Alex Kwan
@alexkwan.bsky.social
Professor at Cornell BME. Studying the neurobiology of psychiatric #drugs including #ketamine and #psychedelics.
https://alexkwanlab.org
https://alexkwanlab.org
Pinned
Alex Kwan
@alexkwan.bsky.social
· Aug 28
This was a fun piece to write for @cp-trendspharma.bsky.social
“The ABCs of Psychedelics: A Preclinical Roadmap for Drug Discovery” with John McCorvy and @jmantsch.bsky.social
www.cell.com/trends/pharm...
“The ABCs of Psychedelics: A Preclinical Roadmap for Drug Discovery” with John McCorvy and @jmantsch.bsky.social
www.cell.com/trends/pharm...
We’ve thought a lot about how 💊 drugs act on dendrites of neurons, but what about when it is a 🧬 mutation that affects dendrites?
PhD student Hao Wu studied #Scn2a deficiency in mice. Just out at @pnas.org, her research led to two major findings.
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
1/6
PhD student Hao Wu studied #Scn2a deficiency in mice. Just out at @pnas.org, her research led to two major findings.
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
1/6
Autism-associated Scn2a haploinsufficiency disrupts in vivo dendritic signaling and impairs flexible decision-making | PNAS
SCN2A is a high-confidence risk gene for autism spectrum disorder. Loss-of-function
mutations in Scn2a reduce dendritic excitability in neocortical...
www.pnas.org
November 20, 2025 at 5:30 PM
We’ve thought a lot about how 💊 drugs act on dendrites of neurons, but what about when it is a 🧬 mutation that affects dendrites?
PhD student Hao Wu studied #Scn2a deficiency in mice. Just out at @pnas.org, her research led to two major findings.
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
1/6
PhD student Hao Wu studied #Scn2a deficiency in mice. Just out at @pnas.org, her research led to two major findings.
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
1/6
Reposted by Alex Kwan
To study how animals understand the physical world (and the rules that govern its dynamics), @jinyao-y.bsky.social trains rats to play fetch with robots 🐀🤖🎾
To learn more, come to our poster Tuesday morning!
[Board W11] Rats learn and use intuitive physics knowledge to solve fetch tasks.
#SfN2025
To learn more, come to our poster Tuesday morning!
[Board W11] Rats learn and use intuitive physics knowledge to solve fetch tasks.
#SfN2025
November 18, 2025 at 1:16 AM
To study how animals understand the physical world (and the rules that govern its dynamics), @jinyao-y.bsky.social trains rats to play fetch with robots 🐀🤖🎾
To learn more, come to our poster Tuesday morning!
[Board W11] Rats learn and use intuitive physics knowledge to solve fetch tasks.
#SfN2025
To learn more, come to our poster Tuesday morning!
[Board W11] Rats learn and use intuitive physics knowledge to solve fetch tasks.
#SfN2025
Reposted by Alex Kwan
Research on brain disorders may slow as young neuroscientists struggle to find jobs and research grants. n.pr/4pgmAna
As funding falters, young brain scientists rethink careers in research
Research on brain disorders may slow as young neuroscientists struggle to find jobs and research grants.
n.pr
November 15, 2025 at 7:03 PM
Research on brain disorders may slow as young neuroscientists struggle to find jobs and research grants. n.pr/4pgmAna
Lab is thrilled to leave frigid NY to go to sunny San Diego for #SfN2025 😂
Mon AM posters:
LBP182 - Psilocybin and layer 1 interneurons
LBP183 - Psilocybin in chronic stress model
LBP184 - Drugs + snRNAseq
Tue PM posters:
LL18 - Psilocybin and pyramidal cell types
MM3 - Drugs + rabies tracing
Mon AM posters:
LBP182 - Psilocybin and layer 1 interneurons
LBP183 - Psilocybin in chronic stress model
LBP184 - Drugs + snRNAseq
Tue PM posters:
LL18 - Psilocybin and pyramidal cell types
MM3 - Drugs + rabies tracing
November 13, 2025 at 9:33 PM
Lab is thrilled to leave frigid NY to go to sunny San Diego for #SfN2025 😂
Mon AM posters:
LBP182 - Psilocybin and layer 1 interneurons
LBP183 - Psilocybin in chronic stress model
LBP184 - Drugs + snRNAseq
Tue PM posters:
LL18 - Psilocybin and pyramidal cell types
MM3 - Drugs + rabies tracing
Mon AM posters:
LBP182 - Psilocybin and layer 1 interneurons
LBP183 - Psilocybin in chronic stress model
LBP184 - Drugs + snRNAseq
Tue PM posters:
LL18 - Psilocybin and pyramidal cell types
MM3 - Drugs + rabies tracing
Reposted by Alex Kwan
Researchers with lived experience of mental illness/SUDs bring vital insight to our field, yet remain underrepresented and face barriers to participation & leadership
This Perspective calls for removing such barriers & proposes reforms to build inclusive environments
www.nature.com/articles/s44...
