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Chemical Pharmacology Lab
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The lab explores plasticity, the ability of the brain to change itself, from the perspective of pharmacology.
AboutAbout the lab
For the brain, using the brain, to understand the brain.
The Chemical Pharmacology Lab studies plasticity, the ability of the brain to be active on its own and to change itself through that activity.
Brain development, memory, and diseases such as depression and dementia can all be understood as some kind of change occurring in the brain.
The lab investigates how brain circuits are built, how they work, and how they break down, and explores ways to treat, prevent, and diagnose brain diseases.
Through this research, the lab aims to contribute to drug discovery science.
Key terms
- Plasticity
- The property by which brain circuits change through experience and learning, and the changes are retained. It forms the basis of memory.
- Patch clamp
- A method of recording the electrical activity of a single cell by placing a thin glass tube against a neuron.
- Glial cells
- Cells located around neurons that support them and are involved in building neural circuits.
NewsLab news
A doctoral student received an Outstanding Presentation Award at NEURO2026
A student received an Outstanding Presentation Award at the Kanto Regional Meeting of the Japanese Pharmacological Society
A doctoral student received a Poster Award at the University of Tokyo Life Science Symposium
In collaboration with Hokkaido University, the lab revealed that neural activity in the medaka brain spontaneously switches between states
Assistant Professor Matsumoto received the JAICI Award from the Japan Association for International Chemical Information
ResearchResearch themes
The lab studies plasticity, the change of brain circuits through learning and experience, from the standpoint of central nervous system pharmacology. It aims to answer the question "Why do drugs work?" and to show the direction for developing new drugs.
*Illustrative imageObserving the activity of many neurons
The lab uses calcium imaging, which records the activity of many neurons at the same time, together with methods for analyzing the large amounts of data obtained. It approaches the mechanisms of brain circuits through the properties of neurons as a population.
*Illustrative imageAnalyzing neural circuits with patch clamp
The lab uses the patch-clamp method in brain slices and in the brains of living animals to study sensory information processing and how synapses are connected. Computational simulation is added to approach the function and plasticity of neural circuits.
*Illustrative imageNeurodevelopmental disorders and glial cells
Using animal models of autism spectrum disorder and epilepsy, the lab studies how glial cells such as microglia and astrocytes are involved in building neural circuits in healthy and diseased brains.
*Illustrative imageHow neural circuits are formed
Using animal models of epilepsy, depression, and autism, the lab studies abnormalities in how hippocampal neural circuits are formed and the resulting functional abnormalities. It is also developing a culture system that reproduces the circuit abnormalities seen in disease.
MembersFaculty
The members of the Chemical Pharmacology Lab consist of faculty, secretaries, academic specialist staff, researchers, and doctoral, master's, and undergraduate students.As of 2026
- ProfessorYuji IkegayaPublications ↗
- Associate ProfessorAi Nakashima
- Assistant ProfessorNobuyoshi MatsumotoPublications ↗
- Project Assistant ProfessorTetsuhiko KashimaPublications ↗
- Project Assistant ProfessorYu SatoPublications ↗
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Report an errorAbout the images
The top and research theme images are illustrative and were not taken at the lab. They are cropped from Wikimedia Commons images. Cropped CC BY-SA images are provided under the same CC BY-SA license as the original (version shown on each line).
- Top image: “Cultured Rat Hippocampal Neuron ( )” ZEISS Microscopy from Germany / CC BY 2.0 (cropped)
- Observing the activity of many neurons: “Hippocampal Neurons, stained” Ns takes photos / CC BY 4.0 (cropped)
- Analyzing neural circuits with patch clamp: “Pyramidal hippocampal neuron with fake microelectrode” Laurens R. Krol / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Neurodevelopmental disorders and glial cells: “CPCA-GFAP-for-Wikipedia copy” GerryShaw / CC0 (cropped)
- How neural circuits are formed: “Hippocampus splash” Alicia Uceda Heras, Alejandro Caraballo Llorente / CC BY 4.0 (cropped)
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