Rate My Professor Siew Hoong (Joe) Yip

Dr. Siew Hoong (Joe) Yip is a Research Fellow in the Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Biomedical Sciences, Health Sciences Division at the University of Otago, and Principal Investigator of the Yip Laboratory within the Centre for Neuroendocrinology. He earned his PhD and Bachelor of Biomedical Sciences with Honours (BBioMedSc Hons) from the University of Otago, where his doctoral studies were supported by a University of Otago PhD Scholarship in the Department of Anatomy. Throughout his career at Otago, Yip has established himself as a leading researcher in neuroendocrinology, employing anatomical and functional neuroscience techniques including viral tract tracing, chemogenetics, ex vivo calcium imaging, immunohistochemistry, RNAscope in situ hybridization, ELISA, and confocal microscopy in transgenic rodent models.

Yip's research centers on neuronal plasticity induced by reproductive hormones in the maternal brain, with a particular emphasis on tuberoinfundibular dopaminergic (TIDA) neurons, their contributions to maternal adaptations, prolactin secretion during lactation, body weight regulation by hypothalamic dopaminergic neurons, and prolactin's role in stress responses and infant development. Notable projects investigate how pregnancy hormones modify the TIDA neuronal network, mechanisms of hyperprolactinemia-induced enkephalin expression in the maternal brain, and the physiological functions of prolactin. Key publications include 'Enhancement of a robust arcuate GABAergic input to gonadotropin-releasing hormone neurons in a model of polycystic ovarian syndrome' (PNAS, 2015), 'Conditional viral tract tracing delineates the projections of the distinct kisspeptin neuron populations to gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) neurons in the mouse' (Endocrinology, 2015), 'Plasticity of hypothalamic dopamine neurons during lactation results in dissociation of electrical activity and release' (Journal of Neuroscience, 2013), 'Conditional deletion of the prolactin receptor reveals functional subpopulations of dopamine neurons in the arcuate nucleus of the hypothalamus' (Journal of Neuroscience, 2016), and 'The Hypothalamic Arcuate Nucleus Dopaminergic Neurons' (Endocrinology, 2025). His contributions have garnered significant recognition, including the New Zealand Society of Endocrinology Emerging Researcher Award (2021), for which he presented a lecture on dopamine neurons regulating prolactin during motherhood, and third place in the Endocrine Society's 2025 Endocrine Images Award. Yip's work is supported by major grants from the Royal Society of New Zealand Marsden Fund, Neurological Foundation, Otago Medical Research Foundation, and University of Otago Research Grant, highlighting his influence in advancing understanding of neuroendocrine mechanisms in reproduction, metabolism, and maternal physiology.