Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology

In December 1994, Akira Tominaga was appointed as the Professor of Department of Biology (currently Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology) in Kochi Medical School to take charge of the classes and an experimental course on “Biology” including Genetics and Immunobiology for medical school and graduate school (master course and doctoral course) students.

When the Graduate School of Kuroshio Science (doctoral course, currently “Kuroshio Science Program, Graduate school of Integrated Arts and Sciences”) was established in new Kochi University in 2004, Akira Tominaga, Takahiro Taguchi, and Satoshi Kubota participated in the graduate school. They have been trying to create interdisciplinary and international research fields. Until now, we have been supervising PhD students in Kuroshio Science, Master course students in Medical Science. They are taking charge of classes of biology and its related subjects for 1st and 2nd grade of medical students. In 2015, Dr. Takushi Namba engaged in “Innovative Marine Technology” program, joined in our laboratory.

Since Apr 2016, Dr. Satoshi Kubota and Dr. Takushi Namba have also been engaged in “Marine Biological Chemistry Course” as staffs of Faculty of Agriculture and Marine Science.

We are in charge of the following classes:

• Cellular and Molecular Biology (2nd Year, 1st Semester)
• PBL (Problem-Based Learning) II (2nd Year, 1st Semester)
• Medical and Biological Science I (1st Year, 1st Semester)
• Medical and Biological Science II (1st Year, 2nd Semester)
• Experimental Course of Medical Biology (1st Year, 1st Semester)

The major research targets of the laboratory are to elucidate pathogenic mechanisms, intracellular reactions, and treatments of allergic diseases and cancers. In addition, physiological and biochemical mechanisms of marine organisms have been investigated by using medical science techniques. The research topics are listed as below.

1. Study of the relationship between radiation-induced chromosome aberration and carcinogenesis.
2. Establishment of human cancer cell lines for studying tumor genetics.
3. Identification of new role of endoplasmic reticulum in the several stress responses.
4. Pharmacological analysis of chemical compounds, which produced by marine microorganism.
5. Molecular cytogenetic analysis of invertebrates, such as scleractinian corals and parasites.
6. Expression of genes and proteins on the scleractinian corals, symbiodinium and bacteria while recovering from coral bleaching caused by rising ocean temperature.
7. Regulation of delayed-type allergic reaction and tumor growth using various culture cell lines and IL-5 transgenic mice, in which eosinophils are selectively proliferated.
8. Regulatory effects of marine bio-resources such as algae on the life-style related diseases such as the inflammation of colon epithelial cells and diabetes.