Chen Ran
@chenran.bsky.social
Neuroscientist. Assistant Professor at Scripps Research.
https://www.ran-lab.org
https://www.ran-lab.org
Reposted by Chen Ran
Deeply honored to receive this year's Tianqiao and Chrissy Chen Young Investigator Award from @sfn.org Grateful to all lab members and my mentors.
Congratulations to the 2025 SfN award & prize recipients!
Their dedication to advancing the understanding of the brain paves the way for future discoveries.
SfN looks forward to celebrating their achievements at #SfN25.
Learn about the recipients.
🔗 vist.ly/4cni8
#neurosky
Their dedication to advancing the understanding of the brain paves the way for future discoveries.
SfN looks forward to celebrating their achievements at #SfN25.
Learn about the recipients.
🔗 vist.ly/4cni8
#neurosky
November 3, 2025 at 8:55 PM
Deeply honored to receive this year's Tianqiao and Chrissy Chen Young Investigator Award from @sfn.org Grateful to all lab members and my mentors.
Reposted by Chen Ran
Actively hiring! Video made by Sora-2 but the job post is 100% real.
Apply here: hhmi.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com/en-US/Extern...
Apply here: hhmi.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com/en-US/Extern...
October 2, 2025 at 7:49 PM
Actively hiring! Video made by Sora-2 but the job post is 100% real.
Apply here: hhmi.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com/en-US/Extern...
Apply here: hhmi.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com/en-US/Extern...
1.5 years in the making, only two weeks to go! Can’t wait to see everyone here at Scripps!
Coming to #SfN2025 in San Diego? Come join our Neuroscience Symposium a day before on Nov 13! Hear from a fantastic speaker lineup and interact with vibrant audience in our community and beyond.
Free registration link: www.eventbrite.com/e/dorris-neu...
Free registration link: www.eventbrite.com/e/dorris-neu...
October 30, 2025 at 10:17 PM
1.5 years in the making, only two weeks to go! Can’t wait to see everyone here at Scripps!
Reposted by Chen Ran
This great primer from our #brain–body special by @dulaclab.bsky.social explores the many ways in which the brain and the immune system interact in the diseased state.
🧠
www.cell.com/current-biol...
🧠
www.cell.com/current-biol...
Sickness and the brain
Zuri Sullivan and Catherine Dulac discuss the reciprocal communication between the
brain and the immune system in sickness behavior.
www.cell.com
October 30, 2025 at 4:15 PM
This great primer from our #brain–body special by @dulaclab.bsky.social explores the many ways in which the brain and the immune system interact in the diseased state.
🧠
www.cell.com/current-biol...
🧠
www.cell.com/current-biol...
Scripps is a wonderful place to do science. Hard to imagine better colleagues and students…
During these uncertain times, I’m very happy to see that my institution, @scripps.edu has an open tenure-track Assistant Professor position. Any field in Chemistry or Biology is welcome. I’d especially love to see fellow neuroscientists apply. Please repost!
apply.interfolio.com/174756
apply.interfolio.com/174756
Apply - Interfolio
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apply.interfolio.com
October 16, 2025 at 12:45 AM
Scripps is a wonderful place to do science. Hard to imagine better colleagues and students…
Reposted by Chen Ran
Finally out: our recent work with Nick Betley is a view into how the brain reshapes its behavior in the face of competing survival needs- and also a potential angle on treatment targets for enduring pain.
A brief rundown...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
A brief rundown...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
A parabrachial hub for need-state control of enduring pain - Nature
Activity in a set of parabranchial neurons in the mouse brain is increased during chronic pain, predicts coping behaviour, and can be modulated by circuits activated by survival threats.
www.nature.com
October 9, 2025 at 1:15 PM
Finally out: our recent work with Nick Betley is a view into how the brain reshapes its behavior in the face of competing survival needs- and also a potential angle on treatment targets for enduring pain.
A brief rundown...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
A brief rundown...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Reposted by Chen Ran
We’re hiring!
My new Gut–Brain Axis Lab at Northwestern is looking for a Research Technologist 2 to help build the lab and explore how the nervous system shapes gut health and disease.
🔬 Apply here: myhr.northwestern.edu/psp/hrnu/EMP...
