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Nutrition Lab
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A nutrition lab studying how vitamins and food components act in the body.
AboutAbout the lab
Investigating the actions of vitamins and food components
The lab carries out education and research to clarify the roles that nutrients and functional food components play in the body, and the mechanisms behind their actions.
It analyzes the anti-aging effects of vitamin K (menaquinone-4), biotin, and vitamin B6.
It examines effects such as anti-inflammatory action and improvement of cognitive function.
The lab is also searching for functional substances in foods and working to clarify their mechanisms of action.
Key terms
- Menaquinone-4
- A form of vitamin K2. It is the active form of vitamin K found in body tissues
- Microglial cells
- Cells in the brain. Persistent inflammatory responses in these cells are thought to be strongly linked to neurodegenerative diseases
- Angiotensin-converting enzyme
- An enzyme involved in raising blood pressure. Abbreviated as ACE. Components that inhibit its activity tend to lower blood pressure
ResearchResearch themes
The lab aims to clarify what roles nutrients and functional food components play in the body and the mechanisms behind their actions. Centered on new functions of vitamins and the search for functional substances in foods, it conducts studies using animals and cultured cells.
*Illustrative imageBiotin Promotes Testosterone Production
The lab found that administering biotin, a type of vitamin, to mice increases testosterone in the testes. Biotin is presumed to activate ADCY, the enzyme that produces cAMP in testicular cells, and thereby enhance testosterone synthesis.
*Illustrative imageAnti-inflammatory Effects of Vitamin K Side-Chain Analogs
Using cultured mouse cells, the lab examined whether geranylgeraniol, which has a side-chain structure similar to that of menaquinone-4 (vitamin K2), reduces inflammation in microglial cells in the brain. The results suggest that it may target NF-κB, an inflammatory signaling pathway.
*Illustrative imageFunctional Components in Fermented Rice Bran
A fermented rice bran developed by the lab has been found to help prevent and improve colitis in mice, among other effects. By investigating its anti-inflammatory components, the lab showed that tryptamine, a microbial metabolite of tryptophan, has anti-inflammatory activity.
*Illustrative imageBlood Pressure-Lowering Effect of Soy Milk-Derived Peptides
The lab isolated, from commercially available soy milk, peptides that inhibit angiotensin-converting enzyme, which is involved in raising blood pressure. One of them, FFYY, has been observed to lower blood pressure in spontaneously hypertensive rats.
MembersFaculty
The lab consists of faculty and staff, and doctoral, master's, and undergraduate students.As of 2026
- ProfessorHitoshi Shirakawa
- Associate ProfessorYusuke Ohsaki
- Assistant ProfessorAfifah Zahra Agista
VoicesStudent voices
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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: “CSIRO ScienceImage 3075 Laboratory work with microcalorimeter” division, CSIRO / CC BY 3.0 (cropped)
- Biotin Promotes Testosterone Production: “B vitamin supplement tablets” Ragesoss / CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped)
- Anti-inflammatory Effects of Vitamin K Side-Chain Analogs: “Vitamin K redox2” QuirineEijkenboom / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Functional Components in Fermented Rice Bran: “Rice bran” Palagiri / CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped)
- Blood Pressure-Lowering Effect of Soy Milk-Derived Peptides: “Blood pressure monitoring” rawpixel.com / CC0 (cropped)
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- Related lab (活性分
子動態): “Working in the Medicinal Chemistry Lab ( )” National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences from Bethesda, MD / Public domain (cropped) - Related lab (真核微生物機能学): “Koji Mold Rice” Zenyrgarden / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (食品機能分析学): “Olive oil factory – IMG” Kızıl / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
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