University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus · PharmacologyCB2 Receptor Research Lab
Xiang-Qun Xie · Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Research Focus
Dr. Xiang-Qun Xie's lab at the University of Pittsburgh focuses on understanding the structure and function of cannabinoid receptors, particularly the CB2 receptor. They aim to develop new drugs that can modulate this receptor to treat chronic pain, autoimmune diseases, and other conditions, without the negative side effects associated with existing treatments. The lab combines advanced imaging techniques with computational methods to design and test new compounds that target these receptors.
CB2 Receptorcannabinoidsallosteric modulationdrug designcomputational medicinal chemistrychronic painautoimmune diseasesneuroinflammationstructural biology
Research Aims
5AIM 01Elucidate the structural basis for CB2 allosteric modulation through cryo-EM and X-ray crystallography.
AIM 02Design novel CB2 allosteric modulators using in silico methods.
AIM 03Construct a virtual library of potential allosteric modulators based on structural data.
AIM 04Synthesize and validate new CB2 modulators via medicinal chemistry techniques.
AIM 05Explore the pharmacology and signaling of CB2 through functional assays.
Skills the Lab Values
cryo-electron microscopyX-ray crystallographymedicinal chemistrymolecular dockingmachine learningstructural modelingfunctional assayscell culturebinding affinity assays
Output against the department
Publications194top 45% of dept.209th of 462
this lab
most publishedleast published
Citations7.4ktop 49% of dept.227th of 462
this lab
most citedleast cited
Career totals from OpenAlex, compared against labs that share a department. A department spans everything from one paper to tens of thousands, so bar heights are on a log scale — otherwise the largest lab would flatten every other bar to a line.