This Perspective calls for removing such barriers & proposes reforms to build inclusive environments
www.nature.com/articles/s44...
Breaking barriers: centering researchers with lived experience in psychiatric neuroscience - NPP—Digital Psychiatry and Neuroscience
Researchers who live with serious mental illness or substance use disorders bring unique insight to psychiatric neuroscience, yet they remain underrepresented in the field. This paper calls for recogn...
www.nature.com
November 13, 2025 at 3:14 PM
Researchers with lived experience of mental illness/SUDs bring vital insight to our field, yet remain underrepresented and face barriers to participation & leadership
This Perspective calls for removing such barriers & proposes reforms to build inclusive environments
www.nature.com/articles/s44...
This Perspective calls for removing such barriers & proposes reforms to build inclusive environments
www.nature.com/articles/s44...
Beautiful “action potential” stained glass made by @laurenatlas.bsky.social
Picked 🔵 because it reminds me of our #ChR2 optotagging experiments 🤓🧪
Picked 🔵 because it reminds me of our #ChR2 optotagging experiments 🤓🧪
November 6, 2025 at 2:51 PM
Beautiful “action potential” stained glass made by @laurenatlas.bsky.social
Picked 🔵 because it reminds me of our #ChR2 optotagging experiments 🤓🧪
Picked 🔵 because it reminds me of our #ChR2 optotagging experiments 🤓🧪
Incredibly proud of Lingxiao Shao for receiving the prestigious Peter and Patricia Gruber International Research Award this year! 🎉🎉🎉
A true trailblazer who has been driving research on #psychedelic drug action in the brain. 🧠🧪
@sfn.org #SfN2025
A true trailblazer who has been driving research on #psychedelic drug action in the brain. 🧠🧪
@sfn.org #SfN2025
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 3:05 PM
Incredibly proud of Lingxiao Shao for receiving the prestigious Peter and Patricia Gruber International Research Award this year! 🎉🎉🎉
A true trailblazer who has been driving research on #psychedelic drug action in the brain. 🧠🧪
@sfn.org #SfN2025
A true trailblazer who has been driving research on #psychedelic drug action in the brain. 🧠🧪
@sfn.org #SfN2025
Reposted by Alex Kwan
Many of our big insights into brain function come from trying to mimic it, writes @timothyoleary.bsky.social. This lesson should guide how we organize research programs.
www.thetransmitter.org/systems-neur...
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/systems-neur...
#neuroskyence
Neuroscience needs engineers—for more reasons than you think
Adopting an engineering mindset will help the field focus its research priorities.
www.thetransmitter.org
November 3, 2025 at 2:22 PM
Many of our big insights into brain function come from trying to mimic it, writes @timothyoleary.bsky.social. This lesson should guide how we organize research programs.
www.thetransmitter.org/systems-neur...
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/systems-neur...
#neuroskyence
Reposted by Alex Kwan
When #FluorescenceFriday falls on Halloween, we break out the spooky data 👻 Here we are looking at the blood vessels of a zebrafish through its eye 🎃
October 31, 2025 at 3:29 PM
When #FluorescenceFriday falls on Halloween, we break out the spooky data 👻 Here we are looking at the blood vessels of a zebrafish through its eye 🎃
My department, Cornell BME, is hiring!
This tenure-track faculty position is a great opportunity to join a vibrant community that values research, teaching, and entrepreneurship.
📝 academicjobsonline.org/ajo/jobs/30816
This tenure-track faculty position is a great opportunity to join a vibrant community that values research, teaching, and entrepreneurship.
📝 academicjobsonline.org/ajo/jobs/30816
October 28, 2025 at 6:31 PM
My department, Cornell BME, is hiring!
This tenure-track faculty position is a great opportunity to join a vibrant community that values research, teaching, and entrepreneurship.
📝 academicjobsonline.org/ajo/jobs/30816
This tenure-track faculty position is a great opportunity to join a vibrant community that values research, teaching, and entrepreneurship.
