MD/PhD student @PennMedicine @UPenn_SongMing | @Princeton @PrincetonPhys alum | Interested in neuro-oncology, cancer neuroscience, single-cell genomics

Philadelphia, PA
Joined June 2022
Super excited to share our recent work now out in @Nature! We introduce trans-synaptic tracing tools from circuit neuroscience to study the whole-brain connectome of glioblastoma. nature.com/articles/s41586-0…
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BREAKING NEWS The 2026 #NobelPrize in Physiology or Medicine has been awarded to Karl Deisseroth, Peter Hegemann and Georg Nagel “for their discoveries concerning light-gated ion channels and optogenetics.”
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Excited to share our new study in @CellRepMed standardizing glioblastoma organoids for increased throughput! A step towards showing how patient-derived models may be clinically predictive. Congrats @XinW_up, and grateful for an amazing team!
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Yusha Sun retweeted
Our study provides genetic evidence that GLP-1R activation is associated with better mental health well-being, lower risk of depression, and lower risk of bipolar disorder, possibly beyond its effect on BMI and HbA1c. Online at Translational Psychiatry: nature.com/articles/s41398-0…
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I am thrilled to announce that the Drexler Lab has officially opened in New York! As part of the Friedman Brain Institute (@SinaiBrain) and the Brain-Body Institute at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai (@IcahnMountSinai), our lab will investigate how cancer drives circuit remodeling across the brain and body, with the goal of advancing our understanding of cancer neuroscience and bringing these discoveries to our patients. If you are interested in joining the lab, collaborating, or getting involved, please check out our homepage or feel free to reach out to me directly at [email protected]. drexlerlab.org
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Researchers alongside Drs. Christopher Hubert, Hongjun Song, and @ZhaohuiWang5 outline how glioma organoids are transforming brain tumor modeling, providing a framework to improve classification, fidelity, and translational research. 🔖 bit.ly/4u5sE49
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This week, we report in @Nature our effort to identify molecular convergence and divergence in #autism spectrum disorder (ASD) using human stem cell models. In this collaborative study with Dan Geschwind's lab, spanning almost a decade, we derived 96 hiPS cell lines representing 8 genetic forms of ASD, idiopathic patients, and 20 controls, and after rigorous quality control differentiated 70 lines in more than 150 experiments into human cortical #organoids for 100 days. Interestingly, early time points harbored the largest mutation-specific changes, but distinct mutations converged on shared transcriptional changes as development progressed. This is just the beginning: we will need larger cohorts and more advanced cultures that capture cell diversity and interactions, such as #assembloids. Still, this initial study illustrates how risk associated with genetically defined forms of ASD can propagate through transcriptional regulation, leading to convergent and divergent signaling defects. This work was spearheaded by the heroic efforts of Aaron Gordon and Se-Jin Yoon, together with Lucy Bicks!
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New Article! Transsynaptic tracing techniques to interrogate neuronal connectivity of glioblastomas dlvr.it/TQTVyl
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Check out our new @NatureProtocols guide to transsynaptic tracing with patient-derived GBM organoids (GBOs)! We also provide a detailed primer for cortical-GBO assembloids, human brain slice cultures, and GBO transplantation. nature.com/articles/s41596-0…
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A huge thanks to @XinW_up, the X-less Zhijian Zhang, @UPenn_SongMing, and everyone in the lab for their support!
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What an inspiring few days at #Neuroepi25! We’ve enjoyed brilliant talks, engaging discussions, and exciting new collaborations. A big thank you to our wonderful chairs, Hongjun and Li-Huei, for their dedication in making this meeting such a success!
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Excited to share ABTA’s New York BT5K! As a PhD student studying glioblastoma and a host committee member, I’m proud to support this event raising funds for brain tumor research, patient support, and advocacy.
LISTEN NOW We’re gearing up for the American Brain Tumor Association’s 2025 NY BT5K💙 CBS News highlighted how this inspiring event brings survivors, families, and supporters together to fuel brain tumor research and hope. Ahead of the race, organizer Drew Flugstad-Clarke and survivor Matthew Zachary shared why this community matters so deeply. 🔗 Watch the story: cbsnews.com/newyork/video/am… #BreakthroughForBrainTumors #BrainTumorAwareness #BrainTumorStrong
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Excited to share our study published in @NatureNeuro today! We conducted cross-species analyses of immature neurons arising from adult hippocampal neurogenesis, revealing distinct human-specific gene expression patterns but convergent biological processes. nature.com/articles/s41593-0…
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New research from @PennMedicine: Structural & functional cholinergic neuron-to-glioblastoma #synapses using an all-human cell co-culture platform of iPSC-derived neurons and #gliobastoma organoids. bit.ly/45YqECf @ISSCR @CellPressNews @GairdnerAwards @SickKidsNews
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New from Song and Ming Labs (@UPenn_SongMing)! The team reports a co-culture system employing patient-derived #glioblastoma #organoids and hiPSC-derived cholinergic neurons. 🧫🧠 📖 Read more: bit.ly/4jX8OTm
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Brothers Daniel & David Zhang followed similar paths in medicine & music at @PennMedicine & @PennMedSymphony. A new philanthropic gift from @bjgmd (@PennCardiology) aims to recognize & amplify their efforts tinyurl.com/mr3x8fay
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In a medical milestone, a customized base editor was developed, characterized in human and mouse cells, tested in mice, studied for safety in non-human primates, cleared by @US_FDA for clinical trial use, manufactured as a complex with an LNP, and dosed into a baby with a severe, rapidly progressing genetic disease... all in an astounding 7 months. Best of all, the infant patient shows apparent benefit. Congratulations to @kiranmusunuru, Rebecca Ahrens-Nicklas, and other team members for this heroic and inspiring effort, which has implications for the hundreds of millions of patients that suffer from thousands of genetic diseases. drive.google.com/file/d/1Jfk…
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Yusha Sun retweeted
Today in @Nature, we report a spatial single-cell atlas of human cortical development, revealing surprisingly early specification of human cortical layers and areas. We built an interactive browser to explore the spatial data: walshlab.org/research/cortex… Paper link below👇
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