Members

Yukiko Goda, Professor
Email: yukiko.goda at oist.jp

I joined OIST in 2022. My research interests focus on synapses and astrocytes. Research efforts in our lab are geared towards uncovering cellular principles by which the strengths of synapses are set and dynamically modified in neural circuits, in a manner that is consequential to supporting animal behaviors. We also explore synaptic design in simple living model networks.

Full bio: https://groups.oist.jp/sbu/yukiko-goda

Tetsuya Hori, Group Leader
Email: tetsuya.hori at oist.jp

My biology started with animal physiology using crayfish, which I learned at Okayama University in my hometown. For my master's degree, I went to Kyushu University in Fukuoka, where I worked on neurotransmitter receptors using Xenopus oocytes. After that, I studied mammalian neurophysiology at the University of Tokyo. Since then, I have been using patch-clamp electrical recordings from multiple neurons that form synapses in the central nervous system of rodents. At Goda unit, I will primarily focus on understanding how the key players surrounding synapses, such as pre- and post-synaptic cells and astrocytes, contribute to the function of the modulatory/regulatory mechanisms of neurotransmission using multiple patch-clamp recording technique.

Mamoru Tanaka, Postdoctoral Scholar
Email: mamoru.tanaka at oist.jp

Mamoru has Ph.D. in science from Doshisha University. During his Ph.D. course, he studied synaptic plasticity using whole-cell patch clamp recording from pyramidal cells, interneurons, and mossy fiber boutons at the hippocampal CA3 area. Now as a postdoctoral scholar in the Goda Unit, he will focus on investigating homeostatic synaptic plasticity in hippocampal networks.

Maria Vazquez Pavon, Postdoctoral Scholar
Email: maria-vazquez at oist.jp

Maria has a Master’s in Drug Discovery and a PhD in Neuroscience. During her PhD, she studied the role of Nogo-A as a plasticity suppressor in both physiological and pathological conditions, mainly using field electrophysiological recordings. Now, as a postdoctoral scholar in the Goda Unit, she will focus on understanding the role of astrocytes on synaptic plasticity and synaptic communication.

Vasileios Glykos, Postdoctoral Scholar
Email: vasileios.glykos at oist.jp

Vasilis graduated from the University of Newcastle upon Tyne with a Ph.D. degree in Neuroscience, studying the cellular and synaptic mechanisms of in vitro models of cortical oscillations. He then worked at the Center of Brain Science at RIKEN to investigate the short-term memory encoding properties of dopamine neurons.  Currently, he is a postdoctoral researcher at the Yukiko Goda laboratory in OIST, exploring the astrocyte-neuron interactions that regulate synaptic behavior.

Wen-Hsin Lu, Postdoctoral Scholar
Email: wen.lu at oist.jp

Wen-Hsin graduated from National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University in Molecular Medicine Program, Taiwan International Graduate Program (TIGP-MM), Academia Sinica, Taiwan. She first worked as a postdoctoral fellowship in Institute of Biomedical Sciences, Academia Sinica to investigate how presynaptic local translation contributes to presyanptic release properties and memory. Now she joins the Goda Unit in OIST as a postdoctoral scholar to explore the basis for diversity of astrocytic morphology and function in brain areas.

Alisher Khojanazarov, Research Unit Technician
Email: alisher.khojanazarov at oist.jp

Their name is Ali, and they are from Kazakhstan. They have completed both a bachelor's degree in Biological Sciences and a master’s degree in Molecular Medicine from Nazarbayev University, Astana. Their previous research projects include studying the role of the periostin protein in Inflammatory Bowel Disease during their undergraduate studies and investigating its role in peripheral nerve regeneration for their master’s thesis. Due to their interest in neuroscience, they are excited to work at the Goda Unit. Their tasks include culturing neurons and astrocytes, taking care of mice, and housekeeping the lab. In addition, they study the function of NMDA receptors in astrocytes.

Paulette Garcia Andaluz, PhD Student
Email: paulette.garcia at oist.jp

Paulette holds a Bachelor's degree in Psychology with a minor in Neuroscience. During her undergraduate studies, she conducted research on the serotoninergic system of a Mexican endemic species of octopus to gain insight into how this neurotransmitter regulates their behavior and cognition. She investigated the distribution of serotonin and the 5-HT specific receptor 5-HT1A in the octopus brain using immunolabeling and epifluorescence microscopy.

Currently, Paulette is pursuing her Ph.D. at the Goda Unit, where she is learning patch-clamp electrophysiological techniques. Her research interests lie in exploring the interplay between Homeostatic and Hebbian synaptic plasticity and how they contribute to the long-term storage of memory in mice.

Saori Araki, Research Assistant
Email: saori.araki at oist.jp

Aurellia Ramara Winaya, Rotation Student
Email: aurellia.winaya at oist.jp

Tomoe Furuya, Research Unit Administrator
Email: tomoe.furuya at oist.jp