LAB LOGA page on LabLog, a review site (not the lab's official page)
Nishikawa Lab
Machine-translated · View original
A lab studying how drugs are delivered, controlling the interaction between “drugs” and the “body.”
AboutAbout the lab
Controlling the interaction between “drugs” and the “body.”
The Nishikawa Lab aims to develop drug delivery systems (DDS) that precisely control the interaction between the “drugs” given to treat disease and the “body.”
Because drugs act by interacting with molecules, cells, and organs in the body, the lab believes that maximizing only the useful action (drug efficacy) would lead to effective treatment.
From the standpoints of biopharmaceutics and pharmacokinetics, the lab is building new methods to control how drugs move in the body, along with systems to evaluate that movement quantitatively.
The lab tests the effectiveness of the methods it creates in cells and in animal models of disease.
Key terms
- Drug delivery system
- Technology for delivering a drug to the place in the body where it is needed, in the required amount and at the right timing. Abbreviated DDS.
- Spheroid
- A three-dimensional spherical mass formed by gathering separate cells.
- Extracellular particles
- Very small membrane-enclosed particles released by cells to the outside. Also called extracellular vesicles.
NewsLab news
Paper published in Biotechnology and Bioengineering
A master's student won the SPI Poster Award at the In vivo imaging Forum 2025
An undergraduate student won an Excellent Presentation Award at the 69th Kanto Branch Meeting of the Academy of Pharmaceutical Science and Technology, Japan
A paper with a doctoral student as first author has been accepted for publication in Scientific Reports
ResearchResearch themes
From the standpoints of biopharmaceutics and pharmacokinetics, the lab aims to develop DDS that control the interaction between “drugs” and the “body” in order to optimize disease treatment. It works on DDS using nucleic acid nanostructures, cell therapy that enhances the function of transplanted cells, and control of the movement of extracellular particles in the body.
*Illustrative imageDDS built by assembling nucleic acids
Taking advantage of the property of nucleic acids to form double strands, the lab assembles nucleic acid nanostructures with shapes not found in nature, such as polypod-like nucleic acid structures (polypodna), and develops DDS that deliver functional nucleic acids such as CpG DNA and bioactive substances.
*Illustrative imageCell therapy with enhanced function
To help transplanted cells survive in the body and to allow their activity to be controlled, the lab develops highly functional cell therapy systems using methods such as forming cells into spheroids, using compounds that enhance function, modifying the cell surface with compounds, and introducing suicide genes.
*Illustrative imageControlling the movement of extracellular particles
For extracellular particles reported to be involved in disease, the lab develops new mechanisms to control their movement in the body and examines whether disease can be treated through that control.
MembersFaculty
The members of the Nishikawa Lab consist of faculty, doctoral, master's, and undergraduate students, and a secretary.As of 2026
- ProfessorMakiya Nishikawa
- Contract Special LecturerShoko Itakura
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 Nishikawa Lab
Higashi LabFaculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Department of PharmacyPhysical pharmaceutical sciences
Higashi LabFaculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Department of PharmacyPhysical pharmaceutical sciences
Saitoh LabFaculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Department of PharmacyPharmacology-oriented pharmaceutical sciencesThe 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: “Exosome with hsp70” Guillaume Pelletier / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- DDS built by assembling nucleic acids: “Holliday junction coloured” Zephyris at English Wikipedia / CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped)
- Cell therapy with enhanced function: “Co-culture spheroid of HT1376 and RT112 cells” Altyn0707 / CC BY 4.0 (cropped)
- Controlling the movement of extracellular particles: “Exosome kalamedits” Kalamedits / 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 (斎藤研究室): “Mouse brain cells” Cody Siciliano / CC BY-SA 4.0 (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.