Morgan Sheng

Vice President:, Neuroscience

POSTDOC MENTOR

"As a neuroscientist with a medical background, I am inspired to understand how the brain works from the level of molecule to cognitive behavior, and to tackle serious brain diseases based on understanding of biological mechanisms."

• 5
  years at Genentech
• 9
  publications (2010-12)

I started at Genentech in September 2008. Prior to that, I spent 14 years as a faculty member in the Boston area - first at Massachusetts General Hospital/Harvard Medical School and then at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), where I was Professor of Neuroscience. Before I got into research I was a practicing physician in London, U.K. So I have seen human disease from two sides - as a scientist investigating basic mechanisms and as a medical doctor treating patients.

I came to Genentech because I believe this company is best equipped to translate our increasing knowledge of the basic causes of disease into effective new treatments for serious brain disorders. I am energized by the people at Genentech, who have the right combination of know-how, creativity and motivation to make a difference for patients.

• My Focus

  At Genentech we are committed to building a world-class Neuroscience Research program that will discover new drugs to treat major diseases of the nervous system. Not only are neurological and psychiatric conditions common and debilitating, but for many of them, there is no satisfactory treatment, a case in point being Alzheimer's disease. To meet these unmet needs, a current focus area of research is neurodegenerative disorders.

  Much of my research is focused on brain "synapses," the tiny structures by which cells in the brain (neurons) contact and communicate with each other. Groups of neurons link together via synapses to form a functional "circuit." An emerging realization is that many diseases of the brain result from defective development or aberrant function of synapses, leading to circuit malfunction. For instance, Alzheimer's disease is characterized by severe loss of synapses in the brain as well as death of neurons. I believe that if we can understand the molecules that control the number, structure and function of synapses, we should be able to discover novel ways to treat many important neuropsychiatric illnesses.

• Publications

  • NMDA receptors in nervous system diseases

    Neuropharmacology, 2013, ISSN: 0028-3908

    Zhou, Qiang; Sheng, Morgan

     View on PubMed

  • Specific Trans-synaptic interaction with inhibitory interneuronal neurexin underlies differential ability of neuroligins to induce functional inhibitory synapses

    Journal of Neuroscience, 2013, ISSN: 0270-6474

    Futai, Kensuke; Doty, Christopher D.; Baek, Brian; Ryu, Jubin; Sheng, Morgan

     View on PubMed

  • Neuroscience: Strength in numbers

    Nature, 2013, ISSN: 0028-0836

    Sheng, Morgan; Malinow, Roberto; Huganir, Richard

     View on PubMed

  • GluN2B Antagonism Affects Interneurons and Leads to Immediate and Persistent Changes in Synaptic Plasticity, Oscillations and Behavior

    Neuropsychopharmacology, 2013, ISSN: 0006-3223

    Hanson, Jesse; Weber, Martin; Meilandt, William; Wu, Tiffany; Luu, Tom; Deng, Lunbin; Shamloo, Mehrdad; Sheng, Morgan; Scearce-Levie, Kimberly; Zhou, Qiang

     View on PubMed

  • Caspase-3 in the central nervous system: Beyond apoptosis

    Trends in Neurosciences, 2012, ISSN: 0166-2236

    D'Amelio, Marcello; Sheng, Morgan; Cecconi, Francesco

     View on PubMed

  • Three-dimensional imaging of solvent-cleared organs using 3DISCO

    Nature Protocols, 2012, ISSN: 1750-2799

    Ertürk, Ali; Becker, Klaus; Jährling, Nina; Mauch, Christoph P; Hojer, Caroline D; Egen, Jackson G; Hellal, Farida; Bradke, Frank; Sheng, Morgan; Dodt, Hans-Ulrich

     View on PubMed

  • Childhood disorders of the synapse: Challenges and opportunities

    Science Translational Medicine, 2012, ISSN: 1946-6234

    Hughes, Virginia; Sheng, Morgan; Zoghbi, Huda

     View on PubMed

  • Caspase-3 Activation via Mitochondria is Required for Long-Term Depression and AMPA Receptor Internalization.

    Cell, 2010, ISSN: 0092-8674

    Li, Z.; Jo, J.; Jia, J.M.; Lo, S.C.; Whitcomb, D.J.; Jiao, S.; Cho, K.; Sheng, M.

  • Autophosphorylated CaMKIIα Acts as a Scaffold to Recruit Proteasomes to Dendritic Spines.

    Cell, 2010, ISSN: 0092-8674

    Bingol, B.; Wang, C.F.; Arnott, D.; Cheng, D.M.; Peng, J.M.; Sheng, M.

• Education
  • Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Menicon Professor – 2008
  • University of California, San Francisco, Neuroscience, Postdoctoral Fellow – 1994
  • Harvard University, Molecular Genetics, Ph.D. – 1990
  • General Medicine London, U.K., Internship and Residency – 1986
  • London University, U.K., Guys Hospital Medical School, Medicine, M.B.B.S. – 1982
  • University of Oxford, U.K., Corpus Christi College, Physiology, – 1979