Recent studies have indicated that the hippocampus may also be involved in the pathophysiology of psychiatric disorders, such as schizophrenia and major depression. In our lab, we use various behavioral & pharmacological mouse models for psychiatric disorders, and are engaged in their analysis based on the morphological, physiological, and biochemical techniques. The goal of our lab is to elucidate the functional significance of the hippocampus and other limbic regions in the psychiatric disorders and higher cognitive functions.

1. Behavioral and pharmacological analyses of animal models for psychiatric disorders using video tracking system, fear-conditioning equipment, operant conditioning equipment, and prepulse startle system.
2. Morphological analysis of the diverse neuronal and glial populations in the hippocampus based on the immunohistochemistry, stereology, point process analysis, and multivariate morphometric analysis using originally developed image-analysis software libraries.
3. Multidisciplinary analysis of the neuronal circuits connecting the hippocampus and other limbic regions using electrophysiology, biochemistry, and chemogenetics (DREADD).
4. The curriculum is tailor-made for the needs and interests of each student.

Mouse early embryogenesis is characterized by dynamic structural changes that are associated with various cellular processes such as cell proliferation, apoptosis, differentiation and migration. We are interested in identifying the molecular mechanisms that regulate early embryogenesis, and determining how the behavior of each cell is orchestrated within the context of the whole embryo. In particular, we have studied axis formation in mouse embryos since we found left-right asymmetrically expressed gene, Lefty. We have also extended our research to various areas as listed below.

1. Molecular mechanism of anteroposterior and left-right axes
2. Regulation of pluripotency and differentiation of the epiblast
3. Molecular mechanism of maintaining axial stem cells in primitive-streak and tail bud regions
4. Molecular mechanism of heart morphogenesis, etc

1. Molecular mechanisms of tight junctions that support the epithelial barrier
2. Mechanisms of cancer invasion through epithelial-mesenchymal transition
3. Elucidation of the relationship between changes in lipid metabolism and the onset of various pathological conditions

1. Understanding the pattern formation process during development
2. Imaging and quantification of developmental processes
3. Modeling, numerical simulations and mathematical analysis of pattern formation phenomena during development
4. Reconstruction of histological structures from cells in vitro