Use of Zebra fish models to study how the early-life gut microbiome shapes stress‑social neural circuits, with translational potential for therapeutics targeting stress and social‑behaviour deficits

Dr Jatin Nagpal

Dr Nagpal received his B.Sc. (Hons) in Biochemistry from the University of Delhi, and was a summer research fellow at the Drosophila chronobiology lab at the Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research, Bangalore. He spent the next 10 years in Germany, where he completed an M.Sc. in Neuroscience (Göttingen), a PhD specializing in optogenetics and nematode C. elegans behaviour (Frankfurt), followed by a post-doc on Zebrafish stress neurobiology (Mainz). Jatin joined UCC in 2020, first as an Irish Research Council Government of Ireland post-doctoral fellow at APC Microbiome Ireland, then as a specific-purpose fixed-term lecturer (from August 2022 till January 2024) in the Department of Pharmacology & Therapeutics, followed by a lectureship in Translational Pharmaceutical Sciences in the School of Pharmacy and iEd Hub. He became permanent lecturer in Pharmacology in 2024. He is a senior scientist at APC Microbiome Ireland, and co-chairs UCC’s Race Equality Network. He has received multiple grants and awards (e.g., Merit Scholarship for B.Sc., Max Planck Fellowship for M.Sc., Buchmann Best PhD thesis award 2016, and the prestigious APC Future Leaders Award in recognition of his exceptional contributions to microbiome research). 

Research interests: Jatin’s research focuses on how microbiota-brain interactions shape stress-related and social behaviours, using the model organisms of zebrafish and C. elegans. Building on this expertise, he has introduced these novel model systems in the Microbiota-Gut-Brain Axis Theme at APC Microbiome Ireland and operationalized a state-of-the-art zebrafish facility at the Biosciences Institute, UCC. His research interests build on a multidisciplinary approach extending from molecule to behaviour harnessing the genetic accessibility, scalability and translatability afforded by these model organisms, and accomplished using optogenetic tools, microscopy, behavioural and endocrine analysis and multi-omics dissection. The aim of this ambitious research programme is to push the frontiers in the exciting field of microbiota-gut-brain axis and provide tangible & translational microbiota-based therapeutics to combat stress and social behaviour-related deficits in neuropsychiatric and neurodevelopmental disorders. 

Publications:

• Nagpal J, Cryan JF. (2021) Microbiota-brain interactions: Moving toward mechanisms in model organisms. Neuron 109(24):3930-3953. doi: 10.1016/j.neuron.2021.09.036.
• Nagpal J, Eachus H, Lityagina O, Ryu S. (2024) Optogenetic induction of chronic glucocorticoid exposure in early-life leads to blunted stress-response in larval zebrafish. Eur J Neurosci. 2024 Jun;59(11):3134-3146. doi: 10.1111/ejn.16301. Epub 2024 Apr 11.
• Valderrama B, Daly I, Gunnigle E, O'Riordan KJ, Chichlowski M, Banerjee S, Skowronski AA, Pandey N, Cryan JF, Clarke G, Nagpal J. (2025) From in silico screening to in vivo validation in zebrafish - a framework for reeling in the right psychobiotics. Food Funct. 16(5):2018-2030. doi: 10.1039/d4fo03932g.
• Gao S, Nagpal J, Schneider MW, Kozjak-Pavlovic V, Nagel G, Gottschalk A. (2015) Optogenetic manipulation of cGMP in cells and animals by the tightly light-regulated guanylyl-cyclase opsin CyclOp. Nat Commun. 6:8046. doi: 10.1038/ncomms9046.

I welcome enquires from students interested in discussing MSc or PhD opportunities and post-doctoral researchers wishing to join the research group. If you have ideas for collaborations on existing work or would like to discuss your own research interests then there are a number of PhD studentships, Postdoctoral fellowships and other funding schemes available which I am more than happy to discuss this with you in the first instance by email jatin.nagpal@ucc.ie