current Research

My current post-doctoral research uses tools of systems neuroscience to better understand neural circuit functions and how these are distrupted in schizophrenia and Alzheimer's disease, two major brain disorders. A major technique I employ is in vivo two-photon imaging. This allows for a chronic (weeks to months), live “look” at cellular and subcellular aspects of the brain at the structural and functional level in awake, behaving animals. I combine imaging with behavior, electrophysiology, neuropharmacology, neural circuit manipulations, and histology. See below for details.

Education Research

Beyond my lab research, I also have a long-standing interest going back to my undergraduate days, in broader issues of learning, technology and education, especially at K-12 and youth levels (see CV for example publications). I am especially interested in using quantitative techniques as well as neuroscientific technology to better understand learning and improve educational outcomes.

Past Research

I started research early in my undergraduate days in the Evolution Lab headed by Professor Rudolf Meier, Department of Biological Sciences, National University of Singapore. I used tools of molecular biology, evolutionary genetics, and bioinformatics to address questions related to the evolution of the primate brain and behavior. The research led to multiple journal publications. For my PhD, I was inspired by the brain's capacity to learn exquisite skills such as speech, dance, sports and other motor skills. Using the songbird as a model system in the lab of Professor Bence Ölveczky at Harvard University, I took a systems neuroscience approach by combining behavior, lesions. histology, physiology, and computational modeling (with a collaborator) to understand the role of different parts of the brain in birdsong motor control and learning. The research provided a new perspective on the modular nature of motor control and learning.

Funding

My work has been funded by the following fellowships: Alzheimer’s Association Research Fellowship (Alzheimer’s Association), James Hudson Brown - Alexander Brown Coxe Postdoctoral Fellowship in the Medical Sciences (Yale University), James Mills Peirce Fellowship (Harvard University). Additionally, my current research is supported by my advisor's (Alex Kwan) grants from the US National Institutes of Health and various foundations.