📝 academicjobsonline.org/ajo/jobs/30816
Preparing tomorrow’s visit to @tulanebrain.bsky.social @tulaneu.bsky.social by grabbing a muphuletta 😀 #NewOrleans
October 28, 2025 at 5:28 PM
Preparing tomorrow’s visit to @tulanebrain.bsky.social @tulaneu.bsky.social by grabbing a muphuletta 😀 #NewOrleans
Reposted by Alex Kwan
For #FluorescenceFriday - projection neurons from the mouse prefrontal cortex to the locus coeruleus 🔴 with Fos labeling activated cells 🟢. Image credit to the Circuits team in the Translational Neuroscience Division @lieberinstitute.bsky.social 🧠🔬🧪
October 24, 2025 at 11:45 AM
For #FluorescenceFriday - projection neurons from the mouse prefrontal cortex to the locus coeruleus 🔴 with Fos labeling activated cells 🟢. Image credit to the Circuits team in the Translational Neuroscience Division @lieberinstitute.bsky.social 🧠🔬🧪
Today I found the secret chess♟️spot at Cornell, with an unbeatable lake view
October 23, 2025 at 6:57 PM
Today I found the secret chess♟️spot at Cornell, with an unbeatable lake view
Reposted by Alex Kwan
🚨 New science alert! Our cross-species study, now in Nature Neuroscience, demonstrates psychedelics distort how we should interpret functional brain imaging.
👇🧵
nature.com/articles/s41...
#Neuroscience #Psychedelics #BrainImaging
👇🧵
nature.com/articles/s41...
#Neuroscience #Psychedelics #BrainImaging
Psychedelic 5-HT2A receptor agonism alters neurovascular coupling and differentially affects neuronal and hemodynamic measures of brain function
Nature Neuroscience - Padawer-Curry et al. show that the hallucinogenic 5-HT2A receptor agonist DOI alters neurovascular coupling in mice, with implications for the interpretation of human fMRI...
nature.com
October 15, 2025 at 8:18 PM
🚨 New science alert! Our cross-species study, now in Nature Neuroscience, demonstrates psychedelics distort how we should interpret functional brain imaging.
👇🧵
nature.com/articles/s41...
#Neuroscience #Psychedelics #BrainImaging
👇🧵
nature.com/articles/s41...
#Neuroscience #Psychedelics #BrainImaging
This one hits close to home. Jim is my office neighbor. Absolutely devastating.
A Cornell University researcher has been developing an artificial heart for children for more than 20 years. Now, his research is on hold and his lab is shut down.
This 4-year-old's heart is failing. A federal grant that might help him was canceled
A Cornell University researcher has been developing an artificial heart for children for more than 20 years. Now, his research is on hold and his lab is shut down.
n.pr
October 12, 2025 at 10:19 PM
This one hits close to home. Jim is my office neighbor. Absolutely devastating.
Reposted by Alex Kwan
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Finally out!!
Finally out!!
Psychedelic compounds directly excite 5-HT2A layer V medial prefrontal cortex neurons through 5-HT2A Gq activation - Translational Psychiatry
Translational Psychiatry - Psychedelic compounds directly excite 5-HT2A layer V medial prefrontal cortex neurons through 5-HT2A Gq activation
www.nature.com
October 7, 2025 at 9:14 PM
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Finally out!!
Finally out!!
This is a beautiful paper showing reliable gene editing in single targeted neurons in the brain. 🧬🧠
The results are striking. It’s been awhile since I’ve seen such an elegant study.
The results are striking. It’s been awhile since I’ve seen such an elegant study.
Gene editing of single, targeted neurons in vivo is now feasible. We are proud to present our preprint for highly efficient single-cell electroporation using RNA. With @alex-fratzl.bsky.social, @munzlab.bsky.social, Botond Roska @iobswiss.bsky.social
#neuroskyence
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
#neuroskyence
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
In vivo single-cell gene editing using RNA electroporation reveals sequential adaptation of cortical neurons to excitatory-inhibitory imbalance
The balance between excitatory and inhibitory neurotransmission is fundamental for normal brain function, yet the adaptation of individual neurons to disrupted excitatory-inhibitory balance is not wel...
www.biorxiv.org
October 6, 2025 at 10:53 PM
This is a beautiful paper showing reliable gene editing in single targeted neurons in the brain. 🧬🧠
The results are striking. It’s been awhile since I’ve seen such an elegant study.
The results are striking. It’s been awhile since I’ve seen such an elegant study.
Reposted by Alex Kwan
@deffinger.bsky.social and @melissaherman.bsky.social argue that, though many human psychedelic clinical trials are underway, preclinical studies remain our best bet to answer fundamental questions about the neurobiology of psychedelics.
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/psychedelics...
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/psychedelics...
