Dr. Kai Zhang received his Bachelor of Science from the University of Science and Technology of China (USTC) in 2002 and Ph.D. from the University of California, Berkeley in 2008. His Ph.D. work focused on the development of experimental and theoretical approaches for single-molecule fluorescence spectroscopy and nonlinear optical microscopy. In 2009, he joined Stanford University as a postdoctoral scholar and made a transition from the field of physical chemistry to neurobiology, studying axonal transport in neuronal diseases with single-molecule fluorescence microscopy. In August 2014, Dr. Zhang joined the Biochemistry Department of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) as a tenure-track assistant professor. At Illinois, the Zhang laboratory develops new biotechnologies including optogenetics and single-molecule fluorescence microscopy to investigate how growth factor-mediated signal transduction regulates cell fate determination. The long-term goal of Zhang’s research is to delineate how spatiotemporal regulation of growth factor-mediated signal transduction determines cell differentiation during embryonic development and how this signaling process is compromised in diseases such as neurological disorders and cancers. Current research is supported by NIH/NIGMS and NIMH.

Title: "Optical modulation of molecular activity during neural differentiation, regeneration, and embryonic development"

Abstract: "The discovery of fluorescent proteins empowers real-time optical localization of macromolecules in living cells. However, this “passive” localization information alone does not establish the causality between molecular activity and functional outcome. Recently developed non-neuronal optogenetic strategies enable an “active” strategy to modulate molecular activities in living cells via visible light. In this presentation, I will introduce optogenetic systems recently developed in our laboratory that allow for reversible and bidirectional optical control of the neurotrophic signaling pathway. I will demonstrate the spatial and temporal regulation of neurotrophin pathways during neuronal differentiation, regeneration, and Xenopus embryonic development. I will also discuss the limitations of current non-neuronal optogenetics and improved strategies."