LAB LOGA page on LabLog, a review site (not the lab's official page)
Itai Lab
Machine-translated · View original
The lab measures water from lakes and rivers to study how elements circulate through the environment.
AboutAbout the lab
Tracing water to read the cycling of elements.
The Itai Lab studies how trace elements move through the environment, using geochemical methods.
Specializing in the behavior of toxic metals such as arsenic and mercury, the lab has conducted research in Asia, Africa, and the open ocean.
At the University of Tokyo, the lab is placing greater emphasis on research in inland waters such as lakes and rivers.
The lab aims to re-examine the natural environment of the Japanese Archipelago from a geochemical perspective and to renew our understanding of elemental cycling.
Key terms
- Trace elements
- Elements that are present in only very small amounts in rocks, water, and living organisms. Arsenic and mercury are among them.
- Stable isotope ratio
- The proportions in which atoms of the same element but with different masses are mixed. It offers clues to the path an element has taken.
- Catchment
- The area from which rainfall flows over and under the ground and gathers into a single river or lake.
ResearchResearch themes
The lab specializes in analyzing the geochemical dynamics of trace elements and applying that knowledge to environmental science. It studies lakes and rivers across a wide range of scales, from test tubes to real-world environments, while building a setting where research can begin right away.
*Illustrative imageBehavior of Toxic Metals in the Environment
The lab specializes in how toxic metals such as arsenic and mercury move. It has investigated the mechanisms by which arsenic-contaminated groundwater forms in the Bengal Plain, the movement of mercury in organisms and sediments, and metal contamination associated with the processing of electrical and electronic waste in Ghana.
*Illustrative imageRethinking Elemental Cycling in the Japanese Archipelago
Since 2020, the lab has been conducting comprehensive surveys of lakes and rivers in catchments across Japan. By comparing forests, farmland, wetlands, and water bodies using chemical measurements and geographic information systems, it aims to renew the understanding of elemental cycling in island-arc surface environments.
*Illustrative imageEcosystem Geochemistry
The lab is developing methods to comprehensively and systematically analyze the transfer of trace elements between the environment and organisms. To describe element flows through food as well, it is broadening the range of target elements and applying stable isotope ratio analysis.
MembersFaculty
- Associate ProfessorItai TakaakiPublications ↗
VoicesStudent voices
Compiled from answers by students who were in the lab. Ratings and reviews reflect individual students' experiences, not the lab's official views.
Students who take part in an interview may receive a thank-you gift worth ¥1,000, regardless of what they say.
On a 4-point scale, ● marks where students' answers fall
Who is this lab for?
What's great about this lab?
What did you learn after joining?
What's the vibe, and what is the professor like?
Where do graduates go?
RelatedLabs similar to Itai Lab
Molecular Geochemistry Lab (MGL)Faculty of Science, Department of Earth and Planetary Environmental ScienceGeochemistry, environmental chemistry, and radiochemistry (m…
Takigawa LabFaculty of Science, Department of Earth and Planetary Environmental ScienceAstromineralogy, Experimental Astrophysical Chemistry, Galac…
Yamano LabFaculty of Science, Department of Earth and Planetary Environmental SciencePhysical geography; environmental change, coral reefs, remot…
Mori Lab (Volcanic Fluids / Volcanic Chemistry)Faculty of Science, Department of Earth and Planetary Environmental ScienceVolcanology, volcano geochemistry, and volcanic gas emission…The information on this page is compiled by the LabLog team from the lab's public information and interviews. For corrections or removal requests, please contact LabLog, not the lab.
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: “LakeBiwa” Ka23 13 / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Behavior of Toxic Metals in the Environment: “Auripigment (Orpiment)” Ra'ike (see also: de:Benutzer:Ra'ike) / CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped)
- Rethinking Elemental Cycling in the Japanese Archipelago: “Rice terraces ,Ishikawa pref 1” Motokoka / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Ecosystem Geochemistry: “Diatoms through the microscope” Gordon T. Taylor, Stony Brook University / Public domain (cropped)
- Related lab (Molecular Geochemistry Lab (MGL)): “Diamond by Peter Smyth” Peter Smyth / CC0 (cropped)
- Related lab (Takigawa Lab): “Allende meteorite ( )” Steve Jurvetson / CC BY 2.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (Yamano Lab): “Shirahoreef ＆ New Ishigaki Airport by Peach Airbus A320-214 Shiraho Coast Coral Reef and New Ishigaki Airport DSCF9566a” 松岡明芳 / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (Mori Lab (Volcanic Fluids / Volcanic Chemistry)): “Mount Aso acid lake seen from helicopter by ET” Wikiwanito / CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped)
About LabLog
LabLog is a lab review app for students only. Student members at each university interview students in labs and publish what they say. Student voices can only be read by students who sign up with a university email address. Operated by bestiee Inc.
Learn more about LabLog ↗Search engines and AI may reference the basic lab info and rating summaries on this page and the description of LabLog. Student voices are for student members only. Automated collection by programs (scraping, or input to or training of AI) is prohibited under Article 8 of the Terms of Service. If you need data for research or analysis, please contact us.