The University of Tokyo · Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology
Professor Yuichi Iino's research lab focuses on the molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying neuronal plasticity, learning, and behavior in *Caenorhabditis elegans*. The lab investigates how sensory neurons detect and adapt to environmental cues—such as chemicals and temperature—through dynamic signaling pathways, including insulin and PI3K signaling. Using advanced in vivo imaging and computational image analysis, the lab uncovers how subcellular changes in neurons, such as protein translocation and synaptic remodeling, underlie behavioral plasticity like salt chemotaxis learning. The work integrates systems neuroscience with molecular genetics to understand fundamental principles of neural circuit adaptation.
Figures are computed from collected data and may differ slightly.
Caenorhabditis elegans shows chemotaxis to various odorants and water-soluble chemoattractants such as NaCl. Previous studies described the pirouette mechanism for chemotaxis, in which C. elegans quickly changes the direction of locomotion by using a set of stereotyped behaviors, a pirouette, in response to a decrease in the concentration of the chemical. Here, we report the discovery of a second mechanism for chemotaxis, called the weathervane mechanism. In this strategy animals respond to a sp
Temperature-sensitive mutants of the pat1 gene of Schizosaccharomyces pombe are able to produce poorly viable spores from the haploid state without the requirement for nitrogen starvation if exposed to the restrictive temperature. Three lines of evidence strongly suggest that this gene codes for a factor whose physiological role is inhibition of initiation of meiosis. First, pat1 haploids arrested in G(1) phase undergo apparent premeiotic DNA synthesis at the restrictive temperature. Second, the
The phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K) pathway regulates many cellular functions, but its roles in the nervous system are still poorly understood. We found that a newly discovered insulin receptor isoform, DAF-2c, is translocated from the cell body to the synaptic region of the chemosensory neuron in Caenorhabditis elegans by a conditioning stimulus that induces taste avoidance learning. This translocation is essential for learning and is dependent on the mitogen-activated protein kinase-regul
Population density-dependent dispersal is a well-characterized strategy of animal behavior in which dispersal rate increases when population density is higher. Caenorhabditis elegans shows positive chemotaxis to a set of odorants, but the chemotaxis switches from attraction to dispersal after prolonged exposure to the odorants. We show here that this plasticity of olfactory behavior is dependent on population density and that this regulation is mediated by pheromonal signaling. We show that a pe
Quantification of neuronal plasticity in a living animal is essential for understanding learning and memory. Caenorhabditis elegans shows a chemotactic behavior toward NaCl. However, it learns to avoid NaCl after prolonged exposure to NaCl under starvation conditions, which is called salt chemotaxis learning. Insulin-like signaling is important for this behavioral plasticity and functions in one of the salt-sensing sensory neurons, ASE right (ASER). However, how neurons including ASER show neuro
To measure the activity of neurons using whole-brain activity imaging, precise detection of each neuron or its nucleus is required. In the head region of the nematode C. elegans, the neuronal cell bodies are distributed densely in three-dimensional (3D) space. However, no existing computational methods of image analysis can separate them with sufficient accuracy. Here we propose a highly accurate segmentation method based on the curvatures of the iso-intensity surfaces. To obtain accurate positi
The requirement of the cdc2, cdc13 and cdc25 genes for meiosis in Schizosaccharomyces pombe was investigated using three different conditions to induce meiosis. These genes were known to be required for meiosis II. cdc13 and cdc25 are essential for meiosis I. The cdc2 gene, which is required for the initiation of both mitotic S-phase and M-phase, is essential for premeiotic DNA synthesis and meiosis II. The requirement of cdc2 for meiosis I was unclear. This contrasts with Saccharomyces cerevisi
In sexually reproducing animals, mating is essential for transmitting genetic information to the next generation and therefore animals have evolved mechanisms for optimizing the chance of successful mate location. In the soil nematode C. elegans, males approach hermaphrodites via the ascaroside pheromones, recognize hermaphrodites when their tails contact the hermaphrodites' body, and eventually mate with them. These processes are mediated by sensory signals specialized for sexual communication,
Cilia and flagella play critical roles in cell motility, development and sensory perception in animals. Formation and maintenance of cilia require a conserved protein transport system called intraflagellar transport (IFT). Here, we show that Caenorhabditis elegans dyf-11 encodes an evolutionarily conserved protein required for cilium biogenesis. dyf-11 is expressed in most of the ciliated neurons and is regulated by DAF-19, a crucial transcription factor for ciliary genes in C. elegans. dyf-11 m
The effect of parathyroid hormone on bicarbonate absorption was tested in rabbit proximal renal tubules perfused in vitro. In proximal straight tubules 0.05 U/ml of parathyroid hormone caused a large and reversible increase in the steady-state bicarbonate concentration in tubule fluid. Further, the rates of bicarbonate and fluid absorption (measured at faster flow rates) were inhibited approximately 50% by the hormone. We conclude that parathyroid hormone directly inhibits fluid and bicarbonate
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