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Marine Biological Function Lab
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The lab improves fish through genome editing and studies how components from marine organisms support human health.
AboutAbout the lab
Exploring the superpowers of marine life.
The Marine Biological Function Lab studies the functions of genes, proteins, and metabolites in marine organisms.
Its work ranges from developing genetic modification techniques suited to aquatic organisms and methods for identifying peptides, to breeding fish species important to fisheries and promoting health through food components.
The lab has two groups: the Kinoshita group, which works on fish, and the Asai group, which investigates the health-promoting functions of foods derived from marine organisms.
Undergraduate students are assigned to the Marine Biological Science course in their third year, and to this lab within the course in their fourth year. (Graduate students belong to the Division of Applied Biosciences, Graduate School of Agriculture.)
Key terms
- Genome editing
- A technology that cuts DNA at a targeted site to change how a gene works
- Peptide
- A short chain of several amino acids. Peptides are produced when proteins are broken down
NewsLab news
Assistant Professor Asai received the Excellent Poster Presentation Award at ICNIM2026
A student placed 4th in the Flash Talk Presentation Competition at ISNFF2026
Associate Professor Kinoshita received the 21st Century Hope Award at the 9th Food Niigata International Award
Assistant Professor Asai received an Excellence Award at the Japanese Association of Medical Sciences Rising Star Retreat
ResearchResearch themes
The lab studies genes, proteins, and metabolites of marine organisms. Its main themes are genome editing technology for fish and its applications, and the health-promoting functions of food components obtained from marine organisms.
*Illustrative imageGenome editing in farmed fish
The lab aims to establish genome editing technology for farmed fish, targeting red sea bream and tiger pufferfish. Using this technology, it is creating strains with more meat and faster growth.
*Illustrative imageHow clownfish get their stripes
Many individual false clownfish (Amphiprion ocellaris) show unusual patterns. Using genome editing, the lab identifies the genes responsible and aims to uncover how stripe patterns form.
*Illustrative imageMedaka as disease models
Genome editing makes it possible to introduce genes that cause human diseases into medaka. The resulting disease-model medaka are used to analyze symptoms and to clarify how the diseases develop.
*Illustrative imageSupporting health with food components from the sea
The lab feeds animals peptides and other substances made from food-processing by-products to find active components. It has identified peptides from shark cartilage that lower blood uric acid levels, among others. It also develops methods for analyzing and evaluating these components.
MembersFaculty
The members of the Marine Biological Function Lab consist of faculty, researchers, and master's and undergraduate students.
- Associate ProfessorMasato Kinoshita
- Assistant ProfessorTomoko Asai
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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: “Red sea bream” malias / CC BY 2.0 (cropped)
- Genome editing in farmed fish: “Takifugu rubripes Kaikyokan” Totti / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- How clownfish get their stripes: “Amphiprion ocellaris (Clown anemonefish) by Nick Hobgood” Nick Hobgood / CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped)
- Medaka as disease models: “Oryzias latipes(Hamamatsu,Shizuoka,Japan,2007)-2” Seotaro / CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped)
- Supporting health with food components from the sea: “Prionace glauca cartilage” Michal Maňas / CC BY 4.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (育種学分野): “Ears of Wheat - Aylesham, Dover district of Kent - England” ㇹヮィㇳ / CC BY 2.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (蔬菜花卉園芸学分野): “Thai peppers” Daniel Risacher / CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (生殖生物学分野): “Blastocyst embryo” Database Center for Life Science (DBCLS) / CC BY 3.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (海洋生物環境学分野): “Dugong Marsa Alam” Julien Willem / CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped)
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