The University of Tokyo · Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology
Professor Hironori Hojo's research lab focuses on the molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying skeletal development and bone regeneration, with a particular emphasis on osteoblast and chondrocyte differentiation from multipotent progenitors. The lab integrates stem cell biology, single-cell genomics, and in vivo models to dissect gene regulatory networks and signaling pathways—such as hedgehog and Ccl9—that govern skeletal lineage commitment. By combining human pluripotent stem cell-derived models with in vivo transplantation systems, the lab aims to model human endochondral ossification and identify novel therapeutic targets for bone repair.
Figures are computed from collected data and may differ slightly.
Tissue engineering is an approach to the regeneration of tissues that uses a combination of cell sources, signaling factors and scaffolds. Among these three components, signaling factors for bone regeneration have not yet been established, and it is necessary to better understand osteoblast progenitors as a target cells. Several lines of evidence have revealed that, during bone formation, mesenchymal cells are specified and differentiate into osteoblasts through several stages of precursors. The
Osteoblast differentiation is a tightly regulated process in which key transcription factors (TFs) and their target genes constitute gene regulatory networks (GRNs) under the control of osteogenic signaling pathways. Among these TFs, Sp7 works as an osteoblast determinant critical for osteoblast differentiation. Following the identification of Sp7 and a large number of its functional studies, recent genome-scale analyses have made a major contribution to the identification of a "non-canonical" m
Although the skeleton is essential for locomotion, endocrine functions, and hematopoiesis, the molecular mechanisms of human skeletal development remain to be elucidated. Here, we introduce an integrative method to model human skeletal development by combining in vitro sclerotome induction from human pluripotent stem cells and in vivo endochondral bone formation by implanting the sclerotome beneath the renal capsules of immunodeficient mice. Histological and scRNA-seq analyses reveal that the in
Skeletal development is tightly coordinated by chondrocytes and osteoblasts, which are derived from skeletal progenitors, and distinct cell-type gene regulatory programs underlie the specification and differentiation of cells. Runt-related transcription factor 2 (Runx2) is essential to chondrocyte hypertrophy and osteoblast differentiation. Genetic studies have revealed the biological functions of <i>Runx2</i> and its involvement in skeletal genetic diseases. Meanwhile, molecular biology has pro
Multipotential skeletal progenitors and the direction of the cell differentiation were characterized at single cell resolution in a mouse bone repair model. The Ccl9 signaling pathway may be a key factor directing osteogenesis from the progenitors in the model and may be a therapeutic target for bone regeneration.
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