Representative Publications

1. Zhiyong Xie, Xianying Zhang, Miao Zhao, Lifang Huo, Meizhu Huang, Dapeng Li, Shuangfeng Zhang, Xingyu Cheng, Huating Gu, Chen Zhang, Cheng Zhan, Fengchao Wang, Congping Shang, Peng Cao. The gut-to-brain axis for toxin-induced defensive responses. Cell 185: 4298-4316 (2022)

● Cell, “A gut-retching discovery”.

● Nature Reviews Neuroscience, “Gut-brain pathways for toxin defence”.

● The New York Times, “How brains send a signal that it’s time to vomit”.

2. Zhiyong Xie, Dapeng Li, Xinyu Cheng, Qing Pei, Meizhu Huang, Huating Gu, Miao Zhao, Dandan Geng, Fan Zhang, Yuanwu Ma, Peng Cao. A brain-to-spinal neural circuit for repetitive self-grooming in mice. Neuron 110: 874-890 (2022)

● Neuron, “Of pride and groom: The gains and limits of studying the neuroanatomy of rodent self-grooming in translational research”.

3. Zhiyong Xie, Huating Gu, Meizhu Huang, Xingyu Cheng, Yuan Xie, Zongxiang Tang, Fan Zhang, Peng Cao. Mechanically evoked defensive attack is controlled by GABAergic neurons in the anterior hypothalamic nucleus. Nature Neuroscience 25: 72-85 (2022)

4. Congping Shang, Aixue Liu, Dapeng Li, Zhiyong Xie, Zijun Chen, Meizhu Huang, Yang Li, Yi Wang, Wei Shen, Peng Cao. A subcortical excitatory circuit for sensory-triggered predatory hunting in mice. Nature Neuroscience 22: 909-920 (2019)

● Nature Neuroscience, “Hungry for motion: the senses propel predation”

5. Zhihui Liu, Zijun Chen, Congping Shang, Fei Yan, Yingchao Shi, Jiajing Zhang, Baole Qu, Hailin Han, Yanying Wang, Dapeng Li, Thomas Südhof, Peng Cao. IGF1-dependent synaptic plasticity of mitral cells in olfactory memory during social learning. Neuron 95: 106-122 (2017)

6.  Congping Shang, Zhihui Liu, Zijun Chen, Yingchao Shi, Su Liu, Dapeng Li, Qian Wang, Peng Cao. A parvalbumin-positive excitatory visual pathway to trigger fear responses in mice. Science 348: 1472-77 (2015)

Other Publications

7. Ming-Ming Zhang, An-Qi Geng, Kun Chen, Jian Wang, Pan Wang, Xin-Tong Qiu, Jun-Xiang Gu, Hong-Wei Fan, Da-Yu Zhu, Shan-Ming Yang, Qi-Yu Chen, Zhao-Xiang Zhou, Bo-Yuan Fan, Yang Bai, Ke-Ke Xing, Jia-Ming Feng, Jun-Da Wang, Yan Chen, Ya-Cheng Lu, Ying Liang, Peng Cao, Bong-Kiun Kaang, Min Zhuo, Yun-Qing Li, Tao Chen. Glutamatergic synapses from the insular cortex to the basolateral amygdala encode observational pain. Neuron 110: 1993-2008.e6. (2022)

8. Jing-Jing Yan, Xiao-Jing Ding, Ting He, Ai-Xiao Chen, Wen Zhang, Zi-Xian Yu, Xin-Yu Cheng, Chuan-Yao Wei, Qiao-Dan Hu, Xiao-Yao Liu, Yan-Li Zhang, Mengge He, Zhi-Yong Xie, Xi Zha, Chun Xu, Peng Cao, Haohong Li, Xiao-Hong Xu. A circuit from the ventral subiculum to anterior hypothalamic nucleus GABAergic neurons essential for anxiety-like behavioral avoidance. Nature Communications 13 (1), 1-16 (2022)

