Biosketch   Research   Publications  Staff

Weichun Lin, Ph.D
Assistant Professor
Center for Basic Neuroscience

Effie MarieCain Scholar in Medical Research

Office and Lab Location: NB4.219
Phone: 214-648-5935
Fax: 214-648-1801
Email: Weichun.Lin@UTSouthwestern.edu

UT Southwestern Faculty Directory link

Dr. Lin obtained his Ph.D. in Neurobiology from the State University of New York at Albany in 1996. He then moved to the Salk Institute at La Jolla, CA, as a postdoctoral fellow and research associate. He joined the faculty at the Department of Neuroscience in 2003.

Research in Dr. Lin's lab is focused on understanding the cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying formation, maintenance and plasticity of synapses. Using mouse neuromuscular junction as a model, his laboratory  studies initial cellular/molecular events triggering synapse formation, and mechanisms regulating synaptic patterning and motor neuron survival during development, with approaches combining molecular biology, biochemistry, electrophysiology and mouse genetics.

Primary Research Articles

Fujun Chen, Yoshie Sugiura, Kalisa Galina Myers, Yun Liu, and Weichun Lin  Ubiquitin carboxyl-terminal hydrolase L1 is required for maintaining the structure and function of the neuromuscular junction. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, U.S.A. (in press).

Yun Liu, Yoshie Sugiura, Daniel Padgett and Weichun Lin (2009) Post-synaptic development of the neuromuscular junction in mice lacking the gamma-subunit of muscle nicotinic acetylcholine receptor. J. Molecular Neuroscience. (published online Aug. 12, 2009, PMID:19672725).

Yun Liu, Oppenheim, R. W., Sugiura, Y., and Weichun Lin (2009) Abnormal development of the neuromuscular junction in Nedd4-deficient mice. Developmental Biology, 330:153-166.

Yun Liu, Daniel Padgett, Masazumi Takahashi, Hongqiao Li, Ayaz Sayeed, Russell W. Teichert, Baldomero M. Olivera, Joseph McArdle, William N. Green, and Weichun Lin (2008) Essential roles of acetylcholine receptor gamma-subunit in neuromuscular synaptic patterning. Development, 135:1957-1967.

Zhiping Pang, Ernestina Melicoff, Daniel Padgett, Yun Liu, Andrew F. Teich, Burton F. Dickey, Weichun Lin, Roberto Adachi, and Thomas Sudhof (2006) Synaptotagmin-2 is essential for survival and contributes to Ca2 triggering of neurotransmitter release in central and neuromuscular synapses. Journal of Neuroscience, 26:13493-13504.

Susanne Schoch, Tobias Mittelstaedt, Pascal S. Kaeser, Daniel Padgett, Nicole Feldmann, Vivien Cgeveleyre, Pablo E. Cassillo, Robert Hammer, Weiping Han, Frank Schmitz, Weichun Lin, and Thomas Sudhof (2006) Redundant functions of RIM1-alpha and RIM2-alpha in Calcium triggered neurotransmitter release. EMBO Journal, 25:5852-5863.

Weiping Han, Jeong-Seop Rhee, Anton Maximov, Weichun Lin, Robert Hammer, Christian Rosenmund and Thomas Sudhof (2005) C-terminal ECFP fusion impairs synaptotagmin-1 function: crowdingout synaptotagmin1. J Biol Chem, 280:5089-5100.

Weichun Lin, Bertha Dominguez, Jiefei Yang, Prafulla Aryal, Eugene P. Brandon, Fred H. Gage and Kuo-Fen Lee (2005) Neurotransmitter acetylcholine negatively regulates. Neuromuscular synapse formation through a Cdk5-dependent mechanism. Neuron, 46:569-579

Eugene P. Brandon*, Weichun Lin*, Kevin A. D'Amour, Donald P. Pizzo, Bertha Dominguez, Yoshie Sugiura, Sile Thode, Chien-Ping Ko, Leon J. Thal, Fred H. Gage and Kuo-Fen Lee (2003) Aberrant patterning of neuromuscular synapses in choline acetyltransferase deficient mice. Journal of Neuroscience 23:539-549.  *Co-first author

Weichun Lin, Robert Burgess, Bertha Dominguez, Samuel Pfaff, Joshua Sanes and Kuo-Fen Lee (2001) Distinct roles of nerve and muscle in postsynaptic differentiation of the neuromuscular synapse. Nature, 410:1057-1064.

Weichun Lin, Hugo Sanchez, Tom Deerinck, Jacqueline K. Morris, Mark Ellisam and Kuo-Fen Lee (2000) Abnormal development of motor axons and neuromuscular synapses in erbB2-deficient mice. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 97:1299-1304

Jacqueline K. Morris*, Weichun Lin*, Chris Hauser, Yelena Marchuk, Damon Getman, and Kuo-Fen Lee (1999) Rescue of cardiac defect in erbB2 null mutant mice reveals essential roles of erbB2 in peripheral nervous system development. Neuron, 23:273-283.  *Co-first author.

Weichun Lin and Ben G. Szaro (1996) Effects of intermediate filament disruption on the early development of the peripheral nervous system of Xenopus laevis. Developmental Biology, 179: 197-211.

Weichun Lin and Ben G. Szaro (1995) Neurofilaments help maintain normal morphologies and support elongation of neurites in Xenopus laevis cultured embryonic spinal cord neurons. Journal of Neuroscience, 15:8331-8344.

Weichun Lin and Ben G. Szaro (1994) Maturation of neurites in mixed cultures of spinal cord neurons and muscle cells from Xenopus laevis embryos followed with antibodies to neurofilament proteins. Journal of Neurobiology, 25:1235-1248.

John T. Schmidt, Rupert Schmidt, Weichun Lin, Xiaoying Jian and Claudia Stuermer (1991) Ependymin as a substrate for outgrowth of axons from cultured explant of goldfish retina. Journal of Neurobiology, 22:40-54.