Why we need basic science to better understand the neurobiology of psychedelics
Despite the many psychedelics clinical trials underway, there is still much we don’t know about how these drugs work. Preclinical studies represent our best viable avenue to answer these lingering…
www.thetransmitter.org
October 1, 2025 at 2:11 PM
@deffinger.bsky.social and @melissaherman.bsky.social argue that, though many human psychedelic clinical trials are underway, preclinical studies remain our best bet to answer fundamental questions about the neurobiology of psychedelics.
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/psychedelics...
#neuroskyence
www.thetransmitter.org/psychedelics...
Reposted by Alex Kwan
Latest imaging data from our completely re-designed ExA-SPIM system.
Expansion-assisted imaging (3X expansion, 0.3 NA) enables brain-wide imaging with high-contrast and <400 nm effective resolution.
Expansion-assisted imaging (3X expansion, 0.3 NA) enables brain-wide imaging with high-contrast and <400 nm effective resolution.
September 29, 2025 at 4:04 PM
Latest imaging data from our completely re-designed ExA-SPIM system.
Expansion-assisted imaging (3X expansion, 0.3 NA) enables brain-wide imaging with high-contrast and <400 nm effective resolution.
Expansion-assisted imaging (3X expansion, 0.3 NA) enables brain-wide imaging with high-contrast and <400 nm effective resolution.
Reposted by Alex Kwan
Updated funding curve (with two weeks to go in the fiscal year)
(Posted on jeremymberg.github.io/jeremyberg.g... )
(Posted on jeremymberg.github.io/jeremyberg.g... )
September 22, 2025 at 5:06 PM
Updated funding curve (with two weeks to go in the fiscal year)
(Posted on jeremymberg.github.io/jeremyberg.g... )
(Posted on jeremymberg.github.io/jeremyberg.g... )
Reposted by Alex Kwan
Excited to highlight a new paper from my graduate student Sergio Bernal Garcia who, together withLuke Hammond, developed RESPAN, a new deep-learning pipeline automating the segmentation of neuronal morphology and dendritic spines from fluorescent microscopy images:
www.cell.com/cell-reports...
www.cell.com/cell-reports...
A deep learning pipeline for accurate and automated restoration, segmentation, and quantification of dendritic spines
Garcia et al. present RESPAN, a pipeline that enables automated dendritic spine analysis
through seamless integration of deep learning image restoration and segmentation capabilities
with comprehensiv...
www.cell.com
September 21, 2025 at 1:01 PM
Excited to highlight a new paper from my graduate student Sergio Bernal Garcia who, together withLuke Hammond, developed RESPAN, a new deep-learning pipeline automating the segmentation of neuronal morphology and dendritic spines from fluorescent microscopy images:
www.cell.com/cell-reports...
www.cell.com/cell-reports...
Reposted by Alex Kwan
SCN2A loss is strongly linked to neurodevelopmental delays and, at times, seizure. In an amazing collaboration with @nadavahituv.bsky.social, led by Serena Tamura, Andrew Nelson, and Perry Spratt, we leveraged CRISPR activator approaches to rescue this loss.
rdcu.be/eGU0W
rdcu.be/eGU0W
CRISPR activation for SCN2A-related neurodevelopmental disorders
Nature - Using SCN2A haploinsufficiency as a proof-of-concept, upregulation of the existing functional gene copy through CRISPR activation was able to rescue neurological-associated phenotypes in...
rdcu.be
September 17, 2025 at 6:27 PM
SCN2A loss is strongly linked to neurodevelopmental delays and, at times, seizure. In an amazing collaboration with @nadavahituv.bsky.social, led by Serena Tamura, Andrew Nelson, and Perry Spratt, we leveraged CRISPR activator approaches to rescue this loss.
rdcu.be/eGU0W
rdcu.be/eGU0W
It was fun to host Lucas Pinto at for our department seminar last week.
Lucas showed a new VR task combining evidence accumulation and delay-match-to-sample. Mice did the task using near-orthogonal coding scheme across cortical regions
👉 www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Lucas showed a new VR task combining evidence accumulation and delay-match-to-sample. Mice did the task using near-orthogonal coding scheme across cortical regions
👉 www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
September 17, 2025 at 12:22 PM
It was fun to host Lucas Pinto at for our department seminar last week.
Lucas showed a new VR task combining evidence accumulation and delay-match-to-sample. Mice did the task using near-orthogonal coding scheme across cortical regions
👉 www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Lucas showed a new VR task combining evidence accumulation and delay-match-to-sample. Mice did the task using near-orthogonal coding scheme across cortical regions
👉 www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...