Su Guo, PhD
Professor
Bioengineering
School of Pharmacy

elegans, and made significant contributions to the discovery of RNA interference (RNAi) as well as understanding of asymmetric cell divisions. After graduation, she became fascinated with how the brain works. As a research and postdoctoral fellow at Harvard Medical School and Genentech Inc. respectively, she carried out neurobiological studies of the development of brain neurotransmitter systems, using the vertebrate genetic model organism zebrafish. After establishing her independent research lab at the University of California, San Francisco, Dr. Guo has continued to study the molecular genetics of neural development and has expanded her research into the understanding of behavior. With her research, Dr. Guo strives to make significant contributions to our basic understanding of the brain and the mind, as well as to help treat neuropsychiatric disorders.

• High activity and high functional connectivity are mutually exclusive in resting state zebrafish and human brains.
  BMC biology 2022 Zarei M, Xie D, Jiang F, Bagirov A, Huang B, Raj A, Nagarajan S, Guo S
• In Vivo Dopamine Neuron Imaging-Based Small Molecule Screen Identifies Novel Neuroprotective Compounds and Targets.
  Frontiers in pharmacology 2022 Kim GJ, Mo H, Liu H, Okorie M, Chen S, Zheng J, Li H, Arkin M, Huang B, Guo S
• The effect of renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system inhibitors on organ-specific ace2 expression in zebrafish and its implications for COVID-19.
  Scientific reports 2021 Kim GJ, Melgoza A, Jiang F, Guo S
• A zebrafish screen reveals Renin-angiotensin system inhibitors as neuroprotective via mitochondrial restoration in dopamine neurons.
  eLife 2021 Kim GJ, Mo H, Liu H, Wu Z, Chen S, Zheng J, Zhao X, Nucum D, Shortland J, Peng L, Elepano M, Tang B, Olson S, Paras N, Li H, Renslo AR, Arkin MR, Huang B, Lu B, Sirota M, Guo S
• THC-induced behavioral stereotypy in zebrafish as a model of psychosis-like behavior.
  Scientific reports 2021 Dahlén A, Zarei M, Melgoza A, Wagle M, Guo S
• Larval zebrafish display dynamic learning of aversive stimuli in a constant visual surrounding.
  Learning & memory (Cold Spring Harbor, N.Y.) 2021 Xu J, Casanave R, Guo S
• Polarized endosome dynamics engage cytoplasmic Par-3 that recruits dynein during asymmetric cell division.
  Science advances 2021 Zhao X, Garcia JQ, Tong K, Chen X, Yang B, Li Q, Dai Z, Shi X, Seiple IB, Huang B, Guo S
• Regulation of Neurogenesis in Mouse Brain by HMGB1.
  Cells 2020 Zhao X, Rouhiainen A, Li Z, Guo S, Rauvala H
• Complexity of Detecting CRISPR/Cas9-Mediated Homologous Recombination in Zebrafish.
  Molecular Biology 2020 Y. Pi, K. Z. He, W. Q. Zhang, Z. Q. Dong, F. G. Jiang, K. J. Jiang, S. Guo
• Chapter 14 Molecular genetic approaches to dissect complex behaviors in zebrafish.
  2020 Jiale Xu, Su Guo
• Heritable natural variation of light/dark preference in an outbred zebrafish population.
  Journal of neurogenetics 2019 Dahlén A, Wagle M, Zarei M, Guo S
• Covalent Modification and Regulation of the Nuclear Receptor Nurr1 by a Dopamine Metabolite.
  Cell chemical biology 2019 Bruning JM, Wang Y, Oltrabella F, Tian B, Kholodar SA, Liu H, Bhattacharya P, Guo S, Holton JM, Fletterick RJ, Jacobson MP, England PM
• A novel PRRT2 pathogenic variant in a family with paroxysmal kinesigenic dyskinesia and benign familial infantile seizures.
  Cold Spring Harbor molecular case studies 2018 Lu JG, Bishop J, Cheyette S, Zhulin IB, Guo S, Sobreira N, Brenner SE
• Chapter 16 Systematic Screens in Zebrafish Shed Light on Cellular and Molecular Mechanisms of Complex Brain Phenotypes .
  Molecular-Genetic and Statistical Techniques for Behavioral and Neural Research 2018 Adam Melgoza, Su Guo
• Heritable natural variation of an anxiety-like behavior in larval zebrafish.
  Journal of neurogenetics 2017 Wagle M, Nguyen J, Lee S, Zaitlen N, Guo S
• Role of the endocannabinoid system in vertebrates: Emphasis on the zebrafish model.
  Development, growth & differentiation 2017 Oltrabella F, Melgoza A, Nguyen B, Guo S
• A High-Content Larval Zebrafish Brain Imaging Method for Small Molecule Drug Discovery.
