Main Research Interests
1. Characteristics, functions, and modulation of lysosomal membrane ion channels.
2. Role of ion channels in lysosomes and other organelles in intracellular signal transduction.
3. Mechanisms of diseases related to organelle ion channels and development of novel drugs targeting these channels.
Education and Positions
- Professor, Ph.D. Supervisor
- Studied at Fudan University from 1999 to 2009; received a B.Sc. in 2003 and a Ph.D. in Neurobiology in 2009.
- Postdoctoral research at the University of Pennsylvania (2009-2014).
- Assistant Researcher at the University of Pennsylvania (2014-2015).
- Joined the University of Science and Technology of China in 2015.
Focused on ion channel research, using lysosomal patch-clamp techniques to study potassium and sodium ion channels in lysosomal membranes, achieving groundbreaking results. Discovered a new potassium channel, KEL, in endosomes and lysosomes; identified an ATP-sensitive sodium channel complex formed by TPC and mTORC1; discovered a voltage-gated sodium channel with a 2x6 transmembrane structure, bridging the evolutionary gap from 1x6 to 4x6 structures; first to use lysosomal current-clamp techniques to study membrane potential changes, revealing ultra-slow action potentials and bistable membrane potential phenomena in lysosomal membranes. Published in journals such as Cell, Nature Chemical Biology, Nature Communications, and Journal of Neuroscience.
Publications
1. Cang, C., Aranda, K., Seo, YJ., Gasnier, B., Ren, D. (2015) TMEM175 is an Organelle K(+) Channel Regulating Lysosomal Function. Cell 162(5): 1101-12. Doi:10.1016/j.cell.2015.08.002
2. Cang, C., Zhou, Y., Navarro, B., Aranda, K., Shi, L., Battaglia-Hsu, S., Nissim, I., Clapham, D. and Ren, D. (2013) mTOR Regulates Lysosomal ATP-sensitive Two-Pore Na+ Channels to Adapt to Metabolic State. Cell 152: 778-790
3. Cang, C.*, Aranda, K., Ren, D.*. A non-inactivating high-voltage-activated two-pore Na+ channel that supports ultra-long action potentials and membrane bistability. Nature communications 5: 5015 (*co-corresponding authors)
4. Cang, C.*, Bekele, B., Ren, D.*. (2014) The voltage-gated sodium channel TPC1 confers endolysosomal excitability. Nature Chemical Biology 10: 463-469 (*co-corresponding authors)
5. Cang CL, Zhang H, Zhang YQ, Zhao ZQ (2009) PKCepsilon-dependent potentiation of TTX-resistant Nav1.8 current by neurokinin-1 receptor activation in rat dorsal root ganglion neurons. Mol Pain 5:33
6. Zhang H., Cang CL, Kawasaki Y, Liang LL, Zhang YQ, Ji RR, Zhao ZQ (2007) Neurokinin-1 receptor enhances TRPV1 activity in primary sensory neurons via PKCe: a novel pathway for heat hyperalgesia. J Neurosci 27: 12067-12077
7. Xu SY, Cang CL, Liu XF, Peng YQ, Ye YZ, Zhao ZQ, Guo AK (2006) Thermal nociception in adult Drosophila: behavioral characterization and the role of the painless gene. Genes Brain Behav 5: 602–613
Contact Information
Email: ccang@ustc.edu.cn