"EARLY" Mirror Lab (OIST, CNRS)

Launched in January 2024, the International Research Laboratory 2028 “EARLY” (Eco-Evo-Devo of Coral Reef Fish Life Cycle) is a joint laboratory between CNRS (France) and OIST. Located in the subtropical western Pacific, EARLY brings together interdisciplinary teams to study coral reef fishes and the reef ecosystems through the integrative lens of ecology, evolution, and development, with a focus on climate change responses. It is the first CNRS IRL in biology in Japan and the only one dedicated to marine ecosystems in this region.  Activity details: https://www.oist.jp/early-cnrs

OIST PI: Vincent Laudet [Marine Eco-Evo-Devo Unit]

CNRS PIs: Laurence Besseau & David Lecchini

Organic (Bio)electronics Mirror Labs
(OIST, University of Cambridge, Chalmers University of Technology, Stanford University)　

Organic electronics offer a flexible, low-energy alternative to traditional, rigid silicon technologies. Our lab focuses on developing environmentally sustainable pathways for organic semiconductors, the key materials in organic electronics. In this mirror lab, we have established a collaborative four-way bridge with leading international groups. Prof. Bronstein at Cambridge brings expertise in organic spin-active materials, Prof. Müller at Chalmers focuses on polymer physics and microstructure, and Prof. Salleo at Stanford leads advanced device characterization. Our joint efforts aim to advance fundamental materials science while creating practical applications for organic electronic materials.

OIST PI: Christine Luscombe [pi-Conjugated Polymers Unit]

Cambridge PI: Hugo Brostein [Functional Materials]

Chalmers PI: Christian Müller [Müller's Research Group]

Stanford PI: Alberto Salleo [Salleo Research Group]

The Nordic-Okinawa Quantum Bridge (NOQBridge) Mirror Lab
(OIST, Chalmers University of Technology)

The Nordic–Okinawa Quantum Bridge (NOQBridge) is a new mirror lab initiative between Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University (Japan) and Chalmers University of Technology (Sweden) led by Profs. Síle Nic Chormaic and Nils Johan Engelsen. Focused on hybrid quantum systems, nanophotonics, and atomic physics, the collaboration brings together complementary expertise in cold atoms, waveguide quantum electrodynamics, ultrahigh-Q resonators, and integrated photonic platforms. Through researcher exchange, joint student events, technical online workshops, and online seminars, NOQBridge aims to establish a long-term international partnership while developing new approaches for next-generation quantum hardware and quantum networking technologies.

OIST PI: Síle Nic Chormaic [Light-Matter Interactions for Quantum Technologies Unit]

Chalmers PI: Nils Johan Engelsen [Hybrid Quantum Systems Laboratory]

Mechanics-Based Design for Additive Manufacturing Mirror Lab
(OIST, University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa)

Within this J-PEAKS Mirror Lab, researchers in OIST’s Mechanics and Materials Unit and Tyler Ray’s group at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa will combine theoretical mechanics, materials science, and advanced fabrication to address unresolved problems in additive manufacturing. The researchers will emphasize mechanics-based principles for printable architectures, microstructured and multifunctional materials, process–structure–property relations, and device-level performance. OIST researchers will contribute mathematical modeling, asymptotic and computational analysis, and design methodology; Ray group researchers will contribute expertise in additive manufacturing, wearable sensors, and microfluidic devices. Through joint training and sustained exchange, researchers will connect fundamental mechanics with practical fabrication strategies.

OIST PI: Eliot Fried [Mechanics and Materials Unit]

UH Mānoa PI: Tyler Ray [Ray Research Group]

OIST-Oxford Analysis & Partial Differential Equations Mirror Lab
(OIST, University of Oxford)

Mission of the joint OIST-Oxford mirror lab on Analysis & PDE is
• to develop a platform for focused scientific activities to advance the boundaries of knowledge in Mathematical Sciences and in emerging fields of Engineering and Natural Sciences through the application of advanced methods of Analysis and Partial Differential Equations, and the development of new mathematics capable of solving challenging problems of society.
• training XXI century problem solvers, equipped with analytical tools and mathematical intuition to tackle a diverse range of contemporary problems in Mathematics and related fields of Engineering and Natural Sciences.

OIST PI: Ugur G. Abdulla [Analysis and Partial Differential Equations Unit]

Oxford PI: Gui-Qiang G. Chen  [Oxford Centre for Nonlinear Partial Differential Equations]

Integrated Plankton Monitoring Mirror Lab (OIST-Tohoku University)
Plankton play an outsized role in global oxygen production, biogeochemical cycling, carbon sequestration, and marine food webs. This mirror lab brings together OIST and Tohoku University to advance automated methods (imaging, sequencing, and AI identification) for plankton monitoring in Japan and the Western Pacific. We integrate high-throughput automated imaging via the PlanktoScope and Imaging FlowCytobot microscopes with eDNA sequencing across the Western Pacific, with a major focus on Kuroshio and Oyashio currents. We collectively create a curated database of plankton diversity and train an AI model for automated plankton identification. The ultimate goal is to develop tools and devices for real-time plankton identification and sorting from environmental samples. The team's expertise spans phytoplankton (Husnik), zooplankton (Ames), and computational tool development (Obayashi). We carry out collaborative plankton sampling, share our imaging and sequencing data, and co-develop computational tools for automated plankton identification and sorting.

