Welcome to

Department of Biology

　Plant Science

• Plant Morphology and Ecology(Saikawa, M.)
  Studies on Carnivorous Fungi: including endoparsitic species, capture microscopic animals, such as nemathodes, rotifers and amoebae. We study how they parasitize these animals using light and electron microscopes. Current topics of our study are as follows: (1) Classification of the genus Euryancale Drechsler. (2) Classification of the genus Zoophagus Sommerstorff. (3) Occurrence and distribution of carnivorous fungi in an upper-stream region of Tama-gawa river.
• Plant Physiology and Biology Education (Katayama, N.)
  Focus is placed on the study of ecophysiology of algae, especially seaweeds. The photosynthetic response of algae to environmental changes in order to explore the relationships between their photosynthetic characteristics and their vertical and horizontal distributions are investigated. In addition, biology education at the primary and secondary levels is an important focus of this section. Major activities in this fields include the examination of organisms for teaching biology and the development of laboratory exercises.
• Biodiversity and Taxonomy (Mayama, S.)
  Under Construction.
• Plant Physiology (Nakanishi, F.)
  Under Construction.
• Plant Morphology (Iwamoto, A.)
  Under Construction

　Zoological Science

• Developmental Biology (Takagi, T.)
  The major focus of the laboratory is developmental biochemistry and comparative biochemistry of tropomyosin, a regulatory protein of muscle contraction, using sea urchin eggs and various muscle sources. The main purpose of our laboratories is to elucidate the functional differences and phylogenetic relationships among tropomyosin molecules which are widely present in muscle and non muscle cells and composed of multiple isoforms in both cells.
• Neurobiology (Yoshino, M.)
  The major research interest in my laboratory is to elucidate the role of ionic channels in various cellular function such as sensory transduction, synaptic transmission, endocrine gland secretion and muscular contraction. The materials used in the lab are the crustacean mechano-senory neuron, X organ-sinus gland, uropod skeletal muscle and the insect endocrine gland corpora allata. The experimental approach includes both the intracellular microelectrode and the patch clamp recording techniques.
• Animal Ecology (Karino, K.)
  The main interest of this laboratory is behavioral ecology, especially reproductive tactics and strategies of various animals under natural and experimental conditions. For example, we are now investigating sexual selection and sex change of coral reef fishes, male-male competition and evolution of male horns in horned beetles, and population dynamics and dispersion of juveniles in flying squirrels.
• Morphology and Biological Education (Takamori, H.)
  Under Construction.
• (Hara, K.)
  Under Construction.

　Life Science

• Molecular Biology (Iida, H.)
  Under Construction.
• (Harada, K.)