Dr. Xinyu Zhao graduated from Peking (Beijing) University with a BS in Biology with an emphasis on Biophysics and then received her PhD in Pharmacology with a research focus on mammalian phototransduction from the University of Washington (Seattle). She then obtained postdoctoral training in neural stem cells from Dr. Fred Gage at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies (La Jolla, California). In her independent research, which started at the University of New Mexico in 2003 and then expanded to the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2011, she investigates the molecular mechanisms that regulate brain development, with the goal of developing better treatments for neurodevelopmental disorders, such as fragile x syndrome, Rett syndrome, Downs syndrome, and autism. She has been continuously funded by NIH since 2006 and has received several prestigious awards, including the Junior Faculty Research Award, the Vilas Mid-Career Investigator Award, the Jenni and Kyle Professorship, the National Fragile X Research Award, and the Kellet Award. She is an active mentor for undergraduate students, graduate students, and postdoctoral fellows.