Faculty Introduction
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Vice President and Professor
Vice President and Professor
Junichi Ida
Junichi Ida
Specialized Field
Nanomaterials, Nanobioscience, Functional materials and devices
Research theme
- Synthesis of thermosensitive polymers and their application to heavy metal ion recovery
- Development of amine-modified mesoporous silica membranes for carbon dioxide separation
Dean and Professor
Dean and Professor
Norio Kurosawa
Specialized Field
Microbiology, molecular biology
Research theme
1) Taxonomy, physiology, genetics, and molecular biology of thermophilic and psychrophilic bacteria
2) Taxonomic study of protists in Antarctic lakes and the Southern Ocean
3) Phylogeographical study of copepods
Vice Dean and Professor
Vice Dean and Professor
Hideki Kawai
Specialized Field
Neurobiology (neurophysiology, neuropharmacology)
Research theme
Cerebral formation, function and repair
1) Elucidation of the molecular mechanisms underlying the formation and development of the cerebral neocortex and development of methods to repair developmental abnormalities
2) Elucidation of the mechanism of neural circuit control by the neurotransmitter acetylcholine
3) Elucidation of the mechanisms of learning in the brain through experience (e.g., sensory deprivation)
4) Neuroprotection in cerebral infarction and regenerative medicine using stem cells
Chair and Professor
Chair and Professor
Shinjiro Sato
Specialized Field
Soil chemistry, soil physics, biochar, waste treatment, biomass reuse, methane fermentation digestate, tropical soil, tropical forest, plant cultivation, organic fertilizer, slow-release fertilizer, nutrient circulation, heavy metals, pollution treatment, phytoremediation
Research theme
- Effective use of organic waste in soil for the creation of a recycling-oriented society
- Soil improvement effect and crop production by biochar
- Fertilization of crops using methane fermentation digestate - Tropical Soil Conservation
Department Chair and Professor
Department Chair and Professor
Sayaka Takase
Specialized Field
Virology
Research theme
- Elucidation of the infection initiation mechanisms of retroviruses and influenza viruses
- Elucidation of the mechanism of gene expression regulation by retroviruses
- Elucidation of the gene regions and their roles in neuropathogenicity of murine leukemia viruses
Professor
Professor
Akira Togayachi
Specialized Field
Glycobiology, Cell biology, Biochemistry
Research theme
(1) Analysis of glycogenes (glycosyltransferase genes)
(2) Analysis of the biological functions of glycans by glycogene engineering
(3) Discovery of disease-specific glycan target molecules and development of diagnostic techniques
Professor
Nishihara Shoko
Nishihara Shoko
Specialized Field
Functional biochemistry, cell biology, developmental biology, general medical chemistry, glycobiology, stem cell biology, biochemistry, molecular biology
Research theme
We are conducting research with the aim of clarifying the role of glycans in living organisms. We use various genetic engineering techniques to regulate the expression of glycan-related genes in Drosophila individuals, ES cells, iPS cells, cancer cells, cancer stem cells, human model cells, and organoids to clarify glycan functions. We also create knockout mice for some genes and conduct analysis.
(1) Analysis of glycan-related genes in Drosophila; elucidation of physiological functions of glycans conserved across species
Drosophila is the most advanced model animal in genetics. We focus on the "physiological activity of glycans conserved across biological species" and elucidate the role of glycans in the development of organisms through phenotypic analysis of mutants and knockdowns of glycan-related genes in Drosophila, as well as biochemical and molecular biological analysis. In particular, we are currently analyzing glycosyltransferases required for the maintenance and differentiation of blood stem cells, and glycan structures required for the formation of nerve axons.
(2) Elucidation of glycan functions in human and mammalian pluripotent stem cells (ES cells, iPS cells) and organoids
(1) We will use cultured cells, mainly embryonic stem cells, to examine whether the glycan functions revealed in the previous study are common to humans and other mammals. Specifically, we aim to "elucidate the role of glycans in stem cell maintenance and differentiation" by targeting ES cells and iPS cells. In this project, we first revealed in 2008 that glycans (heparan sulfate) are involved in the maintenance of ES cells. We have further developed this to reveal that the four glycan structures mentioned above are necessary for maintaining the naive pluripotent state. We are currently expanding the scope of our analysis to include various other glycans. There are still not many examples of functional analysis of glycans in embryonic stem cells, and we are playing a pioneering role in this field.