OIST PI: Filip Husnik [Evolution, Cell Biology, and Symbiosis Unit]

Tohoku University PI: Takeshi Obayashi [Coastal Ecosystem Services Research Unit]

Tohoku University PI: Cheryl Ames [Marine Biology Integrative Research Unit]

Rewriting Enzyme Loops to Control Cell Communication Mirror Lab (OIST, The University of Osaka)

Cells rely on networks of proteins to communicate and respond to their environment. In enzymes called tyrosine kinases, small flexible regions—known as activation loops—help control of how these signals are sent. Our research, in collaboration with Prof. Okada at Osaka University, has shown that even tiny changes in this loop can alter how these enzymes behave, leading to distinct cellular responses. We describe this as a “hidden code” within the protein that can be tuned to control signalling. We aim to explore whether this hidden code can be applied more broadly to precisely regulate cell communication.

OIST PI: Paola Laurino [Protein Engineering and Evolution Unit]

UOsaka PI: Mariko Okada [Laboratory for Cell Systems, Institute for Protein Research]

OIST-The University of Tokyo Mirror Labs

Our brain circuits are shaped based on experiences, including social interactions with others during developments. To understand how the brain circuit develops, we need to see its structures and their changes which require specific imaging techniques. For understanding how social behaviors affect brain development and behaviors. Prof. Okada and our lab work on the project of whole brain mapping of sexually dimorphic neuronal circuits for courtship behavior in zebra finches. Profs. Hensch and Takeuchi and our lab try to understand how social behaviors affect brain development and then behavioral outcomes. Our collaborative works would help us to understand the neuronal mechanism specific to/common among animal species. We work for developing biosensor as well for monitoring biophysical signals to see the effect of social interactions with other individuals.

OIST PI: Yoko Yazaki-Sugiyama [Neuronal Mechanism for Critical Period Unit]

UTokyo PI: Takao Hensch [IRCN Director / Principal Investigator / Project Professor Human/Clinical]

UTokyo PI: Yasushi Okada [Principal Investigator in Technology]

UTokyo PI: Shoji Takeuchi [Principal Investigator in Technology]

The Evolutionary History of Archaic and Modern Humans Mirror Lab (OIST, Max-Planck, Karolinska, RIKEN)

Until about 40,000 years ago, at least three forms of humans existed in Eurasia: Denisovans, Neanderthals and modern humans. Our groups use the genome sequences of these groups to ask questions about how they differ from each other and how genetic admixture between the groups have transferred variants and phenotypic traits between groups. We also study the recent population history of humans, particularly in the Japanese Archipelago.
To that end, we identify genetic variants that occur at high frequency in the different groups and introduce them into the genomes of cells and of mice to study their physiological consequences. We also make extensive use of biobanks to study the effects of archaic genetic variants that occur in present-day humans because of gene flow from archaic humans. To achieve this, we profit from the expertise of several different groups. For example, the groups of Svante Pääbo and Izumi Fukunaga at OIST specialize in animal and cellular models; the Department of Evolutionary Genetics at the Max Planck Institute in Leipzig, Germany, specializes in genome editing and sequencing of ancient genomes; Hugo Zeberg’s group at the Karolinska Institute, Sweden, specializes in bioinformatics and model systems. For population genetic analyses, we profit from the expertise of the group of Leo Speidel at RIKEN in Tokyo.

OIST PI: Svante Pääbo [Human Evolutionary Genomics Unit]

Max-Planck PI: Stephan Riesenberg [Genome Engineering and Repair Group]

Karolinska PI: Hugo Zeberg [Genetic and pharmacological epidemiology Laboratory]

RIKEN PI: Leo Speidel [Mathematical Genomics RIKEN ECL Research Unit]

Cryo-EM Methodological Advancement Mirror Lab (OIST, Keio University)

This Mirror Lab brings together OIST and Keio University to advance next-generation cryo-electron microscopy workflows for structural biology. The collaboration focuses on methodological development in single particle cryo-EM and cryoelectron tomography workflows, from robust preparation of tomographic samples to high-throughput, aberration-minimized single-particle data acquisition. The mirror lab aims to improve the speed, reproducibility, and resolution of structure determination for challenging biological specimens.
A central goal is to develop and benchmark advanced cryo-preparation and cryo-FIB approaches, including high-pressure freezing of thicker tissue samples and cryo-FIB milling with both gallium and plasma ion sources. Through sustained exchange, shared instrumentation expertise, and joint training of early-career researchers, the OIST-Keio Mirror Lab will establish transferable workflows for preparing, milling, imaging, and analyzing biological samples under near-native cryogenic conditions.

OIST PIs: Matthias Wolf [Molecular Cryo-Electron Microscopy Unit] and Oleg Sitsel [Marine Structural Biology Unit]

KEIO PI: Kunimichi Suzuki [Structural Analysis Unit, Human Biology Microbiome Quantum Research Center (WPI-Bio2Q)]