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The Han lab studies the mechanisms of dendrite morphogenesis and neurodegeneration using Drosophila sensory neurons as a model system.

Drosophila dendritic arborization (da) neuronsFundamental to its ability in forming neural circuits and processing information, each of the billions of neurons in the brain needs to establish and maintain a functional dendritic arbor. The research in the Han lab is focused on deciphering the secret of dendrite morphogenesis and neurodegeneration. By using cutting edge technologies in molecular biology, cell biology, microscopy, and genetics, we wish to uncover core principles of dendrite morphogenesis at molecular and cellular levels both during normal development and in neurodegeneration.

Da neurons

The Han Lab is recruiting at all levels! We welcome motivated graduate students, postdocs, and technicians to join our lab.

In the Weill Institute, we believe…

  • in the drive to discover.
  • world-class research requires a mind open to new ideas.
  • a diverse and inclusive community is essential.
  • in maintaining the highest level of integrity and professional standards.
  • in a positive and equitable environment that cultivates respect.
  • in freedom from harassment and discrimination.
News:

  • April 2022: Ann Yeung won the Ann S. and Robert R. Morley Student Research Fund! Congrats, Ann!
  • Feb 2022: Check out a Chinese newsletter about our recent story of phagocytosis in neurodegeneration.
  • Jan 2022: Hui Ji is awarded the 2022 Hsien Wu and Daisy Yen Wu Scholarship. Congratulations!
  • Jan 2022: Phagocytosis drives neurodegeneration! Check out the details in our newly published paper in PNAS.
  • June 2021: Yineng received the GGD LPS Paper Award for her eLife paper. Congrats!
  • March 2021: Our upgraded CRISPR-TRiM tools for tissue-specific CRISPR knockout in Drosophila is published in PNAS.
  • Feb 2021: Check out the Chronicle article about our “MAGIC” technique.
  • Jan 2021: Our “MAGIC” technique for mosaic analysis in Drosophila is published in PLoS Biology. Thanks to everyone who has contributed to the project!
  • June 2020: Check out the news story about nutrient-regulated dendrite growth on Cornell Chronicle and in the CALS Newsroom. Our paper is also covered by eLife Science Digests.
  • May 2020: Our paper “Low FoxO expression in Drosophila somatosensory neurons protects dendrite growth under nutrient restriction” is published in eLife. Thanks to everyone who has contributed to this work!
  • May 2020: Gabe Koreman is named as a Cornell Merrill Presidential Scholar. Congrats, Gabe!
  • Feb 2020: Hui Ji’s nice video paper “LarvaSPA, A Method for Mounting Drosophila Larva for Long-Term Time-Lapse Imaging” is published in J Vis Exp. Check it out the cool film!
  • Feb 2020: Gabe Koreman got the GSA Undergraduate Travel Award for TAGC 2020. Nice job, Gabe!
  • June 2019: Maria Sapar moves on to postdoc at New York Stem Cell Foundation. Good luck Maria!
  • May 2019: Christine Zhang and Ziming Wang graduated from Cornell. Congrats!
  • May 2019: Check out our latest review “Die in pieces: How Drosophila sheds light on neurite degeneration and clearance” in Journal of Genetics and Genomics.
  • April 2019: Maria Sapar successfully defended her Ph.D. thesis. Congratulations to Dr. Sapar!
  • Mar 2019: Our tissue-specific CRISPR paper is featured in Cornell Chronicle.
  • Nov 2018: Our paper “Robust CRISPR/Cas9-Mediated Tissue Specific Mutagenesis Reveals Gene Redundancy and Perdurance in Drosophila” went online at Genetics.
  • Oct 2018: Amy successfully defended. Congrats, Dr. Poe!
  • Sept 2018: Our new postdoc Ankita Sarkar joined the lab. Welcome aboard!
  • Aug 2018: Our paper “Phosphatidylserine Externalization Results from and Causes Neurite Degeneration in Drosophila” is published in Cell Reports. Check out a featured article in Cornell Chronicle about our paper!
  • July 2018: Yanyan Pang officially joins the lab. Yifan Ding from ShanghaiTech University joins the lab for undergraduate research. Welcome!
  • July 2018: Gabriel Koreman receives the prestigious Hunter R. Rawlings III Cornell Presidential Scholarship (RCPRS) for his undergraduate research. Congratulations!
  • June 2018: Sarah Frieman and Yuna Lee join the lab for summer research. Welcome!
  • May 2018: Congratulations to Amy on winning the GGD Wellnitz Paper Award!
  • April 2018: Yineng finishes her undergraduate thesis research and returns to Shanghai Jiaotong University. See you soon!
  • April 2018: Yineng is admitted to the Cornell GGD graduate program. Congratulations!
  • March 2018: Yue Qiu finishes his undergraduate thesis research and returns to Shanghai Jiaotong University. Good luck with everything.
  • February 2018: Check our latest paper uploaded to BioRxiv: “Highly efficient CRISPR/Cas9-mediated tissue specific mutagenesis in Drosophila” by Poe, et al..
  • September 2017: Our paper “Dendritic space-filling requires a neuronal type-specific extracellular permissive signal in Drosophila” goes online at PNAS. Good job everyone!
  • August 2017: David Labib and Gabe Koreman join the lab for undergraduate research. Welcome!
  • July 2017: Yineng Xu and Yue Qiu from Zhiyuan College, Shanghai Jiao Tong University join the lab for undergraduate thesis research. Welcome!
  • June 2017: Kush Dubey and Anne Snabes join the lab for summer research. Welcome and have fun doing research!
  • May 2017: Hui Ji officially joins the lab. Welcome back, Hui!
  • May 2017: Kailyn Li graduated from Cornell with High Honors for her undergraduate thesis research. Nice job and congrats!
  • February 2017: Christine Zhang joins the lab for undergraduate research. Welcome!
  • August 2016: Welcome our newest undergraduate student, Andrew!
  • July 2016: Welcome Yue Qiu from Zhiyuan College of Shanghai Jiao Tong University to conduct summer research.
  • June 2016: Tireniolu Onabajo joins the lab. Welcome, Tire, and have fun with the flies.
  • May 2016: Congratulations to the graduates, Mary Gibbs and Yvonne Huang. We are proud of your achievements and wish you the best of luck in your future endeavors.
  • May 2016: Congratulations to Hui Ji on completing your undergraduate thesis research. Thank you for your significant contributions to the lab.
  • February 2016: Congratulations to our visiting undergraduate student, Hui Ji, who’s just been offered admission to the Genomics, Genetics and Development program at Cornell University. We’re very proud of you, Hui!
  • January 2016: Welcome Yuzhao Hu from Tsinghua University for the winter research!
  • December 2015: Maria is accepted to the Cornell Colman Leadership Program 2016.
  • November 2014: Congratulations to Albert on receiving the Dextra Undergraduate Research Grant!
  • May 2014: Maria and Amy officially joined the crew for their graduate thesis research. Welcome Maria and Amy!
  • April 2014: Our lab manager/research associate Kathy Wang finally came on board. Welcome Kathy!
  • April 2014: The Leica SP8 confocal microscope is up and running. It’s time to rock and roll!
  • March 2014: Welcome Amy Poe (GGD), Maria Sapar (BMCB), and Jeff Jorgensen (BMCB) for the rotation!
  • February 2014: Diane Karasevicz joined the lab to take care of our fly stocks. Welcome Diane!
  • January 2014: Two undergraduate students bravely ventured into the Han lab for their undergraduate research. Welcome Yvonne Huang and Albert Zhang as our first lab members!