Faculty and Research Units OIST research units take a cross-disciplinary approach to research, and the PhD program encourages students to explore the intersections of disparate fields of science and technology. Find the research unit of your interest below. Faculty and Research Units Discover Research Specialties Browse research disciplines and specialities. Discover more Find a Faculty Member or Research Unit Research Unit | Faculty Member (-) Biology Chemistry Computer Science Ecology and Evolution Engineering and Applied Sciences Marine Sciences Mathematics Neuroscience Physics Facet Research Discipline Biochemistry Bioinformatics Biology Biophysics Biotechnology Botany Cell biology Complex systems Developmental biology Evolutionary biology (-) Genetics Genomics Health sciences Immunology Medicine Molecular biology Nanoscience Physiology Structural biology Synthetic biology Theoretical sciences Virology Facet Specialty Clear filters Cell Division Dynamics Unit The Cell Division Dynamics Unit studies the mechanisms of chromosome segregation and cell fate determination during mitosis with a focus on mitotic spindle assembly and positioning in cultured human cells and Medaka embryos. Tomomi Kiyomitsu Assistant Professor Cell Proliferation and Gene Editing Unit Every day, millions of cells in our body divide to maintain essential tissue functions. Errors in cell division can lead to developmental disorders or cancer. The research of the unit is focused on molecular mechanisms of cell divison and quality control in normal and cancer cells to understand tumor-suppressive mechanisms and identify biomarkers that confer a cancer-specific vulnerability to chemical drugs. The unit combines high throughput imaging, gene editing and genome wide screens to open new avenues for therapeutic development. Franz Meitinger Assistant Professor Developmental Neurobiology Unit Developmental Neurobiology Unit uses zebrafish retina as a model to study mechanisms that control neuronal differentiation and circuit formation, and neuronal degeneration and regeneration. Ichiro Masai Professor Genomics and Regulatory Systems Unit To function normally, organisms must ensure that genes are switched on and off at the right times and locations. Gene expression control is a complex process that requires the coordinated ac... Nicholas M. Luscombe Professor Neural Circuit Unit Neural Circuit Unit studies motor circuits using various techniques such as molecular biology, mouse genetics, trans-synaptic viruses, optogenetic, and chemogenetic tools. Yutaka Yoshida Professor Plant Epigenetics Unit The major goal of our research is to understand biological significance of epigenetic regulation of genes and transposons for environmental adaptation and genome evolution in plants. Hidetoshi Saze Professor Annual Reports A yearly report from each research unit Visit the page
Cell Division Dynamics Unit The Cell Division Dynamics Unit studies the mechanisms of chromosome segregation and cell fate determination during mitosis with a focus on mitotic spindle assembly and positioning in cultured human cells and Medaka embryos. Tomomi Kiyomitsu Assistant Professor
Cell Proliferation and Gene Editing Unit Every day, millions of cells in our body divide to maintain essential tissue functions. Errors in cell division can lead to developmental disorders or cancer. The research of the unit is focused on molecular mechanisms of cell divison and quality control in normal and cancer cells to understand tumor-suppressive mechanisms and identify biomarkers that confer a cancer-specific vulnerability to chemical drugs. The unit combines high throughput imaging, gene editing and genome wide screens to open new avenues for therapeutic development. Franz Meitinger Assistant Professor
Developmental Neurobiology Unit Developmental Neurobiology Unit uses zebrafish retina as a model to study mechanisms that control neuronal differentiation and circuit formation, and neuronal degeneration and regeneration. Ichiro Masai Professor
Genomics and Regulatory Systems Unit To function normally, organisms must ensure that genes are switched on and off at the right times and locations. Gene expression control is a complex process that requires the coordinated ac... Nicholas M. Luscombe Professor
Neural Circuit Unit Neural Circuit Unit studies motor circuits using various techniques such as molecular biology, mouse genetics, trans-synaptic viruses, optogenetic, and chemogenetic tools. Yutaka Yoshida Professor
Plant Epigenetics Unit The major goal of our research is to understand biological significance of epigenetic regulation of genes and transposons for environmental adaptation and genome evolution in plants. Hidetoshi Saze Professor