My new Gut–Brain Axis Lab at Northwestern is looking for a Research Technologist 2 to help build the lab and explore how the nervous system shapes gut health and disease.
🔬 Apply here: myhr.northwestern.edu/psp/hrnu/EMP...
Sign In
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myhr.northwestern.edu
September 30, 2025 at 10:32 PM
We’re hiring!
My new Gut–Brain Axis Lab at Northwestern is looking for a Research Technologist 2 to help build the lab and explore how the nervous system shapes gut health and disease.
🔬 Apply here: myhr.northwestern.edu/psp/hrnu/EMP...
My new Gut–Brain Axis Lab at Northwestern is looking for a Research Technologist 2 to help build the lab and explore how the nervous system shapes gut health and disease.
🔬 Apply here: myhr.northwestern.edu/psp/hrnu/EMP...
Reposted by Chen Ran
Submedius Thalamus Modulates Orbitofrontal Cortex Representations During Maternal Behavior in Mice https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.09.18.677207v1
September 19, 2025 at 10:16 AM
Submedius Thalamus Modulates Orbitofrontal Cortex Representations During Maternal Behavior in Mice https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.09.18.677207v1
Very interesting paper—>must read- and the first author will be looking for a job soon: one of the strongest scientists I could imagine. I learned so much from Yunxiao since my graduate school days.
New preprint alert! The uterus expands ~500-fold in pregnancy, yet we know little about how pressures are sensed. Led by @yunxiao-dr.bsky.social, we show PIEZOs are required for contractions and birth in mice, with dual roles of PIEZO1 in muscle and PIEZO2 in neurons
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
PIEZO channels link mechanical forces to uterine contractions in parturition
Mechanical forces are extensively involved in pregnancy and parturition, but their precise roles and mechanisms remain poorly understood. Here, we identify mechanically activated ion channels PIEZO1 a...
www.biorxiv.org
September 19, 2025 at 5:11 AM
Very interesting paper—>must read- and the first author will be looking for a job soon: one of the strongest scientists I could imagine. I learned so much from Yunxiao since my graduate school days.
Reposted by Chen Ran
New preprint alert! The uterus expands ~500-fold in pregnancy, yet we know little about how pressures are sensed. Led by @yunxiao-dr.bsky.social, we show PIEZOs are required for contractions and birth in mice, with dual roles of PIEZO1 in muscle and PIEZO2 in neurons
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
PIEZO channels link mechanical forces to uterine contractions in parturition
Mechanical forces are extensively involved in pregnancy and parturition, but their precise roles and mechanisms remain poorly understood. Here, we identify mechanically activated ion channels PIEZO1 a...
www.biorxiv.org
September 18, 2025 at 3:23 PM
New preprint alert! The uterus expands ~500-fold in pregnancy, yet we know little about how pressures are sensed. Led by @yunxiao-dr.bsky.social, we show PIEZOs are required for contractions and birth in mice, with dual roles of PIEZO1 in muscle and PIEZO2 in neurons
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Reposted by Chen Ran
🚨 New preprint from an ongoing collaboration with the Pang lab. Project led by rising stars @rohansavani.bsky.social and @lewang1.bsky.social showing how individual GLP-1R neurons in the paraventricular hypothalamus track ingestion across energy states.
Preprint: papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....
Preprint: papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....
Individual Paraventricular Hypothalamic GLP-1R Neurons Track Ingestion Across Energy States
Energy homeostasis is tightly regulated to ensure metabolic health in the face of uncertain environments. Changes in energy states or circulating hormonal signa
papers.ssrn.com
September 15, 2025 at 1:51 PM
🚨 New preprint from an ongoing collaboration with the Pang lab. Project led by rising stars @rohansavani.bsky.social and @lewang1.bsky.social showing how individual GLP-1R neurons in the paraventricular hypothalamus track ingestion across energy states.
Preprint: papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....
Preprint: papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....
Lots of interesting data there!
Thanks Misha for the shout-out!
It has been a truly mind-opening journey. WHOLISTIC is one step towards whole-organism neuroscience and a true physiological observatory - with extensions on the way! I am continually amazed by what the data reveals - so much remains to be discovered and mined.
