Biography
Dr. Niu Haichen joined Xuzhou Medical University in 2013 and currently serves as an Associate Professor of Genetics. He is a standing committee member of the Jiangsu Society for Neuroscience. He teaches undergraduate courses including Medical Genetics, Genetics, Medical Electrophysiology, and Heredity and Evolution. He acts as a peer reviewer for the National Natural Science Foundation of China, as well as editorial reviewer for journals such as Frontiers in Neuroscience and Neuroscience Bulletin. His long-term research focuses on degenerative diseases of the motor system. At cellular, molecular and in vivo levels, he explores the pathogenic mechanisms of inflammation and α-Synuclein protein in motor system neurodegenerative disorders. He screens and validates novel therapeutic targets for Parkinson’s disease, providing theoretical basis for the development of new drugs against neurodegenerative diseases and major brain disorders.
Educational Background
1. Sep. 2004 – Nov. 2011: University of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Joint training at Kunming Institute of Zoology & Wuhan Institute of Physics and Mathematics, CAS), Master & Doctor of Philosophy
2. Dec. 2011 – Jul. 2013: Postdoctoral Fellow, Peking University
3. Aug. 2013 – Present: Xuzhou Medical University
Publications:
1. Nemeth DP, Liu X, Monet MC, Niu H, Maxey G, Schrier MS, Smirnova MI, McGovern SJ, Herd A, DiSabato DJ, Floyd T, Atluri RR, Nusstein AC, Oliver B, Witcher KG, Juste Ellis JS, Yip J, Crider AD, McKim DB. Localization of brain neuronal IL-1R1 reveals specific neural circuitries responsive to immune signaling.J Neuroinflammation. 2024 Nov 19;21(1):303. doi: 10.1186/s12974-024-03287-1.PMID: 39563437
2. Muhammad B, Li H, Gu Y, Xue S, Gao Y, Xu Z, Fang X, Ding H, Wu F, Geng D, Niu H.JIL-1β/IL-1R1 signaling is involved in the propagation of α-synuclein pathology of the gastrointestinal tract to the brain. Neurochem. 2023 Sep;166(5):830-846. doi: 10.1111/jnc.15886. Epub 2023 Jul 11.PMID: 37434423
3. Liu G, Miao L, Niu H, Wang H, Yan L, Chen Y, Zhang C, Li X, Mi Y, Xu L, Wang D, Zhou J, Xu X, Li G, Long H, Liu Y. Human Umbilical Cord Mesenchymal Stem Cells Ameliorated Chronic Unpredictable Mild Stress-Induced Depression and Anxiety by Alleviating Neuroinflammation. J Neuroimmune Pharmacol. 2025 Apr 24;20(1):45. doi: 10.1007/s11481-025-10198-2.PMID: 40272640
4. Wang Y, Wang Q, Yu R, Zhang Q, Zhang Z, Li H, Ren C, Yang R, Niu H. Aging (Albany NY). Minocycline inhibition of microglial rescues nigrostriatal dopaminergic neurodegeneration caused by mutant alpha-synuclein overexpression.2020 Jul 4;12(14):14232-14243. doi: 10.18632/aging.103440. Epub 2020 Jul 24. PMID: 32706757
5. Niu H, Wang Q, Zhao W, Liu J, Wang D, Muhammad B, Liu X, Quan N, Zhang H, Zhang F, Wang Y, Li H, Yang R.IL-1β/IL-1R1 signaling induced by intranasal lipopolysaccharide infusion regulates alpha-Synuclein pathology in the olfactory bulb, substantia nigra and striatum. Brain Pathol. 2020 Nov;30(6):1102-1118. doi: 10.1111/bpa.12886. Epub 2020 Aug.PMID: 32678959
Research Projects (Last 5 Years)
1 National Natural Science Foundation of China, General Program, 81471330, Pathological α-synuclein transmission within the rat olfactory bulb initiates Parkinson's disease (PD)-like neurodegeneration at the whole-brain level, completed, principal investigator.
