Jing Wang

Wang Jing is a neurobiologist who left the University of California, San Diego after 20 years to become director of the Institute of Molecular Physiology at Shenzhen Bay Laboratory in July 2025.

Wang's research focuses on the neural circuits and molecular mechanisms underlying sensory perception and behavior. His move continues a wave of senior neuroscientists relocating to Shenzhen Bay Laboratory, joining an institution that has become a major hub for China's investment in molecular physiology and neuroscience research.

Products of advanced technologies, such as airplanes and microchips, and neural systems exhibit similar systems-level logic of operation, despite their vastly different physical implementations. Engineering approach to understand systems neurobiology has been the main thrust of Dr. Jing Wang's research group. He uses Drosophila as a model system, leveraging its powerful genetic toolkits and its anatomical simplicity. He has been focusing on innate behaviors, which are inborn and automatic, such as feeding and mating because these robust behaviors have been sculpted by evolution and are strongly regulated by neuromodulators. His current research focuses on gut-brain communication and its role in regulating feeding and non-feeding behaviors, aiming to understand the underlying logic of neural circuitry.