It has been a truly mind-opening journey. WHOLISTIC is one step towards whole-organism neuroscience and a true physiological observatory - with extensions on the way! I am continually amazed by what the data reveals - so much remains to be discovered and mined.
Preprint -
Excited to present WHOLISTIC, which extends the concept of whole-brain functional imaging to the entire body. Pioneering work by incredibly talented Virginia Ruetten @vmsruetten.bsky.social, this platform reveals whole-organism cellular dynamics in vivo.
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Excited to present WHOLISTIC, which extends the concept of whole-brain functional imaging to the entire body. Pioneering work by incredibly talented Virginia Ruetten @vmsruetten.bsky.social, this platform reveals whole-organism cellular dynamics in vivo.
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
September 8, 2025 at 8:34 PM
Lots of interesting data there!
Reposted by Chen Ran
Thanks Misha for the shout-out!
It has been a truly mind-opening journey. WHOLISTIC is one step towards whole-organism neuroscience and a true physiological observatory - with extensions on the way! I am continually amazed by what the data reveals - so much remains to be discovered and mined.
It has been a truly mind-opening journey. WHOLISTIC is one step towards whole-organism neuroscience and a true physiological observatory - with extensions on the way! I am continually amazed by what the data reveals - so much remains to be discovered and mined.
Preprint -
Excited to present WHOLISTIC, which extends the concept of whole-brain functional imaging to the entire body. Pioneering work by incredibly talented Virginia Ruetten @vmsruetten.bsky.social, this platform reveals whole-organism cellular dynamics in vivo.
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Excited to present WHOLISTIC, which extends the concept of whole-brain functional imaging to the entire body. Pioneering work by incredibly talented Virginia Ruetten @vmsruetten.bsky.social, this platform reveals whole-organism cellular dynamics in vivo.
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
September 8, 2025 at 4:30 PM
Thanks Misha for the shout-out!
It has been a truly mind-opening journey. WHOLISTIC is one step towards whole-organism neuroscience and a true physiological observatory - with extensions on the way! I am continually amazed by what the data reveals - so much remains to be discovered and mined.
It has been a truly mind-opening journey. WHOLISTIC is one step towards whole-organism neuroscience and a true physiological observatory - with extensions on the way! I am continually amazed by what the data reveals - so much remains to be discovered and mined.
Reposted by Chen Ran
We are looking for a postdoc fellow to join the group. Focus on studying feeding-relevant slow dynamics in the brain using invivo microscopy approaches. Please share with anyone interested. Thank you. www.training.nih.gov/jobs/pdf-inf...
www.training.nih.gov
August 6, 2025 at 5:47 PM
We are looking for a postdoc fellow to join the group. Focus on studying feeding-relevant slow dynamics in the brain using invivo microscopy approaches. Please share with anyone interested. Thank you. www.training.nih.gov/jobs/pdf-inf...
Reposted by Chen Ran
I wrote a Comment on neurotheory, and now you can read it!
Some thoughts on where neurotheory has and has not taken root within the neuroscience community, how it has shaped those subfields, and where we theorists might look next for fresh adventures.
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Some thoughts on where neurotheory has and has not taken root within the neuroscience community, how it has shaped those subfields, and where we theorists might look next for fresh adventures.
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Theoretical neuroscience has room to grow
Nature Reviews Neuroscience - The goal of theoretical neuroscience is to uncover principles of neural computation through careful design and interpretation of mathematical models. Here, I examine...
www.nature.com
August 20, 2025 at 4:09 PM
I wrote a Comment on neurotheory, and now you can read it!
Some thoughts on where neurotheory has and has not taken root within the neuroscience community, how it has shaped those subfields, and where we theorists might look next for fresh adventures.
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Some thoughts on where neurotheory has and has not taken root within the neuroscience community, how it has shaped those subfields, and where we theorists might look next for fresh adventures.
