
CiRA Reporter
CiRA Reporter

Internship
December 25, 2024
CiRA Research Internship Program Student Interview vol. 10
-A Month-Long Mesmerizing Experience with the Latest in Gene-Editing Technology-

Yuto Inoue, a graduate student at Hiroshima University,
in the CiRA Open Lab
Influenced by his pharmacist parents, Yuto Inoue has been interested in medicine since childhood. He is a current student at the Graduate School of Biomedical and Health Sciences at Hiroshima University, focusing on gene editing, a new powerful technology to manipulate DNA with unprecedented precision recently celebrated by the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2020.
As a master’s student, Inoue has been involved in research to improve gene editing efficiency but was concerned that his research was stagnating. He decided to participate in the CiRA Research Internship Program to gain a deeper knowledge of gene editing.
"I saw a notice about the CiRA Research Internship Program on the bulletin board at my university, so I decided to apply," he said. "I knew I could not pass up the chance to be involved in cutting-edge research. First, I researched all the laboratories at CiRA and contacted the Hotta Laboratory because its research is the closest to what I wanted to study. I was delighted to receive a positive response."

The laboratory led by Associate Professor Akitsu Hotta (Department of Clinical Application) is a team researching cures for intractable diseases using iPS cell and gene editing technology. In particular, the lab developed NanoMEDIC, a technology for delivering gene editing tools with substantially lower risks than conventional methods, which they hope will be used widely for gene therapy in the future.
"I found the experience working with NanoMEDIC very stimulating," said Inoue. "I remember how impressed and excited I was when I tried using NanoMEDIC and saw the delivery taking place."
Regarding his research experience at CiRA, Inoue said, "It was a fulfilling month! I really feel like I want to do research here! The Hotta Lab offers a very open research environment. Everyone was kind enough to teach me everything, and discussions among students were very active. I was also inspired by the global nature of CiRA. I braced myself up, seeing English used throughout the entire institute, and it made me want to improve my English skills too."
Inoue hopes to become a researcher who can transcend borders in the future. We look forward to your bright future in research!
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Interview and written by Fuuki Amano
Graduate Student, CiRA Hidetoshi Sakurai Laboratory
(Translation: Kelvin Hui Ph.D., CiRA Research Promoting Office)