People

Tae-Yong Choi, Ph.D. Principal Investigator

tychoi@dau.ac.kr

Tae-Yong Choi studies neural circuit mechanisms underlying social homeostasis and stress-related behavioral regulation. His research focuses on how social competition and environmental challenges reshape brain circuit dynamics and molecular states, and how these changes determine adaptive stability or vulnerability across individuals.

He received his Ph.D. in Neuroscience from Seoul National University and subsequently led independent projects at the Korea Brain Research Institute, investigating social hierarchy circuits, stress physiology, and brain–body interactions. His work integrates behavioral paradigms with circuit-level and molecular analyses to define stress as a dynamic systems-level state rather than a categorical condition.

At SHINE Lab, he aims to identify regulatory mechanisms that stabilize—or destabilize—brain–body–social interactions across multiple levels of organization.

More about Tae-Yong

Tae-Yong Choi, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor, Department of Biochemistry, Dong-A University College of Medicine

E-mail: tychoi@dau.ac.kr

Phone: 82-51-240-2737

EDUCATION

Ph.D. in Neuroscience, Seoul National University (2016)
- Thesis: Synaptic and behavioral functions of neuropsychiatric disorder-related genes: Cereblon and Lrrtm3
- Advisor: Se-Young Choi, Ph.D.

M.S. in Neuroscience, Seoul National University (2012)
B.S. in Biology, Kyung Hee University (2009)

PROFESSIONAL APPOINTMENTS

Assistant Professor (2026– )

Department of Biochemistry, Dong-A University College of Medicine

Postdoctoral Researcher (2017–2023) & Research Scientist (2023–2026)

Korea Brain Research Institute (KBRI)

- Advisor: Ja Wook Koo, Ph.D.
- Led PI-level independent research programs
- Directed projects on social hierarchy circuits, stress physiology, and brain–body interaction

RESEARCH FOCUS

Neural circuit mechanisms of social competition and hierarchy
Brain–body interaction and stress-state regulation
Gut–brain axis and neuromodulatory interventions

SELECTED PUBLICATIONS (First / Corresponding Author)

Neuron (2024) – Prefrontal projection activity and transcriptional states in social hierarchy
Experimental & Molecular Medicine (2024) – Circuit mechanisms of social dominance
Molecular Brain (2024) – Vagus nerve stimulation and antidepressant mechanisms
Molecular Psychiatry (2019) – Adult neurogenesis and affective behavior

GRANTS (Principal Investigator)

Sejong Science Fellowship (2024–2029), National Research Foundation (NRF) of Korea
NRF Young Researcher Program Grant (2020–2023)
NRF Postdoctoral Fellowship (2017–2018)

HONORS & AWARDS (Selected)

JNS Travel Award, Japan Neuroscience Society (2025)
Junior Research Award, Korea Brain Research Institute (2024)
AMOREPACIFIC Global Next Generation Research Award (2024)
Keystone Symposia Scholarship (2022)
KSMCB Young Investigator Research Award (2020)