University of California-Berkeley · EngineeringLiu Lab
Chunlei Liu · Berkeley, California
Research Focus
Dr. Chunlei Liu's lab at UC Berkeley focuses on understanding and manipulating the roles of astrocytes, the brain's most abundant cells, in health and disease. They aim to develop advanced technologies for precise control of calcium signaling in astrocytes, which is crucial for neuronal interactions and brain function. The lab also innovates in MRI technology to enhance imaging capabilities for neurological conditions, including Alzheimer's disease, by creating programmable MRI coils that improve brain imaging and diagnosis.
astrocytescalcium signalingAlzheimer's diseaseMRI technologymagnetogeneticsneurodegenerative diseasesbrain functionsignal transductionmolecular tools
Research Aims
5AIM 01Develop a non-invasive technique to modulate calcium dynamics in astrocytes.
AIM 02Create programmable MRI coils to enhance ultra-high-field MRI capabilities.
AIM 03Investigate the role of astrocytes in neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer's.
AIM 04Explore the interaction between vulnerable neurons and astrocytes in Alzheimer's disease.
AIM 05Translate advanced RF technology for better clinical applications in brain imaging.
Skills the Lab Values
cell cultureimmunohistochemistrylive-cell imaginggenetic engineeringoptogeneticsmagnetogeneticsMRI technologyprogramming for data analysiscalcium signaling assays
Output against the department
Publications591top 7% of dept.20th of 278
this lab
most publishedleast published
Citations42ktop 6% of dept.17th of 278
this lab
most citedleast cited
Career totals from OpenAlex, compared against labs that share a department. A department spans everything from one paper to tens of thousands, so bar heights are on a log scale — otherwise the largest lab would flatten every other bar to a line.