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Reposted by Chen Ran
Amid lots of uncertainty, anger, and exhaustion I am excited to share this work from my incredibly talented MSTP and @nuincomm.bsky.social student Haley Province. In it we explore the fascinating and powerful anti-aversive properties of GIPR agonists
GIP receptor agonism suppresses inflammation-induced aversion and food intake via distinct circuits https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.08.12.669936v1
August 16, 2025 at 6:20 PM
Amid lots of uncertainty, anger, and exhaustion I am excited to share this work from my incredibly talented MSTP and @nuincomm.bsky.social student Haley Province. In it we explore the fascinating and powerful anti-aversive properties of GIPR agonists
Reposted by Chen Ran
UCSD is holding a town hall with @repscottpeters.bsky.social this Wednesday to urge him to oppose proposed research funding cuts in the FY2026 budget, set for a vote in September. Please RSVP below and share widely. Everyone is welcome.
form.laborbase.org/251675765832...
form.laborbase.org/251675765832...
August 15, 2025 at 5:52 PM
UCSD is holding a town hall with @repscottpeters.bsky.social this Wednesday to urge him to oppose proposed research funding cuts in the FY2026 budget, set for a vote in September. Please RSVP below and share widely. Everyone is welcome.
form.laborbase.org/251675765832...
form.laborbase.org/251675765832...
Reposted by Chen Ran
Happy to share our new work in Sci Adv! www.science.org/doi/10.1126/... We found a robust representation of pup retrieval in the orbitofrontal cortex of female mice, which positively regulates VTA dopamine neurons during the acquisition of maternal behavior. Congrats to Gen-ichi and the team!
Orbitofrontal cortex influences dopamine dynamics associated with alloparental behavioral acquisition in female mice
Orbitofrontal cortex neurons facilitate alloparental behaviors in virgin female mice by modulating the dopamine system.
www.science.org
July 2, 2025 at 7:50 PM
Happy to share our new work in Sci Adv! www.science.org/doi/10.1126/... We found a robust representation of pup retrieval in the orbitofrontal cortex of female mice, which positively regulates VTA dopamine neurons during the acquisition of maternal behavior. Congrats to Gen-ichi and the team!
Reposted by Chen Ran
Thrilled to share our latest work in @nature.com studying inter-brain neural dynamics in both biological and artificial intelligence systems — amazing work by @nobrainxz.bsky.social and Nguyen Phi, and fantastic collaboration with Jonathan Kao! Read the full article here: rdcu.be/euu5Z
July 2, 2025 at 5:00 PM
Thrilled to share our latest work in @nature.com studying inter-brain neural dynamics in both biological and artificial intelligence systems — amazing work by @nobrainxz.bsky.social and Nguyen Phi, and fantastic collaboration with Jonathan Kao! Read the full article here: rdcu.be/euu5Z
Reposted by Chen Ran
Excited to share the first 2(!) preprints from the Kebschull Lab. The amazing @hyopilkim.bsky.social developed MAPseq2 & POINTseq and used them to map the dopaminergic cells of VTA and SNc. tl;dr MAPseq2=10x cheaper, 4x better; POINTseq=easy cell type specific barcoding; DA neurons=very cool.
June 26, 2025 at 4:24 PM
Excited to share the first 2(!) preprints from the Kebschull Lab. The amazing @hyopilkim.bsky.social developed MAPseq2 & POINTseq and used them to map the dopaminergic cells of VTA and SNc. tl;dr MAPseq2=10x cheaper, 4x better; POINTseq=easy cell type specific barcoding; DA neurons=very cool.
Reposted by Chen Ran
Our new paper is out in Science.
We identified a subgroup of cholinergic neurons that mediate sensory modality-specific attention. They change their funcitonal properties within secs of behavioral context change.
Congrats to Bin for the great thesis, and the team!
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
We identified a subgroup of cholinergic neurons that mediate sensory modality-specific attention. They change their funcitonal properties within secs of behavioral context change.
Congrats to Bin for the great thesis, and the team!
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Cholinergic feedback for modality- and context-specific modulation of sensory representations
The brain’s ability to prioritize sensory information is crucial for adaptive behavior, yet its mechanisms remain unclear. We investigated basal forebrain cholinergic neurons modulating olfactory bulb...
www.science.org
June 20, 2025 at 3:32 PM
Our new paper is out in Science.
We identified a subgroup of cholinergic neurons that mediate sensory modality-specific attention. They change their funcitonal properties within secs of behavioral context change.
Congrats to Bin for the great thesis, and the team!
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
We identified a subgroup of cholinergic neurons that mediate sensory modality-specific attention. They change their funcitonal properties within secs of behavioral context change.
