Labs in The University of Osaka, Immunology Frontier Research Center

0 student voices

The lab explores how immune networks are established in infected tissues.

The Tissue Immunology of Infection Lab focuses on the immune networks that form in tissues infected by pathogens, and studies the mechanisms that control their formation, maintenance, and protective functions. The immune response to a pathogen not only eliminates it but also builds immune defense mechanisms in the infected tissue, preparing it for the next infection. On the other hand, some pathogens are not completely cleared from the body and persist for a long time as latent or persistent infections. The lab investigates the immune memory that forms in mucosal and neural tissues after infection, as well as how latent and persistent infections are maintained and how they contribute to chronic disease, with the aim of leading to new strategies for prevention and treatment. The lab belongs to the Immunology Group of the Immunology Frontier Research Center.

#Immunological memory #Latent and persistent infection #Mucosal tissues

0 student voices

The lab uncovers how the selective use of genetic information determines the fate and function of immune cells.

The Functional Immunogenomics Lab studies how the programs that regulate genes control the fate and function of immune cells. All cells in the human body carry the same genetic information, but by using it in a precisely selective way, they give rise to a variety of cells with different functions. By combining screening that manipulates gene function with single-cell analysis, and applying them to patient-derived samples, the lab also aims to identify abnormalities in gene regulation in the immune system that lead to disease. The ultimate goal is to translate the findings into next-generation immune cell therapies for treating disease. The lab belongs to the Immunology Group of the Immunology Frontier Research Center.

#Immunogenomics #Gene regulation #Single-cell analysis

0 student voices

1細胞1分子イメージング（Single Molecule Imaging）／柳田研 (introduction coming soon)

Single-molecule measurement and imaging of intracellular information-processing molecular systems using proteins as biological elements

0 student voices

The lab observes how immune cells move inside the living body to understand how they work.

The Immunology and Cell Biology Lab studies how immune and blood cells move and function inside the body by observing them in living mice. Cells of the immune and blood systems circulate throughout the body and maintain functional links among organs. The lab aims to elucidate the basic principles by which this dynamic network maintains the integrity of organs and tissues. By visualizing the movements of the cells that break down bone and the cells that build it inside bone, the lab works to elucidate the mechanisms of diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis and osteoporosis and to develop new drugs. The lab can accept graduate students from both the Graduate School of Medicine and the Graduate School of Frontier Biosciences.

#In vivo imaging #Osteoclasts #Immune cell dynamics

0 student voices

A chemical biology lab that uses fluorescence and MRI to visualize molecules and reactions inside living organisms.

The lab studies chemical biology: it uses molecules made with chemical methods to investigate how biomolecules function inside living cells and animals. It designs and synthesizes by organic synthesis molecules whose fluorescence intensity or color changes when they encounter biomolecules in the body, and molecules that change MRI contrast (probe molecules). As a bar for its research, the lab requires that the molecules it creates can actually be used in biological research. The core discipline is chemistry, but students also study biology and physics as needed.

#Chemical biology #Fluorescent probes #MRI probes

0 student voices

A lab that investigates, at the cellular and molecular level, how the nervous system regulates immunity.

The lab aims to clarify, at the cellular and molecular level, how the nervous system controls the function of the immune system. Using mice, it investigates mechanisms such as how the sympathetic nervous system alters lymphocyte movement and creates day-night differences in immune responses. In addition, using molecules involved in lymphocyte migration as clues, the lab works on developing new treatments for autoimmune diseases. In January 2026, Prof. Suzuki took up a post at the Graduate School of Medicine (Environmental Response Pharmacology), and is moving the lab while holding a concurrent appointment at the Immunology Frontier Research Center (IFReC).

#Neural regulation of immunity #Sympathetic nerves #Autoimmune diseases

0 student voices

A lab developing optical technologies that distinguish the state of immune cells without staining.

The lab develops new optical technologies that can be used to investigate problems in immunology and biology. Much of its research is on developing label-free techniques that examine immune-related information at the molecular, cellular, and tissue levels without staining or other markers. It is particularly interested in the changes that occur in cells when they receive immune stimulation. The lab collaborates with applied physics research groups at the University of Osaka, and also welcomes collaboration with researchers in physics, biology, and chemistry.

#Raman scattering #Label-free imaging #Immune cells

0 student voices

The lab investigates how the brain experiences pain, combining computational models and experiments.

The Seymour Lab studies how the brain processes pain, using both theory and experiments. It treats pain as a signal that prompts behavior to protect the body, and uses computational models to study pain prediction and the learning of escape and avoidance. The lab conducts behavioral experiments and brain imaging studies in humans, and also aims to develop new technologies for treating pain. The lab's website is written as an introduction to a research group based at the University of Oxford.

#Pain #Reinforcement learning #fMRI

0 student voices

The lab investigates how the immune system works through computational analysis of sequences and structures.

The Systems Immunology Lab studies how the immune system works through computational analysis. It analyzes immune repertoires, the collections of receptor sequences carried by T cells and B cells, to investigate the characteristics of diseases such as cancer. The lab has continued to develop MAFFT, software for comparing biological sequences, since its first release. It also collaborates with experimental researchers on studies that explore how biological macromolecules function from their three-dimensional structures.

#Immune repertoire #Multiple sequence alignment #Protein-nucleic acid interactions

0 student voices

The lab seeks to uncover the pathology of immune diseases from patients' genomic information.

The Statistical Immunology Lab specializes in statistical genetics, which evaluates the link between genetic information and traits from a statistical perspective. It is known that, in addition to environmental factors, an individual's genetic background is strongly involved in the onset of immune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis. By examining the genomic information of patients with immune diseases, the lab aims to identify disease-causing genes, clarify disease pathology, and contribute to new drug discovery. The lab belongs to the Bioinformatics Group of the Immunology Frontier Research Center.

#Statistical genetics #Immune diseases #Genomic drug discovery