Xiaofei Deng is an Associate Researcher and a recognized Shenzhen High-Level Talent (Backup Level). He completed his Ph.D. in Psychology Institute at the Chinese Academy of Sciences in 2019 and has since been working at the Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, CAS. His research focuses on the neural mechanisms of reward and addiction. Deng has published as a first or corresponding author (including co-first/co-corresponding authorship) in leading academic journals, including Nature Neuroscience (2025), Journal of Clinical Investigation (2024), PNAS (2019), and Neuroscience Bulletin (2025). He has also led research projects funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China and Shenzhen Basic Research Programs. In addition, he serves as a committee member of the Addiction and Brain Science Division at the China Drug Abuse Prevention Association.

Neural mechanisms of reward and addiction

[1] Deng, X.*, Xu, W.*, Liu, Y.*, Jing, H., Zhong, J., Sun, K., ... & Zhu, Y. (2025). Social rank modulates methamphetamine-seeking in dominant and subordinate male rodents via distinct dopaminergic pathways. Nature Neuroscience, 1-12.  (Co-first author, listed first)
[2] Deng, X., Gu, L., Sui, N., Guo, J., & Liang, J. (2019). Parvalbumin interneuron in the ventral hippocampus functions as a discriminator in social memory. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 116(33), 16583-16592. (first author)
[3] Chen, Z.*, Deng, X.*, Shi, C., Jing, H., Tian, Y., Zhong, J., ... & Zhu, Y. (2024). GLP-1R–positive neurons in the lateral septum mediate the anorectic and weight-lowering effects of liraglutide in mice. The Journal of Clinical Investigation, 134(17). (Co-first author, listed second)
[4] Lu, S., Zhang, X., Chen, W., Zhang, B., Jing, H., Xu, Y., Li, F., Chen, G.#, Deng, X.# & Zhu, Y#. (2025). Perifornical UCN3 Neurons Regulate Overeating-Induced Weight Gain. Neuroscience Bulletin, 41(6), 1103-1108. (Co-corresponding author, listed second)

Deng has published in prominent journals (Nature Neuroscience, Journal of Clinical Investigation, PNAS, Neuroscience Bulletin) as first or corresponding author. He has successfully led research projects supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Youth Program C) and Technology and Innovation Commission of Shenzhen (General Program).