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Biomolecular Chemistry Lab
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The lab creates materials and analytical methods from biomolecules produced by bacteria and cells.
AboutAbout the lab
Turning molecules made by living things into materials and tools.
The Biomolecular Chemistry Lab conducts research based on bacteria and cells, and on the proteins and polysaccharides they produce.
The lab pursues a wide range of work, including developing materials, analytical methods, and therapies that lead to solutions to real problems.
The lab hopes to connect its results to fundamental technologies for addressing global warming and the environmental damage caused by plastics.
Key terms
- Cellulose
- A tough polysaccharide made by plants and other organisms. It is the main component of paper and clothing, and the most abundant polymer in nature
- Bacterial cellulose
- Cellulose made by bacteria. It has a structure and properties different from those of plant-derived cellulose
- Bioluminescence
- A phenomenon in which light is produced by chemical reactions inside living organisms. Firefly light is a typical example
NewsLab news
Joint research with the Polymer Chemistry Lab published in ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces
Paper on nanocellulose composite materials, from joint research with the Polymer Chemistry Lab, published in Polymer Composites
Professor Tajima, together with Kusano Sakko, received the Regional Contribution Award at the 10th Monozukuri Nippon Grand Award
A master's student received a poster award at a joint symposium with National Central University in Taiwan
ResearchResearch themes
The lab starts from biomolecules such as bacteria, cells, and the proteins and polysaccharides they produce. Its themes range widely, from making environmentally circular materials to highly sensitive analytical methods that use light.
*Illustrative imageCellulose Made by Bacteria
Cellulose basically cannot be synthesized chemically, and most of it is produced by plants, but bacteria make it too. Bacterial cellulose has a structure different from that of plant cellulose, and the lab works to clarify how it is synthesized and to apply it to high-strength, environmentally circular polymer materials.
*Illustrative imageNew Analytical Methods Using Light
Bioluminescence and chemiluminescence are phenomena in which light is emitted as a reaction proceeds. They need no light source and can detect even tiny amounts of a substance. The lab develops analytical methods that focus on unusual reaction environments such as microfluidic devices, paper-based devices, and liposomes.
*Illustrative imageMaking Cellulose in Space
The lab is researching how to prepare cellulose using microorganisms in the microgravity environment of the International Space Station.
*Illustrative imageGrowing Animal Cells Well
The lab works on making stiff, robust animal cells for culture, developing cell-growth-promoting substances derived from fish blood, and establishing efficient culture methods that use clock genes.
MembersFaculty
The members of the Biomolecular Chemistry Lab consist of faculty, technical staff, visiting faculty, postdoctoral researchers, and doctoral, master's, and undergraduate students.As of 2026
- ProfessorKenji Tajima
- Associate ProfessorHirofumi Tani
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.
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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: “Microbial cellulose pellicle” User:Lightenoughtotravel / Public domain (cropped)
- Cellulose Made by Bacteria: “Nata de coco” Midori / CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped)
- New Analytical Methods Using Light: “Dinoflagellate bioluminescence 2” Mike / CC BY-SA 2.0 (cropped)
- Making Cellulose in Space: “ISS March 2009” National Aeronautics and Space Administration (Q23548) / Public domain (cropped)
- Growing Animal Cells Well: “Bioreactor for cell culture in the laboratory” Habin Zhang / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (高分子化学): “Polyethylene balls5” Lluis tgn / CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (触媒反応工学): “Nano-Legos” Snemani2023 / CC BY 4.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (界面電子化学): “The army of titanium dioxide nanotubes” Robert Kamalov, Irina Dorosheva, Alexander Vokhmintsev, Ilya Weinstein / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (マイクロシステム化学): “Microfluidic chip for point-of-care medical devices” FMNLab / CC BY 4.0 (cropped)
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