  PloS one 2016 Liu H, Chen S, Huang K, Kim J, Mo H, Iovine R, Gendre J, Pascal P, Li Q, Sun Y, Dong Z, Arkin M, Guo S, Huang B
• Rational design of a monomeric and photostable far-red fluorescent protein for fluorescence imaging in vivo
  Protein Sci. 2016 Yu D, Dong Z, Gustafson WC, Ruiz-González R, Signor L, Marzocca F, Borel F, Klassen MP, Makhijani K, Royant A, Jan YN, Weiss WA, Guo S, Shu X.
• Open-top selective plane illumination microscope for conventionally mounted specimens.
  Optics express 2015 McGorty R, Liu H, Kamiyama D, Dong Z, Guo S, Huang B
• PINK1 and Parkin control localized translation of respiratory chain component mRNAs on mitochondria outer membrane.
  Cell metabolism 2015 Gehrke S, Wu Z, Klinkenberg M, Sun Y, Auburger G, Guo S, Lu B
• Heterogeneously expressed fezf2 patterns gradient Notch activity in balancing the quiescence, proliferation, and differentiation of adult neural stem cells.
  The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience 2014 Berberoglu MA, Dong Z, Li G, Zheng J, Trejo Martinez Ldel C, Peng J, Wagle M, Reichholf B, Petritsch C, Li H, Pleasure SJ, Guo S
• Synergistic contribution of SMAD signaling blockade and high localized cell density in the differentiation of neuroectoderm from H9 cells.
  Biochemical and biophysical research communications 2014 Liu C, Sun Y, Arnold J, Lu B, Guo S
• Imaging-based chemical screening reveals activity-dependent neural differentiation of pluripotent stem cells.
  eLife 2013 Sun Y, Dong Z, Jin T, Ang KH, Huang M, Haston KM, Peng J, Zhong TP, Finkbeiner S, Weiss WA, Arkin MR, Jan LY, Guo S
• Stable gene silencing in zebrafish with spatiotemporally targetable RNA interference.
  Genetics 2013 Dong Z, Peng J, Guo S
• Understanding neurotransmitter-neuropeptide regulation through neural circuits controlling innate behaviour.
  International Journal of Developmental Neuroscience 2012 Mahendra Wagle, Su Guo
• Fezf2 regulates multilineage neuronal differentiation through activating basic helix-loop-helix and homeodomain genes in the zebrafish ventral forebrain.
  The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience 2012 Yang N, Dong Z, Guo S
• Transcriptional enhancers in protein-coding exons of vertebrate developmental genes.
  PloS one 2012 Ritter DI, Dong Z, Guo S, Chuang JH
• Zebrafish chemical screening reveals the impairment of dopaminergic neuronal survival by cardiac glycosides.
  PloS one 2012 Sun Y, Dong Z, Khodabakhsh H, Chatterjee S, Guo S
• Intralineage directional Notch signaling regulates self-renewal and differentiation of asymmetrically dividing radial glia.
  Neuron 2012 Dong Z, Yang N, Yeo SY, Chitnis A, Guo S
• Toward molecular genetic dissection of neural circuits for emotional and motivational behaviors.
  Developmental neurobiology 2012 Guo S, Wagle M, Mathur P
• The PINK1/Parkin pathway regulates mitochondrial dynamics and function in mammalian hippocampal and dopaminergic neurons.
  Human molecular genetics 2011 Yu W, Sun Y, Guo S, Lu B
• Genomic selection identifies vertebrate transcription factor Fezf2 binding sites and target genes.
  The Journal of biological chemistry 2011 Chen L, Zheng J, Yang N, Li H, Guo S
• Time-lapse live imaging of clonally related neural progenitor cells in the developing zebrafish forebrain.
  Journal of visualized experiments : JoVE 2011 Dong Z, Wagle M, Guo S
• Conditioned place preference behavior in zebrafish.
  Nature protocols 2011 Mathur P, Lau B, Guo S
• Identification of a brain center whose activity discriminates a choice behavior in zebrafish.
  Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 2011 Lau BY, Mathur P, Gould GG, Guo S
• Differences of acute versus chronic ethanol exposure on anxiety-like behavioral responses in zebrafish.
  Behavioural brain research 2011 Mathur P, Guo S
• The dorsal pallium in zebrafish, Danio rerio (Cyprinidae, Teleostei).
  Brain research 2011 Mueller T, Dong Z, Berberoglu MA, Guo S
• Corticotropin-releasing factor critical for zebrafish camouflage behavior is regulated by light and sensitive to ethanol.
  The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience 2011 Wagle M, Mathur P, Guo S
• Preference for ethanol in zebrafish following a single exposure.
