Renjie Chai

This paper reveals how mechanical force activates mGlu2 through a unique cis mechanism and induces distinct Gq coupling, providing structural insights and a chemical toolset for modulating mechanosensitive GPCRs.

This study identifies mGlu2 as a mechanosensitive GPCR in vestibular hair cells essential for balance, distinct from its role in hearing.

This study identifies LPHN2 as a force-sensing GPCR critical for auditory function, showing its role in mechanoelectrical transduction and hearing loss when deficient.

This study investigates the role of RIMBP2 in murine cochlear hair cells, finding it essential for OHC survival and critical for IHC exocytosis.

This study identifies LPHN2/ADGRL2 as a force-sensitive adhesion GPCR essential for normal equilibrioception by regulating mechanoelectrical transduction in utricular hair cells.

This study reveals the constitutive activity and dimerization mechanism of GPR156, explaining its role in auditory function through cryo-EM structures and functional analysis.

This study identifies GPR133 as a force-sensing GPCR essential for balance, showing it modulates vestibular hair cell excitability via Gi signaling and CNGA3 coupling.

This study identifies a THOC1 variant causing late-onset nonsyndromic hearing loss via p53-mediated hair cell apoptosis in zebrafish.

The paper introduces TeraVR, a virtual reality system for precise 3-D neuronal morphology reconstruction in whole mouse brains, enabling collaborative and efficient annotation of complex neuronal structures.

This study identifies Insm1a as a critical regulator of motor neuron development in zebrafish, showing it modulates olig2 and nkx6.1 expression to affect neuronal differentiation and function.