Biography
I am a behavioral and systems neuroscientist. My lab investigates reaction-time and self-timed behaviors. We combine neural recording, circuit manipulation, behavioral analysis, and computation to study how cortical and basal ganglia circuits initiate and time movement.
I trained with Professors Bill Baldridge (2004–2006, Dalhousie), Gordon Shepherd (2006, Northwestern), David Ferster (2007–2011, Northwestern), and Karel Svoboda (2012–2018, Janelia). My doctoral research examined synaptic connectivity in the cat visual cortex, and my postdoctoral work focused on whisker-based sensory processing in behaving mice. In my independent group, I study behavior in freely moving rats, whose larger size and rapid learning make them well suited for stable, long-term Neuropixels recordings so we can track changes in neural representations throughout learning at spike resolution.
Education
2006 - 2011, Ph.D., Neuroscience, Northwestern University
2004 - 2006, MSc, Anatomy and Neurobiology, Dalhousie University
1999 - 2003, BS, Fundamental Science, Tsinghua University
Professional Experience
2012 - 2019, Postdoc, Janelia Research Campus
Books and Book Chapter
Svoboda K and Yu J. (2018) Barrel Cortex. Handbook of Brain Microcircuits, pp. 59-66. Oxford University Press
Teaching
Behavioral Neuroscience: I cover topics related to using learned behaviors in animals to understand the neural substrates and mechanisms of cognition.
Data Science Fundamentals： This is practically a mathematical statistics course.
Frontiers in Neurobiology (seminar)
Undergraduate Thesis in Physiology and Neurobiology
We are working on the following topics:
1. Neural mechanisms of waiting
2. Neural representations in the prefrontal cortex and the basal ganglia during reaction time behaviors
3. Neural basis of time
Cao, J., Zhao, Y., & Yu, J. (2026). Continuous contributions of the dorsolateral striatum to movement initiation and execution. Science Advances, 12(32), eadt2097. https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.adt2097
Huang, Y., Wang, H., Cao, J., Chen, Y., Wang, X., Zhao, Y., Ren, H., Zheng, Q., & Yu, J. (2026). Density-based longitudinal neuron tracking in high-density electrophysiological recordings. Patterns, 101590. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.patter.2026.101590
Zheng, Q., Liu, Y., Huang, Y., Cao, J., Wang, X., & Yu, J. (2025). The role of striatum in controlling waiting during reactive and self-timed behaviors. The Journal of Neuroscience, e1820242025. https://doi.org/10.1523/JNEUROSCI.1820-24.2025
Yu, J., Hu, H., Agmon, A., & Svoboda, K. (2019). Recruitment of GABAergic Interneurons in the Barrel Cortex during Active Tactile Behavior. Neuron, 104(2), 412-427.e4. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuron.2019.07.027
Yu, J., Gutnisky, D. A., Hires, S. A., & Svoboda, K. (2016). Layer 4 fast-spiking interneurons filter thalamocortical signals during active somatosensation. Nature Neuroscience, 19(12), 1647–1657. https://doi.org/10.1038/nn.4412
Yu, J., & Ferster, D. (2013). Functional Coupling from Simple to Complex Cells in the Visually Driven Cortical Circuit. The Journal of Neuroscience, 33(48), 18855–18866. https://doi.org/10.1523/JNEUROSCI.2665-13.2013
Yu, J., & Ferster, D. (2010). Membrane Potential Synchrony in Primary Visual Cortex during Sensory Stimulation. Neuron, 68(6), 1187–1201. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuron.2010.11.027
Yu, J., Daniels, B. A., & Baldridge, W. H. (2009). Slow excitation of cultured rat retinal ganglion cells by activating group I metabotropic glutamate receptors. Journal of Neurophysiology, 102(6), 3728–3739. https://doi.org/10.1152/jn.00650.2009
Yu, J., Anderson, C. T., Kiritani, T., Sheets, P. L., Wokosin, D. L., Wood, L., & Shepherd, G. M. G. (2008). Local-Circuit Phenotypes of Layer 5 Neurons in Motor-Frontal Cortex of YFP-H Mice. Frontiers in Neural Circuits, 2, 6. https://doi.org/10.3389/neuro.04.006.2008
Our lab is interested in understanding how cognitive signals influence motor outputs.
