M.D., Ph.D. Professor Jun K. Yamashita
Cardiovascular diseases are major causes of death in advanced nations, and are valuable targets of regenerative medicine. In our laboratory, with the use of a systematic cardiovascular cell differentiation system from pluripotent stem cells as a core experimental system, we are intensively performing integrative researches both for basic studies of cell differentiation and more applied studies for regenerative medicine.
Research and Education
本We have been investigating cardiovascular cell differentiation and regeneration with a unique cardiovascular differentiation system using pluripotent stem cells. That is, we explored a systematic differentiation of endothelial cells, vascular mural cells, blood cells, and cardiomyocytes from common progenitor, Flk1+ mesoderm cells. This system is amenable to dissect each differentiation process sequentially even at the single cell level. We extended this system from ES cells to iPS cells, and from mouse to human. Then, we are investigating basic mechanisms for cell differentiation and cardiovascular regeneration strategies mainly through cardiac cell therapy and drug discovery.
Minimum-3D cardiac tissue generated from human iPS cells (Kawatou, Nat Commun, 2017).
Lab members.
Recent Publications
- Takeda M, Kanki Y, Masumoto H, Funakoshi S, Hatani T, Fukushima H, Izumi-Taguchi A, Matsui Y, Shimamura T, Yoshida Y, *Yamashita JK. Identification of Cardiomyocyte-Fated Progenitors from Human-Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells Marked with CD82. Cell Rep, 22: 546-556, 2018
- Kawatou M, Masumoto H, Fukushima H, Morinaga G, Sakata R, Ashihara T, *Yamashita JK. Modelling Torsade de Pointes arrhythmias in vitro in 3D human iPS cell-engineered heart tissue. Nat Commun, 2017 Oct 20;8(1):1078. doi: 10.1038/s41467-017-01125-y.
- Ikuno T, Masumoto H, Yamamizu K, Yoshioka M, Minakata K, Ikeda T, Sakata R, *Yamashita JK. Efficient and robust differentiation of endothelial cells from human induced pluripotent stem cells via lineage control with VEGF and cyclic AMP. PLoS One, Mar 13;12(3):e0173271, 2017. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0173271.
- Masumoto H, Ikuno T, Takeda M, Fukushima H, Marui A, Katayama S, Shimizu T, Ikeda T, Okano T, Sakata R, *Yamashita JK. Human iPS cell-engineered cardiac tissue sheets with cardiomyocytes and vascular cells for cardiac regeneration. Sci Rep. 4: 6716, 2014. doi: 10.1038/srep06716.
Laboratory
Professor Jun K. Yamashita, MD, PhD
TTel: +81-75-366-7057
Fax: +81-75-366-7076
e-mail：juny@cira.kyoto-u.ac.jp
URL：http://www.cira.kyoto-u.ac.jp/e/research/yamashita_summary.html