My research interest is in the role of key brain circuits regulating fertility hormone release. In particular, I am interested in a neural population called kisspeptin neurons in the arcuate nucleus, also known as the gonadotropin releasing hormone (GnRH) pulse generator. These neurons exhibit episodic synchronized activities that faithfully drive pulses of GnRH and gonadotropins, although the mechanism of synchronization is not yet clear. I use genetically-modified mouse models and optical approaches to decipher the cellular mechanism at which kisspeptin neurons form synchronizations, and how conditions in infertility such as polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) disrupt normal synchronizations of these neurons.