  Behavioural brain research 2010 Mathur P, Berberoglu MA, Guo S
• The importance of being cis: evolution of orthologous fish and mammalian enhancer activity.
  Molecular biology and evolution 2010 Ritter DI, Li Q, Kostka D, Pollard KS, Guo S, Chuang JH
• Use of zebrafish as a model to understand mechanisms of addiction and complex neurobehavioral phenotypes.
  Neurobiology of disease 2010 Mathur P, Guo S
• Camouflage response in zebrafish: A model for genetic dissection of molecular and cellular circuitries underlying alcoholism.
  Communicative & Integrative Biology 2009 Su Guo, Jisong Peng, Mahendra Wagle, Thomas Müller, Priya Mathur
• A systematic approach to identify functional motifs within vertebrate developmental enhancers.
  Developmental biology 2009 Li Q, Ritter D, Yang N, Dong Z, Li H, Chuang JH, Guo S
• The distribution of GAD67-mRNA in the adult zebrafish (teleost) forebrain reveals a prosomeric pattern and suggests previously unidentified homologies to tetrapods.
  The Journal of comparative neurology 2009 Mueller T, Guo S
• Institutional Profile: The University of California Pharmacogenomics Center: at the interface of genomics, biological mechanisms and drug therapy.
  Pharmacogenomics 2009 Kroetz DL, Ahituv N, Burchard EG, Guo S, Sali A, Giacomini KM
• Repression of RNA polymerase II elongation in vivo is critically dependent on the C-terminus of Spt5.
  PloS one 2009 Chen H, Contreras X, Yamaguchi Y, Handa H, Peterlin BM, Guo S
• Ethanol-modulated camouflage response screen in zebrafish uncovers a novel role for cAMP and extracellular signal-regulated kinase signaling in behavioral sensitivity to ethanol.
  The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience 2009 Peng J, Wagle M, Mueller T, Mathur P, Lockwood BL, Bretaud S, Guo S
• Using zebrafish to assess the impact of drugs on neural development and function.
  Expert opinion on drug discovery 2009 Guo S
• fezf2 expression delineates cells with proliferative potential and expressing markers of neural stem cells in the adult zebrafish brain.
  Gene expression patterns : GEP 2009 Berberoglu MA, Dong Z, Mueller T, Guo S
• 7SK snRNP/P-TEFb couples transcription elongation with alternative splicing and is essential for vertebrate development.
  Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 2009 Barboric M, Lenasi T, Chen H, Johansen EB, Guo S, Peterlin BM
• Communicative & Integrative Biology
  Camouflage response in zebrafish: A model for genetic dissection of molecular and cellular circuitries underlying Alcoholism 2009 Guo, S., Peng, J., Wagle, M., Mueller, T. and Mathur, P
• Identification of Spt5 target genes in zebrafish development reveals its dual activity in vivo.
  PloS one 2008 Krishnan K, Salomonis N, Guo S
• cneViewer: a database of conserved non-coding elements for studies of tissue-specific gene regulation.
  Bioinformatics (Oxford, England) 2008 Persampieri J, Ritter DI, Lees D, Lehoczky J, Li Q, Guo S, Chuang JH
• Early teleostean basal ganglia development visualized by zebrafish Dlx2a, Lhx6, Lhx7, Tbr2 (eomesa), and GAD67 gene expression.
  The Journal of comparative neurology 2008 Mueller T, Wullimann MF, Guo S
• Animal Models for Anxiety Disorders.
  Biomarkers for Psychiatric Disorders 2008 Su Guo
• Biomarkers for Psychiatric Disorders
  Animal models for anxiety disorders 2008 Guo, S
• Chapter 23 Insights from Zebrafish PD Models and Their Potentials for Identifying Novel Drug Targets and Therapeutic Compounds.
  Parkinson\u0027s Disease 2008 Su Guo
• Parkinson’s Disease: Pathogenic and Therapeutic Insights from Toxin and Genetic Models
  Insights from zebrafish PD models, and their potential for identifying novel drug targets and therapeutic compounds 2008 Guo, S
• A choice behavior for morphine reveals experience-dependent drug preference and underlying neural substrates in developing larval zebrafish.
  Neuroscience 2007 Bretaud S, Li Q, Lockwood BL, Kobayashi K, Lin E, Guo S
• Patterning the zebrafish diencephalon by the conserved zinc-finger protein Fezl.
  Development (Cambridge, England) 2007 Jeong JY, Einhorn Z, Mathur P, Chen L, Lee S, Kawakami K, Guo S
• A subunit of the mediator complex regulates vertebrate neuronal development.
  Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 2006 Wang X, Yang N, Uno E, Roeder RG, Guo S
• Dissociation of food and opiate preference by a genetic mutation in zebrafish.
