Ai Kiyomitsu, Ph.D.

Research Scientist

Food Science and Biotechnology

 

My Background

I received a Bachelor’s and Master’s and Doctorate (2007) degree in Agriculture from Kyoto University. I continued on at Kyoto University as a Postdoctoral Fellow in two different laboratories: Nutrition Chemistry (2007-2013) and Fermentation Physiology and Applied Microbiology (2012). After a parenting period, I began a new research project using Medaka fish with Assistant Prof. Tomomi Kiyomitsu at Nagoya University (2019). From April 2020, I joined OIST to continue my work with Medaka in collaboration with Cell Division Dynamics (Kiyomitsu) Unit.

Project

I am interested in:

  1. How Medaka early embryos generate beautiful cellular patterning to achieve proper development (see Figures below).
  2. How environmental stress affects this process at the molecular level.

To understand these questions, I am currently establishing several transgenic Medaka using CRISPR/Cas-mediated genome editing. I will use live cell imaging to visualize key molecular players in the early cell division process and analyze phenotypes in response to their depletion or inhibition. I will also analyze how environmental stress affects their behavior and function.