Department of Integrative Bioanalytics
Institute of Development, Aging and Cancer, Tohoku University
Lab News
2026-06-11
Lecture to commemorate the appointment of the professor
On June 11, 2026 (Thursday), I attended and delivered a lecture at the "Professor Appointment Commemorative Lecture" held at the Seiryo Auditorium, the hall commemorating the 100th anniversary of the Faculty of Medicine.
▪︎Date and Time: June 11th (Thursday), 10:00 AM - 5:05 PM (Greeting from Dean Ishii at 10:00 AM)
▪︎Location: Seiryo Auditorium, Medical School Centennial Commemorative Hall (2-1 Seiryo-cho, Aoba-ku, Sendai City TEL: 022-717-8181)
1) Professor Hidekata Mishima (Environmental Medicine) 10:05-10:45
"Redox, Cell Death, and Disease in Living Organisms"
2) Professor Yoichiro Yamamoto (Field of Artificial Intelligence and Medical Science) 10:50-11:30
"Cells and Artificial Intelligence: The Future of Medical Research Opened Up by AI for Science"
3) Professor Shinpei Kawaoka (Field of Biomedical Information Analysis) 11:35-12:15
"Understanding complex biological phenomena through the analysis of biological information."
4) Professor Hiroyuki Yamamoto (Medical Data Science) 13:15-13:55
"The Past and Future of the Utilization of Large-Scale Healthcare Data"
5) Professor Akiko Sato (Department of Integrative Physiology) 14:00-14:40
"An integrated understanding of the aging life control mechanism driven by age-related changes in the hypothalamus."
6) Professor Koichiro Sugimura (Department of Clinical Physiology and Laboratory Science) 14:55-15:35
"Towards Overcoming Intractable Cardiovascular Diseases: A Multifaceted Approach to Unmet Needs"
7) Professor Minoru Miyashita (Department of Breast and Endocrine Surgery) 15:40-16:20
"Towards achieving optimal cancer treatment"
8) Professor Shinpei Kawamoto (Department of Aging Biology) 16:25-17:05
"Elucidating the aging mechanism by focusing on the microbiome, immunity, and cellular senescence."
2023-09-07
Recruiting experimental subjects
Blood sampling and measurement of biosignals to investigate the effects of video games and dialogue.
■Experiment Details
You will play Nintendo Switch games (such as *Super Mario Maker 2* and other well-known titles) and engage in conversation with other participants for two hours under specified conditions. Before and after the gameplay and conversation, a doctor will draw a blood sample, and you will be asked to complete a questionnaire about yourself and your current health status. Additionally, during the gameplay and conversation, you will wear a device to measure your vital signs, such as your heart rate and body temperature.
* Even beginners are welcome to participate.
■Appreciation Gifts
※Participants who complete the experiment will receive a QUO Card equivalent to 1,000 yen per hour for the time they actually spent participating in the experiment.
■Duration
October through mid-December
(We will coordinate the specific dates based on your availability)
■Estimated Time
13:00-17:00 ＊The duration of the experiment may vary slightly.
■Eligibility Requirements
・Japanese nationals aged 20 or older and 65 or younger
・Individuals whose BMI is between 18.5 and 30.0 and whose weight is 40 kg or more
・Individuals who agree to the content of this study and are willing to sign the consent form
（On the day of the procedure, you will receive an explanation regarding its purpose, details, safety, and risks, among other things, prior to the procedure.）In addition, individuals with a history of clinically significant symptoms related to the following conditions, or those currently suffering from them, are not eligible to participate.
・People with blood disorders, kidney disease, endocrine disorders, lung disease,gastrointestinal disorders, cardiovascular disease, liver disease, or mental disorders
・Individuals with a history of severe head or spinal cord trauma, surgery, gastrointestinal or urinary tract bleeding, major surgery, or severe trauma to areas other than the head within the past 3 months
・Women who are pregnant or breastfeeding
・Other: We may decline to recruit participants whom we determine to be ineligible for the experiment, including those suffering from severe sleep deprivation or excessive stress, those experiencing symptoms such as menopausal disorders, and those who make excessive use of video conferencing systems.
Please access the “Research Participation Application” form via the URL below and fill out the required information.
2023-04-08
Recent updates / Recent updates
I've entered my second spring at the Institute for Aging and Development. It's become much livelier since I first started working here.
I hope to continue enjoying the process so that I can develop good research.
[Recent status 1]
I have published several papers.
First, here is a paper on the disruption of the liver spatial transcriptome due to distant cancer (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36694005/).