(3) Functional analysis of PAPS transporter knockout mice
PAPS transporters are essential for the sulfation of glycans and proteins, and without them, each molecule cannot be modified by sulfation. We first isolated and identified them in 2003. Currently, we are creating knockout mice and analyzing them. We have found that these mice develop various diseases, and we are currently analyzing the mechanisms of their onset.
(4) Functional analysis of glycan-related genes involved in undiagnosed diseases
Based on the analysis conducted so far, it has been predicted that glycans are involved in many rare undiagnosed diseases, so we have begun analyzing these as well. We will analyze the loss of function of glycan-related genes with mutations that have been found to be associated with diseases using model organisms, stem cell differentiation systems, organoids, etc., to clarify the relationship with diseases.
Professor
Shoichi Kubodera
Specialized Field
Atomic, molecular, quantum electronics, plasma, applied optics, quantum optical engineering, electronic devices, electronic equipment
Research theme
- Development and application of high-intensity vacuum ultraviolet lasers
- Development of extreme ultraviolet light sources for next-generation semiconductor exposure equipment
- Rare gas excimer formation in high pressure rare gases
- Laser processing for fiber optic sensors
Professor
Toda Tatsuki
Specialized Field
Restoration Ecology, Aquatic Ecology, Aquatic Bioproduction Science, Water Treatment Technology and Engineering, Plankton Engineering
Research theme
- High-rate methane fermentation and microalgae cultivation using liquid fraction derived from aquatic plant biomass
- Methane fermentation granule formation using water hyacinth juice as a substrate
- Optimization of pyrohydrolysis and steam explosion as pretreatments for methane fermentation of aquatic plants
- Optimization of mixing and structure of a non-powered mixing methane fermentation tank and evaluation of its treatment performance using fluid analysis
- Examination of ammonia fermentation conditions for methane fermentation treatment of chicken manure
- Useful substance production by microalgae through salinity acclimation
- Evaluation of the effect of adding soil extracts on microalgae cultivation
- Evaluation of the effects of CO2 supply concentration and intermittent agitation on microalgae cultivation
- Mass cultivation of microalgae using CO2 derived from biogas
- Evaluation of photosynthetic activity and growth rate of microalgae under different nitrogen supply conditions
- Studies on pigment accumulation in marine copepods
Associate Professor
Associate Professor
Khatri Pradeep
Specialized Field
Atmospheric science, atmospheric remote sensing
Research theme
- Elucidation of the dynamics of aerosols and clouds and their impact on climate using remote sensing data
- Development of ground-based remote sensing methods for aerosols and clouds and their application analysis
- Accuracy assessment and improvement of aerosol and cloud products based on satellite observations
Assistant Lecturer
Assistant Lecturer
Stella Chan On Sun
Specialized Field
Water treatment engineering, material engineering
Research theme
1. Promoting methane production using conductive materials
2. Development of gel immobilization technology for methanogenic microorganisms
3. Improving the functionality of immobilized microorganisms and elucidating their behavior
Assistant Lecturer
Chowdhary Anupreet Kaur
Specialized Field
Plankton Engineering, Applied Phycology, Cell Physiology
Research theme
Mass cultivation of microalgae biomass, metabolic pathways and production of carotenoids, and productivity improvement of difficult-to-culture microalgae
Mass cultivation of microalgae biomass, metabolic pathways and production of carotenoids, and productivity improvement of difficult-to-culture microalgae
Assistant Lecturer
Planshu Bhatia
Specialized Field
1. Water Treatment Engineering
2. Resource Circulation Engineering
3. Environmental Process Engineering
Research theme
1. Methane fermentation of plant biomass
2. Pretreatment method for methane fermentation
3. High-speed methane fermentation treatment of wastewater
4. Treatment of methane fermentation digestate