Research Overview

Clinical applications of iPS cells include cell therapy, disease modeling, and drug discovery using healthy or patient-derived iPS cells. The development of simple and reproducible induction methods is indispensable for all applications.

Our laboratory has developed methods for inducing differentiation into cells previously considered challenging to induce or deriving simpler and more efficient induction methods for cells requiring complex induction protocols. Of particular importance are cells at intermediate stages in embryonic development. By mimicking the in vivo environment elucidated in embryology, we are developing methods to induce target cells from iPS cells through multiple stages and culture methods to maintain cells at each stage as stem cells. Currently, we are focusing on neural crest cells, somite cells, lateral plate mesoderm cells, and mesenchymal stem cells for a broad range of interests, ranging from basic research to clinical applications. Our technologies have been applied to research on fibrodysplasia ossificans progressive (FOP), a rare and intractable disease in which ectopic bones are formed within muscle tissue.

With these initiatives, we aim to develop new therapies, particularly for intractable diseases.

Keywords:
Developmental stem cells, Mesenchymal stem cells, Neural crest cells, Somite, Lateral plate mesoderm cells, Disease-specific iPS cells, Ectopic bone formation, Osteocyte, Chondrocyte