This is a joint research paper with Professor Vandenbon from Kyoto University and Professor Suzuki from the University of Tokyo.
Next is the relationship between cancer-induced liver inflammation and the acute phase response (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36817472/).
This is a joint research paper with Professor Kawaguchi from Kyoto University.
It appears that there are two types of inflammation: one that is dependent on serum amyloid-alpha and one that is not . The first author, Ms. He, joined us as an assistant professor at the Institute of Development, Aging and Cancer in April.
The most recent paper reveals part of the mechanism by which nicotinamide methyltransferase regulates lipid metabolism.
(https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37014628/).
I am deeply indebted to Ms. Yoda, as well as Professor Izumi, Professor Takahashi, and Professor Baba of Kyushu University for their invaluable support. I would like to continue this research in the future.
Recently, I had the opportunity to contribute a little to a very interesting paper on the evolution of hematopoietic systems by Professor Kawamoto and Professor Nagahata of Kyoto University (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36112959/).
[Recent status 2]
From April, Ms. He will be joining our lab as an assistant professor, Mr. Lio as a doctoral student, Mr. Kosaka as a master's student, and Ms. Okamoto as a technical assistant. I hope we can discover interesting things together with these new members.
###
We recently published three papers on the cancer-induced rewiring of liver zonation, cancer-induced inflammation and acute phase response, and the roles of NNMT in lipid metabolism in the AML12 cell line. We also contributed to Kawamoto-sensei's study on the evolution of the blood system, which is very intriguing. We also welcomed new lab members. We will keep working on what we are eager to work on, hopefully contributing to science.
2022-09-28
Preprints posted
I have published three preprints (pre-peer-reviewed papers).
One example is a paper that showed that the presence of cancer disrupts the spatial gene expression patterns in the liver, which is located remotely (Vandenbon et al: https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2022.09.27.509354v1 ).
The second is a paper that investigated the relationship between so-called acute-phase response proteins and inflammation (He and Konishi et al: https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2022.09.26.509617v1 ).
Thirdly, the nicotinamide methyltransferase that I reported on just the other day is involved in the gene expression of the hepatocyte cell line AML12 and
This paper demonstrates its importance in metabolism (Yoda et al:
(https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2022.09.25.509348v2 ).
************************************************************
Just posted three preprints.
In Vandenbon et al., we report that murine breast cancers disorganize spatial gene expression patterns in the liver ( https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2022.09.27.509354v1 ).
In He and Konishi et al., we investigate the relationship between acute phase proteins and systemic inflammation in vivo ( https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2022.09.26.509617v1 ).
In Yoda et al., we find that nicotinamide-N-methyl transferase regulates metabolism and gene expression in the AML12 hepatocyte cell line ( https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2022.09.25.509348v2 ).
2022-08-24
First basic medical trainee in the field of biomedical information analysis
Two third-year medical students from Tohoku University have joined our research lab as basic medical research trainees.
This is the first student I've accepted since moving to Tohoku University.
I was a little nervous, but Kuwahara-kun and Hasegawa-kun, despite having completely opposite personalities, are already showing great potential.
I hope we can have fun researching together for the next three and a half months.
Thank you very much!
2022-06-29
Editor's highlights
My recently published paper has been highlighted by the editors of Nature Communications.
This is in the Cancer category. The link is here. This study does not focus on cancer itself. Therefore,
I sometimes struggled to decide which publication would be best. Being featured in this category is a deeply moving experience.
Our paper has been featured in Editor's highlights in Nature Communications (Cancer section). We appreciate the editor for highlighting our work, which investigates cancer hosts rather than cancers. Here is the link.
2022-06-15
I published a paper.
The paper by Ms. Mizuno, who was with us from the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Kyoto University, has been made publicly available.
(Mizuno et al., Nature Communications, 2022)。
This research is based on the question: Why does cancer cause systemic symptoms?
In this paper, we have shed light on a new mechanism underlying the metabolic abnormalities that occur in the livers of individuals with cancer.
This research was made possible thanks to the support of many of my co-researchers. I’m really glad we were able to publish it. I’ll do my best on my next paper, too.
2022-05-24
mass spectrometer
May is quickly drawing to a close. Paperwork is progressing, and the mass spectrometer is now operational. This machine allows us to determine the types and quantities of metabolites and other substances contained in samples. It's a valuable piece of equipment for our research lab, where we measure various things and use that information to analyze different aspects of the subject.
2022-04-27
Moving to the Institute for Aging Research, Part 1
We moved the lab on April 15th. There were four trucks, and it was quite an impressive sight. The deep freezer was moved with a crane. All I did was take pictures.
