Qian Laboratory for Human Cerebral Cortex Development

The Qian Lab investigates the development and disorders of the human cerebral cortex, the brain’s most evolutionarily advanced and disease-vulnerable region. To overcome the limitations of traditional models, the lab integrates human-based approaches, including brain organoid models, spatial omics technologies, and human genetics, to uncover the cellular and molecular programs that shape cortical development.

Ongoing Projects

Artistic rendering of spatial transcriptomics analysis of the developing human cerebral cortex.

The Qian Lab aims to decode the mechanisms of neuronal subtype specification and to uncover how these processes go awry in disorders such as malformations of cortical development and autism spectrum disorder.

The lab seeks to lay a foundation for therapeutic strategies grounded in human biology by:

• Building a spatially resolved developmental atlas of the human cerebral cortex
• Applying spatial omics to uncover pathological mechanisms in neurodevelopmental disorders
• Developing advanced human pluripotent stem cell-derived organoids that recapitulate specific cortical areas
• Modeling neurodevelopmental diseases in organoids derived from patient iPSC lines or genetically engineered cells
• Studying the specification of neuronal subtypes in human organoids.

Learn more about research in the Qian Lab.