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Biological Oceanography Lab
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A lab that explores the ocean's material cycles through plankton.
AboutAbout the lab
Unraveling the ocean's material cycles through plankton
The Biological Oceanography Lab studies plankton living in the sea, with the aim of clarifying material cycles in the ocean mediated by living organisms.
The lab investigates plankton from two perspectives: the fisheries science perspective of sustaining the use of marine biological resources over the long term, and the oceanography perspective of plankton as the driving force that carries carbon fixed at the surface down to the deep sea.
Professor Yamaguchi is in charge of zooplankton and the open ocean, and Associate Professor Nishitani is in charge of phytoplankton and coastal areas.
The lab covers both zooplankton and phytoplankton, from coastal areas to the deep sea of the open ocean.
Key terms
- Material cycle
- The flow in which substances such as carbon circulate and change form among organisms and the environment
- Biological pump
- A mechanism by which carbon fixed at the surface is carried to the deep sea, for example through the sinking of plankton fecal pellets
- Ocean fertilization
- An approach of adding nutrients to the ocean to promote the growth of phytoplankton. It is addressed in research on preventing global warming
- Red tide
- A phenomenon in which plankton multiply in large numbers and change the color of seawater. It causes damage to fisheries such as aquaculture
NewsLab news
A paper by Associate Professor Nishitani and colleagues was published in Journal of Oceanography
A paper by Associate Professor Nishitani and colleagues was published in COMMUNICATIONS BIOLOGY
A doctoral student received the Best Student Presentation Award at the Joint Meeting of the Japanese Association of Benthology and the Plankton Society of Japan
A doctoral student received the UNITAS Malacologica Award 3rd Best Poster Presentation at the World Congress of Malacology
ResearchResearch themes
Plankton are widely distributed from land to the coast, and from the surface of the open ocean to the deep sea, and they influence material cycles in each of these environments. From the perspectives of fisheries science and oceanography, this lab studies the physiology and ecology of plankton. As basic knowledge for preventing global warming, it also focuses on research that takes ocean fertilization into account.
*Illustrative imageStudying plankton through genes and imaging
In addition to conventional microscope observation, the lab observes plankton quantitatively using gene analysis and image-based imaging analysis. Associate Professor Nishitani specializes in gene analysis, and Professor Yamaguchi specializes in imaging analysis.
*Illustrative imageThe biological pump that carries carbon to the deep sea
Zooplankton eat phytoplankton, and the fecal pellets they excrete sink, carrying carbon to the deep sea. This role that plankton play in transporting materials from the surface to the deep sea is called the biological pump.
*Illustrative imageNatural enemies of the plankton that cause red tides and shellfish poisoning
The lab investigates the ecology and growth mechanisms in the field of harmful and toxic plankton, with the aim of reducing damage to aquaculture. It focuses especially on research into parasites that kill these plankton, and its future goal is to introduce them into sea areas as a natural-enemy formulation.
MembersFaculty
The members of the Biological Oceanography Lab consist of faculty members and master's and undergraduate students.As of 2026
- ProfessorAtsushi Yamaguchi
- Associate ProfessorGoh Nishitani
- Assistant ProfessorMuhammad Izzat Nugraha
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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: “Deployment of oceanographic research vessels” NASA / Public domain (cropped)
- Studying plankton through genes and imaging: “Microscopy laboratory at the Wyss Center for Bio and Neuroengineering” Swissscience / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- The biological pump that carries carbon to the deep sea: “Marinesnow-splash” NOAA National Ocean Service / Public domain (cropped)
- Natural enemies of the plankton that cause red tides and shellfish poisoning: “Algal bloom(akasio) by Noctiluca in Nagasaki” Marufish / CC BY-SA 2.0 (cropped)
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