Circuits in the Crossfire of Inflammation

The Victor Lab studies how microglia, the immune cells of the brain, influence neuronal connectivity, circuit function, and neurodegeneration. Our goal is to understand how inflammatory signaling emerges in the brain, how it spreads across neural networks, and why these processes become maladaptive in disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease.

Using human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs), we engineer multicellular brain models containing neurons and glia. We combine CRISPR-based perturbations, live-cell imaging, functional genomics, and multi-omic profiling to define how disease-associated genetic variants alter microglial states, metabolic flexibility, and communication with neural circuits.

A major focus of the lab is understanding how inflammatory signals influence neuronal activity and network function. By integrating optogenetics, calcium imaging, electrophysiology, and single-cell approaches, we study how immune activation reshapes synaptic connectivity, circuit dynamics, and cell-cell communication across the human brain.

Ultimately, we aim to uncover the cellular logic by which inflammation drives neurodegeneration and identify mechanisms of resilience that can be harnessed therapeutically.