2022-04-09
Zao
I've moved to Sendai. I can see Mount Zao from my new home. There are lots of mountains to the west, and it's very beautiful.
Looking at mountains calms me down. I wonder why. I don't climb them, but just seeing them from afar makes me feel at ease.
Next week is the big day – we're finally moving the lab. I hope everything goes smoothly.
2022-03-31
Spring in Kyoto and a Glimpse into the Lab，
Part 1
The cherry blossoms are beautiful. Konishi-san took some pictures, so I thought I'd upload them. They suddenly started blooming a day or two ago.
2022-03-28
Redecorating for a move, part 1
This is Kyoto University. The room I've been using as my office will become a shared workspace for everyone. This desk will be moved to the Institute of Aging and Development. I loved this nest-like space.
2022-03-24
Preparing to move
Preparations are underway to move the lab at Kyoto University. Here's a photo of the room that looks the most like it's about to move out, out of the seven rooms.
I took the picture. I was worried that I might have forgotten to prepare something, but once it started, moving somehow worked out in the end.
Looking at my life as a whole, this is my ninth move. That works out to about once every four or five years. Moving is...
It can be lonely, but new networks are formed, and it's stimulating, so there's also enjoyment to be had.
I don't expect everything to go smoothly, but I hope everyone can move safely.
2022-03-17
earthquake
There was a big earthquake last night. I was on the 8th floor of a hotel, lying in bed. The first tremor made me sit up, and the second tremor made me frantically run under the desk. The desk wasn't very deep, so a glass fell and hit me directly, which made me realize it was a big earthquake.
The photo is of my house (which I don't live in yet). When I went to check on it, I found that the EcoCarat tiles in the living room were cracked. It's a porous ceramic wall material...but that's beside the point. I just realized how strong the shaking was. It was an earthquake at a really bad time.
I sincerely hope that there will be no further damage. But I can't just give up. I will continue my research while assessing the situation and responding appropriately.
Since the Shinkansen (bullet train) is stopped, I've changed my plans and will return to Kansai by plane.
2022-03-15
Painting the walls
It's been unusually warm in Sendai. Painters have been working on painting the walls since last week. Interior renovations are great; they completely change the atmosphere of a room. The right side is the second coat of paint, and the left side is the first coat. You can see that the colors are quite different.
Painting is a surprisingly complex subject, and it's interesting to learn about painting for ordinary houses. Different paints have different compatibility with wall materials and varying durability.
I recently attended Professor Nakano's retirement lecture. Thanks to Zoom, I was able to participate. I hope there will be an opportunity to invite him to Sendai and give him a tour of the lab.
2022-03-11
Carpet replacement
I'll be at the Institute for Aging Research for a while starting this week. It's been getting warmer since the day I moved in, which is wonderful. Spring is great, isn't it? Although I hate the pollen.
The room renovations are continuing. The carpet has been replaced. Wall repairs and electrical work are also progressing, and it looks like it will be finished in time for the April move.
They've done a lot of work on the housing area, and I'm just so impressed by the craftsmanship. I wonder how long it takes to acquire those kinds of skills.
2022-03-02
Nakamura-san, experiment in progress
The weather in Kyoto has been rather gloomy for the past two days. It's quite a letdown, especially since Monday's weather felt so spring-like. Come back, spring!
I happened to drop into the lab and saw graduate student Nakamura examining the genotypes of mice, so I asked if I could take some pictures.
The morning drama "Kamukamu" is reaching its climax. Will Rui and Yasuko be reunited? What happened to Santa Claus? I'm curious.
2022-02-24
Refrigerator stands alone
The lab is still under preparation and doesn't have much stuff yet. That's until the lab benches and equipment arrive from Kyoto. The refrigerator and the thermostat that sits in the back are staying behind as the advance guard.
From the window at the back, you can see Izumigatake Mountain to the north. Incidentally, from my house in Nara, I can see Ikoma Mountain to the west and Wakakusa Mountain to the east. In Kyoto, too, there are mountains everywhere you look. Seeing mountains somehow calms me down, but I wonder why.
2022-02-22
Oyster Bay
I'm at the Institute of Aging and Development this week. In April, I'll be bringing in some experimental benches and equipment from my lab at Kyoto University. With the help of many people, the setup is progressing well.
My room is still rather bare, so I'll just post some old photos. This is Theodore Roosevelt Park in Oyster Bay, where I lived when I was in America.
This view was less than 5 minutes from my house.
2022-02-22
I created a website.
February 22, 2022. I finally created my website.
The photo is of Shichirigahama in Kamakura. It's unrelated to my research.