9. Yuan Wang, Rong Huang, Zuying Chai, Changhe Wang, Xingyu Du, Yuqi Hang, Yongxin Xu, Jie Li, Xiaohan Jiang, Xi Wu, Zhongjun Qiao, Yinglin Li, Bing Liu, Xianying Zhang, Peng Cao, Feipeng Zhu, Zhuan Zhou Calcium-independent transmission at the central synapse formed between dorsal root ganglion and dorsal horn neurons. EMBO Reports 23 (11), e54507 (2022)

10. Meizhu Huang, Dapeng Li, Xinyu Cheng, Qing Pei, Zhiyong Xie, Huating Gu, Xuerong Zhang, Zijun Chen, Aixue Liu, Yi Wang, Fangmiao Sun, Yulong Li, Jiayi Zhang, Miao He, Yuan Xie, Fan Zhang, Xiangbin Qi, Congping Shang, Peng Cao. The tectonigral pathway regulates appetitive locomotion in predatory hunting in mice. Nature Communications 12: 4409 (2021)

11. Zhiyong Xie, Mengdi Wang, Zeyuan Liu, Congping Shang, Changjiang Zhang, Le Sun, Huating Gu, Gengxin Ran, Qing Pei, Qiang Ma, Meizhu Huang, Junjing Zhang, Rui Lin, Youtong Zhou, Jiyao Zhang, Miao Zhao, Minmin Luo, Qian Wu, Peng Cao, Xiaoqun Wang. Transcriptomic encoding of sensorimotor transformation in the midbrain. eLife 10: e69825 (2021)

12. Can Liu, Chia-Ying Lee, Greg Asher, Liqin Cao, Yuka Terakoshi, Peng Cao, Reiko Kobayakawa, Ko Kobayakawa, Katsuyasu Sakurai, Qinghua Liu. Posterior subthalamic nucleus (PSTh) mediates innate fear-associated hypothermia. Nature Communications 12: 2648 (2021)

13. Chaojuan Yang, Yonglu Tian, Feng Su, Yangzhen Wang, Mengna Liu, Hongyi Wang, Yaxuan Cui, Peijiang Yuan, Xiangning Li, Anan Li, Hui Gong, Qingming Luo, Desheng Zhu, Peng Cao, Yunbo Liu, Xunli Wang, Min-hua Luo, Fuqiang Xu, Wei Xiong, Liecheng Wang, Xiang-yao Li, Chen Zhang. Restoration of FMRP expression in adult V1 neurons rescues visual deficits in a mouse model of fragile X syndrome. Protein & Cell (2021)

14. Shiwei Qiu, Weihao Zhao, Xue Gao, Dapeng Li, Weiqian Wang, Bo Gao, Weiju Han, Shiming Yang, Pu Dai, Peng Cao, Yongyi Yuan. Syndromic deafness gene ATP6V1B2 controls degeneration of spiral ganglion neurons through modulating proton flux. Frontiers in Cell and Developmental Biology 9: 742714 (2021).

15. Jing Chen, Mingxiu Cheng, Liang Wang, Lei Zhang, Dan Xu, Peng Cao, Fengchao Wang, Herbert Herzog, Sen Song, Cheng Zhan. A Vagal-NTS neural pathway that stimulates feeding. Current Biology 30: 3986-3998.e5. (2020)

16. Zheng-dong Zhao, Zongming Chen, Xinkuan Xiang, Mengna Hu, Hengchang Xie, Xiaoning Jia, Fang Cai, Yuting Cui, Zijun Chen, Lechen Qian, Jiashu Liu, Congping Shang, Yiqing Yang, Xinyan Ni, Wenzhi Sun, Ji Hu, Peng Cao, Haohong Li, Wei Shen. Zona incerta GABAergic neurons integrate prey-related sensory signals and induce an appetitive drive to promote hunting. Nature Neuroscience 22: 921-932 (2019)

17. Congping Shang, Zijun Chen, Aixue Liu, Yang Li, Jiajing Zhang, Baole Qu, Fei Yan, Yaning Zhang, Weixiu Liu, Zhihui Liu, Xiaofei Guo, Dapeng Li, Yi Wang, Peng Cao. Divergent midbrain circuits orchestrate escape and freezing responses to looming stimuli in mice. Nature Communications 9: 1232 (2018)