Congrats to Bin for the great thesis, and the team!
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Reposted by Chen Ran
Congrats to @xinjin.bsky.social @tinakim-neuro.bsky.social and many others!
Love seeing friends and colleagues #slay! Congrats to @moriel-z.bsky.social @utah.edu for becoming a @hhmi.org Hrabowski scholar! Also congrats to @tinakim-neuro.bsky.social @xinjin.bsky.social @doctheagrif.bsky.social www.hhmi.org/programs/fre...
The 2025 Freeman Hrabowski Scholars | HHMI
Freeman Hrabowski Scholars are outstanding early career faculty who have the potential to become leaders in their research fields.
www.hhmi.org
June 20, 2025 at 2:06 AM
Congrats to @xinjin.bsky.social @tinakim-neuro.bsky.social and many others!
Reposted by Chen Ran
I spoke with Jade Hindmon, host of @kpbssandiego.bsky.social Midday Edition, about the consequences of the current administration’s cuts to science funding. Please share to help spread the word and raise awareness.
www.kpbs.org/podcasts/kpb...
www.kpbs.org/podcasts/kpb...
Nobel laureate on how Trump's cuts are hurting science
Neuroscientist, biologist and 2021 Nobel Prize winner Ardem Patapoutian joined Midday Edition to talk about how the Trump administration's effort to cut back on science spending is impacting researche...
www.kpbs.org
June 19, 2025 at 12:27 AM
I spoke with Jade Hindmon, host of @kpbssandiego.bsky.social Midday Edition, about the consequences of the current administration’s cuts to science funding. Please share to help spread the word and raise awareness.
www.kpbs.org/podcasts/kpb...
www.kpbs.org/podcasts/kpb...
Reposted by Chen Ran
Talked to @KateZernike at @nytimes about my journey and the current moment for scientists in the U.S.
“Ardem Patapoutian’s story is not just the American dream, it is the dream of American science.”
Read the article here. No subscription required:
www.nytimes.com/2025/06/03/u...
“Ardem Patapoutian’s story is not just the American dream, it is the dream of American science.”
Read the article here. No subscription required:
www.nytimes.com/2025/06/03/u...
The U.S. Lit a Beacon for Science. Under Trump, Scientists Fear It’s Dimming
www.nytimes.com
June 3, 2025 at 10:58 AM
Talked to @KateZernike at @nytimes about my journey and the current moment for scientists in the U.S.
“Ardem Patapoutian’s story is not just the American dream, it is the dream of American science.”
Read the article here. No subscription required:
www.nytimes.com/2025/06/03/u...
“Ardem Patapoutian’s story is not just the American dream, it is the dream of American science.”
Read the article here. No subscription required:
www.nytimes.com/2025/06/03/u...
Reposted by Chen Ran
Wild!
Stephen, Praneel and their team use fluorescence lifetime imaging and various manipulations to show that, in male mice, both mating drive and hypothalamic tonic dopamine release drop after a successful mating and gradually recover over the next week, paralleling the recovery in sperm count.
Stephen, Praneel and their team use fluorescence lifetime imaging and various manipulations to show that, in male mice, both mating drive and hypothalamic tonic dopamine release drop after a successful mating and gradually recover over the next week, paralleling the recovery in sperm count.
I am excited to share our preprint on how hypothalamic dopamine neurons govern slow changes in motivation over days! Below are our findings:
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Slow-Timescale Regulation of Dopamine Release and Mating Drive over Days
The rise and fall of motivational states may take place over timescales as long as many days. We used mouse mating behavior to model how the brain orchestrates slow-timescale changes in motivation. Ma...
www.biorxiv.org
June 2, 2025 at 7:26 PM
Wild!
Stephen, Praneel and their team use fluorescence lifetime imaging and various manipulations to show that, in male mice, both mating drive and hypothalamic tonic dopamine release drop after a successful mating and gradually recover over the next week, paralleling the recovery in sperm count.
Stephen, Praneel and their team use fluorescence lifetime imaging and various manipulations to show that, in male mice, both mating drive and hypothalamic tonic dopamine release drop after a successful mating and gradually recover over the next week, paralleling the recovery in sperm count.