Related Outline

We are investigating the dynamics and regulatory mechanisms of intercellular junctions in epithelial cells. These junctions are not merely physical attachments but play crucial roles in mechanical and biochemical signal transduction at both the cellular and tissue levels. Our goal is to elucidate how such adhesive structures are formed and dynamically remodeled to facilitate tissue morphogenesis during processes such as development and regeneration.

Career

2025 – Present   Assistant Professor, Graduate School of Biostudies, Kyoto University
2024 – 2025   Program-Specific Researcher (JSPS-PD), Graduate School of Biostudies, Kyoto University
2023 – 2024   JSPS Postdoctoral Fellow, Exploratory Research Center on Life and Living Systems (ExCELLS), National Institutes of Natural Sciences
2022 – 2023   Project Research Stuff, National Institute for Basic Biology, National Institutes of Natural Sciences
2022   Ph.D. at Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, The University of Tokyo

Representative Achievements

• ZO-1 shuttles between tight junctions and podosomes by riding ERK activation waves during collective cell migration
  Sayuki Hirano; Yohei Kondo; Noriyuki Kinoshita; Tetsuhisa Otani; Mikio Furuse; Naoto Ueno; Kazuhiro Aoki
  bioRxiv
  DOI: 10.1101/2024.08.09.607278
• Alignment of the cell long axis by unidirectional tension acts cooperatively with Wnt signalling to establish planar cell polarity
  Sayuki Hirano; Yusuke Mii; Guillaume Charras; Tatsuo Michiue
  Development
  DOI: 10.1242/dev.200515
• FRET-based tension measurement across actin-associated mechanotransductive structures using Lima1
  Sayuki Hirano; Takayoshi Yamamoto; Tatsuo Michiue
  The International Journal of Developmental Biology
  DOI: 10.1387/ijdb.180110tm
• Fam46a regulates BMP-dependent pre-placodal ectoderm differentiation in Xenopus
  Tomoko Watanabe; Takayoshi Yamamoto; Kohei Tsukano; Sayuki Hirano; Ayumi Horikawa; Tatsuo Michiue
  Development
  DOI: 10.1242/dev.166710