  Genes, brain, and behavior 2006 Lau B, Bretaud S, Huang Y, Lin E, Guo S
• Neurogenin1 is a determinant of zebrafish basal forebrain dopaminergic neurons and is regulated by the conserved zinc finger protein Tof/Fezl.
  Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 2006 Jeong JY, Einhorn Z, Mercurio S, Lee S, Lau B, Mione M, Wilson SW, Guo S
• Antipsychotics produce locomotor impairment in larval zebrafish.
  Neurotoxicology and teratology 2006 Giacomini NJ, Rose B, Kobayashi K, Guo S
• Sensitivity of zebrafish to environmental toxins implicated in Parkinson's disease.
  Neurotoxicology and teratology 2004 Bretaud S, Lee S, Guo S
• A mycobacterial virulence gene cluster extending RD1 is required for cytolysis, bacterial spreading and ESAT-6 secretion.
  Molecular microbiology 2004 Gao LY, Guo S, McLaughlin B, Morisaki H, Engel JN, Brown EJ
• Linking genes to brain, behavior and neurological diseases: what can we learn from zebrafish?
  Genes, brain, and behavior 2004 Guo S
• Acute effects of alcohol on larval zebrafish: a genetic system for large-scale screening.
  Pharmacology, biochemistry, and behavior 2004 Lockwood B, Bjerke S, Kobayashi K, Guo S
• The too few mutant selectively affects subgroups of monoaminergic neurons in the zebrafish forebrain.
  Neuroscience 2004 Rink E, Guo S
• The zebrafish forkhead transcription factor Foxi1 specifies epibranchial placode-derived sensory neurons.
  Development (Cambridge, England) 2003 Lee SA, Shen EL, Fiser A, Sali A, Guo S
• A direct role of the homeodomain proteins Phox2a/2b in noradrenaline neurotransmitter identity determination.
  Journal of neurochemistry 2002 Seo H, Hong SJ, Guo S, Kim HS, Kim CH, Hwang DY, Isacson O, Rosenthal A, Kim KS
• Drinks like a fish: zebra fish (Danio rerio) as a behavior genetic model to study alcohol effects.
  Pharmacology, biochemistry, and behavior 2000 Gerlai R, Lahav M, Guo S, Rosenthal A
• A regulator of transcriptional elongation controls vertebrate neuronal development.
  Nature 2000 Guo S, Yamaguchi Y, Schilbach S, Wada T, Lee J, Goddard A, French D, Handa H, Rosenthal A
• Development of noradrenergic neurons in the zebrafish hindbrain requires BMP, FGF8, and the homeodomain protein soulless/Phox2a.
  Neuron 1999 Guo S, Brush J, Teraoka H, Goddard A, Wilson SW, Mullins MC, Rosenthal A
• Mutations in the zebrafish unmask shared regulatory pathways controlling the development of catecholaminergic neurons.
  Developmental biology 1999 Guo S, Wilson SW, Cooke S, Chitnis AB, Driever W, Rosenthal A
• Chapter 2.1.8 Mutagenesis in zebra fish: studying the brain dopamine systems.
  Handbook of Molecular-Genetic Techniques for Brain and Behavior Research 1999 Su Guo, Wolfgang Driever, Arnon Rosenthal
• Handbook of Molecular Genetic Techniques for Brain and Behavior Research
  Mutagenesis in zebrafish: studying the brain dopamine systems 1999 Guo, S., W. Driever, and A. Rosenthal
• PAR-2 is asymmetrically distributed and promotes association of P granules and PAR-1 with the cortex in C. elegans embryos.
  Development (Cambridge, England) 1996 Boyd L, Guo S, Levitan D, Stinchcomb DT, Kemphues KJ
• par-6, a gene involved in the establishment of asymmetry in early C. elegans embryos, mediates the asymmetric localization of PAR-3.
  Development (Cambridge, England) 1996 Watts JL, Etemad-Moghadam B, Guo S, Boyd L, Draper BW, Mello CC, Priess JR, Kemphues KJ
• A non-muscle myosin required for embryonic polarity in Caenorhabditis elegans.
  Nature 1996 Guo S, Kemphues KJ
• Molecular genetics of asymmetric cleavage in the early Caenorhabditis elegans embryo.
  Current opinion in genetics & development 1996 Guo S, Kemphues KJ
• Asymmetrically distributed PAR-3 protein contributes to cell polarity and spindle alignment in early C. elegans embryos.
  Cell 1995 Etemad-Moghadam B, Guo S, Kemphues KJ
• par-1, a gene required for establishing polarity in C. elegans embryos, encodes a putative Ser/Thr kinase that is asymmetrically distributed.
  Cell 1995 Guo S, Kemphues KJ