RIKEN Center for Biosystems Dynamics Research Laboratory for Human Organogenesis
Team Leader: Minoru Takasato (Ph.D.)
Research Summary

By precisely recapitulating the developmental processes of the human kidney in directed differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells, we are trying to achieve the ultimate goal of generating a three-dimensional kidney that is functional and can be transplanted into patients. We appreciate knowledge from basic developmental biology that is essential for such regenerative studies; therefore, we are also highly interested in studies of human embryology. Utilizing our unique technology that generates hPSC-derived kidney organoids from pluripotent stages in vitro, we are focusing particularly on uncovering the developmental mechanisms of the human mesoderm and kidney.
Main Research Fields
- Biology
Related Research Fields
- Medicine, Dentistry & Pharmacy
Keywords
- Kidney development
- iPS cell
- Directed differentiation
- Kidney organoid
- three-dimensional organogenesis
Selected Publications
Papers with an asterisk(*) are based on research conducted outside of RIKEN.
- 1.*Takasato, M. et al.:
"Generation of kidney organoids from human pluripotent stem cells."
Nature Protocols, 11, 1681-92 (2016). - 2.*Takasato, M. & Little, M. H.:
"A strategy for generating kidney organoids: Recapitulating the development in human pluripotent stem cells"
Dev. Biol., 420, 210-20 (2016). - 3.*Takasato, M. et al.:
"Kidney organoids from human iPS cells contain multiple lineages and model human nephrogenesis"
Nature 526, 564-8 (2015). - 4.*Takasato, M. & Little, M. H.:
"The origin of the mammalian kidney: implications for recreating the kidney in vitro"
Development 142, 1937-1947 (2015). - 5.*Takasato, M. et al.:
"Directing human embryonic stem cell differentiation towards a renal lineage generates a self-organizing kidney"
Nat. Cell Biol. 16, 118-26 (2014). - 6.*Hendry, C. E. et al.:
"Direct transcriptional reprogramming of adult cells to embryonic nephron progenitors"
J. Am. Soc. Nephrol. 24, 1424-34 (2013). - 7.*Takasato, M. et al.:
"Trb2, a mouse homolog of tribbles, is dispensable for kidney and mouse development"
Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun. 373, 648-52 (2008). - 8.*Osafune, K., Takasato, M., Kispert, A., Asashima, M. & Nishinakamura, R.:
"Identification of multipotent progenitors in the embryonic mouse kidney by a novel colony-forming assay"
Development 133, 151-61 (2006).
Related Links
Lab Members
Principal investigator
- Minoru Takasato
- Team Leader
Core members
- Wei Zhao
- Research Scientist
- Kisa Kakiguchi
- Technical Staff I
- Kazuhiro Ofuji
- Technical Staff I
Careers
Position | Deadline |
---|---|
Seeking a Research Scientist (HO1904) | Open until filled |
Contact Information
3F, RIKEN BDR Developmental Biology Bldg.A,
2-2-3 Minatojima-minamimachi, Chuou-ku,
Kobe, Hyogo,
650-0047 Japan
Email: minoru.takasato [at] riken.jp