18. Yonglu Tian, Chaojuan Yang, Yaxuan Cui, Feng Su, Yongjie Wang, Yangzhen Wang, Peijiang Yuan, Shujiang Shang, Hao Li, Jizong Zhao, Desheng Zhu, Shiming Tang, Peng Cao, Yunbo Liu, Xunli Wang, Liecheng Wang, Wenbo Zeng, Haifei Jiang, Fei Zhao, Minhua Luo, Wei Xiong, Zilong Qiu, Xiang-Yao Li, Chen Zhang, An excitatory neural assembly encodes short-term memory in the prefrontal cortex. Cell Reports 22: 1734-1744 (2018)

19. Peng Cao, Xiaofei Yang, and Thomas Südhof, Complexin Activates Exocytosis of Distinct Secretory Vesicles Controlled by Different Synaptotagmins. The Journal of Neuroscience 33: 1714-1727 (2013)

20. Xiaofei Yang, Peng Cao and Thomas Südhof. Deconstructing Complexin function in activating and clamping Ca2+-triggered exocytosis by comparing knockout and knockdown phenotypes. PNAS 110: 20777-20782 (2013)

21. Peng Cao, Anton Maximov, and Thomas Südhof, Activity-dependent IGF1 exocytosis is controlled by the Ca2+-sensor synaptotagmin 10. Cell 145: 300–311 (2011).

● Cell, “An exciting calcium sensor for smell”.

● Nature Reviews Neuroscience, “Molecular neuroscience: Synaptotagmin 10-mediated release”.

22. Zhiping Pang, Wei Xu, Peng Cao and Thomas Südhof. Calmodulin suppresses synaptotagmin-2 transcription in cortical neurons. Journal of Biological Chemistry 285: 33930-33939 (2010)

23. Zhiping Pang, Peng Cao, Wei Xu and Thomas Südhof. Calmodulin controls synaptic strength via presynaptic activation of calmodulin kinase II. The Journal of Neuroscience 30: 4132-4142 (2010)

24. Yan Yang, Peng Cao, Yang Yang, and Shu-Rong Wang, Corollary discharge circuits for saccadic modulation of the pigeon visual system. Nature Neuroscience 11: 595-602 (2008)

25. Daoying Hu, Peng Cao, Edda Thiels, Charleen Chu, Gang-Yi Wu, Tim Oury, Eric Klann. Hippocampal long-term potentiation, memory, and longevity in mice that overexpress mitochondrial superoxide dismutase. Neurobiology of Learning and Memory 87: 372-384 (2007)

26. Peng Cao, Yan Yang, Yang Yang and Shu-Rong Wang. Differential modulation of thalamic neurons by optokinetic nuclei in the pigeon. Brain Research 1069: 159-165 (2006)

27. Peng Cao, Yong Gu, and Shu-Rong Wang, Visual neurons in the pigeon brain encode the acceleration of stimulus motion. The Journal of Neuroscience 24: 7690–7698 (2004)

28. Quan Xiao, Peng Cao, Yong Gu and Shu-Rong Wang Visual responses of neurons in the pretectal nucleus lentiformis mesencephali to moving patterns within and beyond receptive fields in pigeons. Brain Behavior and Evolution 57: 80-86 (2001)

Reviews and Previews

29. Zhihui Liu, Peng Cao. Love or not? A new subpopulation of neurons controls the switch of female sexual behavior. Neuron 110: 2893-2895 (2022)

30. Wei Xiao, Zhuo-Lei Jiao, Esra Senol, Jiwei Yao, Miao Zhao, Zheng-Dong Zhao, Xiaowei Chen, Peng Cao, Yu Fu, Zhihua Gao, Wei L Shen, Xiao-Hong Xu. Neural circuit control of innate behaviors. Science China Life Sciences 65: 466–499 (2022)

31. Xue Liu, Hongren Huang, Terrance P Snutch, Peng Cao, Liping Wang, Feng Wang. The superior colliculus: cell types, connectivity, and behavior. Neuroscience Bulletin 38: 1519–1540 (2022)