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Saitoh Lab
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A lab that studies mental and brain disorders through pharmacology, aiming to develop new therapeutic drugs.
AboutAbout the lab
Exploring the mechanisms of mental and brain disorders through pharmacology.
The Saitoh Lab studies why mental and brain disorders such as depression and anxiety disorders arise, from the standpoint of pharmacology, which examines how drugs affect the functions of the body.
Through experiments using animal models of disease and tissue, the lab identifies the neural circuits and biological substances involved.
Based on these findings, the lab aims to develop new therapeutic drugs and preventive methods.
The lab also conducts joint research with outside research institutions, including the International Institute for Integrative Sleep Medicine at the University of Tsukuba and the National Center of Neurology and Psychiatry.
Key terms
- Pharmacology
- A field that analyzes the effects of drugs on biological functions while seeking to understand how the body works
- Emotional neural circuits
- Neural circuits that control emotions such as joy, anger, sadness, and pleasure
- Nucleus accumbens
- A region that is part of the emotional neural circuits and is thought to be involved in positive emotional responses such as joy and pleasure
NewsLab news
A student won a Special Poster Presentation Award at the Korea-Japan Joint Seminar on Pharmacology
A student won an Encouragement Award at the Japanese Society of Stress Research
The research of the professor and a doctoral student was featured in a university press release
The research of the professor and a doctoral student was featured in a university press release
ResearchResearch themes
The lab is developing disease models and new therapeutic drugs based on an understanding of emotional neural circuits. It also works on discovering psychotropic drugs that target opioid receptors and on developing methods to predict the harmful effects of cathinone-type illicit drugs.
*Illustrative imageEmotional Neural Circuits and Disease Models
Emotions are controlled by emotional neural circuits; the nucleus accumbens is thought to be involved in joy and pleasure, and the amygdala in anxiety and fear. When this circuit cannot be controlled, emotional responses such as depression, drug abuse, and trauma arise, raising the risk of mental illness.
*Illustrative imagePsychotropic Drugs Targeting the Delta Opioid Receptor
The lab has shown in animal models that agonists of the delta opioid receptor have antidepressant and anxiolytic effects. It has discovered a new agonist, NC-2800, and is conducting nonclinical studies aimed at starting clinical trials.
*Illustrative imagePredicting the Harmful Effects of Cathinone-Type Drugs
Abuse of cathinone-type illicit drugs has become a serious social problem, and establishing methods to predict their harmful effects is desired. Focusing on the nucleus accumbens, which has been reported to be related to the reward system, the lab analyzes the mechanisms of the emotional effects that lead to addiction and abuse.
MembersFaculty
The members of the Saitoh Lab consist of faculty, visiting faculty and researchers, postdoctoral researchers, researchers, and doctoral, master's, and undergraduate students.As of 2025
- ProfessorAkiyoshi Saitoh
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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: “Mouse brain cells” Cody Siciliano / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Emotional Neural Circuits and Disease Models: “Pills and medicines 02” BuhaM / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Psychotropic Drugs Targeting the Delta Opioid Receptor: “Mu-opioid receptor” Protein Data Bank / CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped)
- Predicting the Harmful Effects of Cathinone-Type Drugs: “Drug addict” https://rebcenter-moscow.ru/ / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (東(恭)研究室): “Sugar 1” Gaurav Dhwaj Khadka / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (東(達)研究室): “Biological Mass Spectrometry ( )” Oak Ridge National Laboratory / CC BY 2.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (西川研究室): “Exosome with hsp70” Guillaume Pelletier / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
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