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
Find a Faculty Member or Research Unit
- 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
Femtosecond Spectroscopy Unit
Utilizing cutting-edge time-resolved techniques, including ultrafast PEEM and ARPES, the Femtosecond Spectroscopy Unit explores extreme light-matter interaction on the nanometer and femtosecond scale.
Keshav M. Dani
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
Human Evolutionary Genomics Unit
We use the genomes of Neandertals and Denisovans, the closest evolutionary relatives of present-day humans, to identify genomic variants that are unique to modern humans.
Svante Pääbo
Professor (Adjunct)
Immune Signal Unit
All animals and plants have an innate, or non-specific, immune system to fight infection and disease. Unlike innate immune cells, cells in the adaptive immune system remember pathogens they ...
Hiroki Ishikawa
Associate Professor
Integrated Open Systems Unit
The Integrated Open Systems Unit aims to understand the fundamental principles that govern open, complex systems and apply such knowledge for real-world applications
Hiroaki Kitano
Professor (Adjunct)
Integrative Community Ecology Unit
Our unit employs theory-informed experiments, genetics, and mathematical models to identify how species interactions vary over time and space to influence ecosystem dynamics and functioning.
David Armitage
Assistant Professor
Light-Matter Interactions for Quantum Technologies Unit
We study interactions between small particles, such as atoms, and laser light using nano-optics tools, to better understand light’s influences on dynamics.
Síle Nic Chormaic
Professor
Macroevolution Unit
Investigating how environmental challenges, ecological interactions and key features shape biodiversity on scales outside human observation (macroevolution).
Lauren Sallan
Assistant Professor
Marine Climate Change Unit
The Marine Climate Change Unit aims to understand how coral reef fish respond to human society driven environmental changes such as climate change, heatwaves, overfishing, and urbanization.
Timothy Ravasi
Professor
Marine Eco-Evo-Devo Unit
Most coral reef fishes have an incredible colors but why and how do they appear ? We use clownfish as a model we decipher the origins of the colors and how the fish are using them.
Vincent Laudet
Professor
Marine Genomics Unit
Exploring marine genomic diversity helps understanding organism responses to environmental change in the past and future, both in terms of large-scale evolution and within their ecosystems.
Noriyuki Satoh
Professor
Marine Structural Biology Unit
The Marine Structural Biology Unit uses cryoelectron tomography and single particle cryoelectron microscopy to understand various aspects of coral biology in unprecedented detail.
Oleg Sitsel
Transitional Assistant Professor
Membrane Cooperativity Unit
We develop methods for single-molecule imaging and analysis, and apply them to unravel the mechanisms by which the cellular plasma membrane perform signaling and synaptic transmission.
Akihiro Kusumi
Professor
Membranology Unit
The human body is composed of ~37 trillion cells, all of which are surrounded by a plasma membrane. We aim to understand the relationship between plasma membrane damage and multiple pathophysiological processes including aging.
Keiko Kono
Assistant Professor
Micro/ Bio/ Nanofluidics Unit
Micro/Bio/Nanofluidic Unit develops lab-on-a-chip devices to probe fluid flows and discover new flow phenomena in microscopic worlds, with applications in biotechnology.
Amy Shen
Professor
Model-Based Evolutionary Genomics Unit
The Model-Based Evolutionary Genomics Unit works at the crossroads of computational and evolutionary biology. Our long-term goal is to achieve an integrative understanding of the evolution of Life on Earth and the origins and emergence of complexity across different biological scales, from individual proteins to ecosystems. To move towards this goal, we develop and apply model-driven evolutionary genomics methods to reconstruct the Tree of Life and the major evolutionary transitions that have occurred along its branches.
Gergely János Szöllősi
Associate Professor
Molecular Cryo-Electron Microscopy Unit
The Molecular Cryo-Electron Microscopy Unit investigates the structure of macromolecular complexes with an emphasis on viruses, ion channels, and membrane proteins. The unit seeks better und...
Matthias Wolf
Professor
Molecular Genetics Unit
Work in the Molecular Genetics Unit combines comparative genomics, population genetic modeling, and genetic mapping. The unit uses new approaches for sequencing and analyzing genomes to inve...
Daniel Rokhsar
Professor (Adjunct)