Tohru Yano (born 14 July 1984), Ph.D. 矢野十織
Education
Ph.D. (D.Life Sci.), Graduate School of Science, Tohoku University, March 2012
Title: Morphogenesis of the pectoral fin in teleost (魚類ヒレ形態の創出機構)
Supervisor: Dr. Koji Tamura
Readers: Dr. Asako Sugimoto, Dr. Takuya Minokawa, Dr. Yasuhisa Matsui, Dr. Harukazu Nakamura
M.Life Sci., Graduate School of Science, Tohoku University, March 2009 (Supervisor: Dr. Koji Tamura)
B.S. (Biology), Faculty of Science, Tohoku University, March 2007 (Supervisor: Dr. Hiroyuki Ide, Dr. Koji Tamura)
Academic Positions
2021 Aug- present Part-time Lecturer, Tokyo University of Technology2020 Jan- present Part-time Lecturer, University of Tsukuba
2014 Apr- present Part-time Lecturer, The Jikei School of Nursing
2013 Aug- present Assistant Professor, Department of Anatomy (Division of Histology and Embryogenesis) , The Jikei University School of Medicine [Okabe lab]
2010-2012 Part-time Lecturer, Miyagi Advanced Dental Hygienist College (Sendai, Japan)
2009-2012 Research Fellow supported by JSPS Research Fellowships for Young Scientists (DC1) [Japan Society for t he Promotion of Science (JSPS)]
2009-2012 Selective Doctoral course student of the IIARE in Tohoku University [Institute for International Advanced Research and Education (IIARE)]
2008-2009 Selective Master's course student of the IIARE in Tohoku University [Institute for International Advanced Research and Education (IIARE)]
2013 Poster presentation award of the 19th Japanese Medaka and Zebrafish Meeting
2011 Travel fellowship from Japanese Society of Divelopmental Biologists (JSDB) for BSDB, BSCB and JSDB joint meeting in University of Warwick (UK)
Peer-Review Contribution
2020: 2 articles
2019: 1 article
2018: 1 article
2017: 5 articles
2015: 1 article
2014: 1 article
2013: 1 article
Teaching of Students in Courses
Class: 2nd year Medical Students (Apr - Jun, 90 min x2 per year) (see "Archive")
2020 Jan- present "Vertebrate Morphology" Lecture (Part: Fish, Amphibian, Reptile, Bird)
Class: Undergraduate Students (Jan - Feb, 75 min x4 per year) (see "Archive")
2020 Apr- present "Human Osteology" Exercise
Class: 2nd year Medical Students (Spring, 180 min x9 per year)
2016 Apr- present "Human Developmental Biology" Lecture (Part: Limb development) (see "Archive")
Class: 2nd year Medical Students (December, 90 min x1 per year)
2015 Apr- present "Medical English" Exercise (see "Archive")
Class: 3rd year Medical Students (April - July, 90 min x10 per year)
"General Histology" Lecture (Part: Extracellular matrix)
Class: 2nd year Medical Students (June, 90 min x1 per year)
"Infection/Immunity" Exercise
2014 Apr-present "Symptomatology" Exercise
Class: 3rd year Medical Students (June, 120 min x2~8 per year)
"Microscopic Histology" Practice (general)
Class: 2nd year Medical Students (September - December, 240 min x6 per year)
"Human Anatomy" Lecture (Part; Musculoskeletal system, Cardiovascular system, Osteology)
Class: 2nd year Medical Students (September - December, 240 min x13 per year)
"Microscopic Histology" Practice (paticular)
Class: 2nd year Medical Students (September - December, 240 min x16 per year)
"Basic Laboratory Research" Exercise (see "Archive")
Class: 3rd year Medical Students (January - Febrary, 6 weeks per year)
2010-2012 "Principle of Biology" Lecture, Miyagi Advanced Dental Hygienist College (Sendai, Japan)
Class: 1st year Vocational School Students (April - July, 80 min x8 per year)
Laboratory Research Supervisory and Training Responsibilities
2013 Aug- Supervision of 7 medical students and 1 Ph.D. student / in our lab
2009-2013 Support for 4 undergraduate students and 2 graduate students / in our lab
Certificates of Faculty Development (FD) programs
2017 Skills of interactive active learning for medical education (The Jikei University School of Medicine)
2016 Startup program for medical students (The Jikei University School of Medicine)
2014 Skills of creating the MCQ (multiple choice question) exam (The Jikei University School of Medicine)
The Other Educational Affairs in The Jikei University
・"Medical Student Life Advisory Committee (Standing Committee)" member (2019- present)
#Online meetings, 11 times/year; Mails (sent/received), about 700 times/year; Student consultations; Telephone meetings etc
#2020年 慈恵医大受験生応援サイト "学生部委員会活動紹介
" (Japanese only)
・Medical Student Life Adviser
(2nd-year medical students) (2019- present)
・Proctoring of the university entrance examination (2014- present)
・Creating and Proctoring of the written examination at mid-term (2nd-year medical students, August) (2015- present)
・Creating and Proctoring of the written examination for promotion (2nd-year medical students, January) (2014- present)
・Creating and Proctoring of the oral examination for promotion (2nd-year medical students, January) (2015- present)
Activities for Scientific Communities
The Zoological Society of Japan (2007- present)
The Japanese Society of Developmental Biologists (2009- present)
The International Society of Developmental Biologists (2009- present)
The Molecular Biology Society of Japan (2009- present)
The Japanese Association of Anatomists (2015- present)
The Ichthyological Society of Japan (2020- 2021)
Seminor facilitator for Basic medical scientists in The Jikei University School of Medicine (2023-present)
Research Grants & Projects
2020 April - 2025 MarchGrant: Scientific Research (C) "General" [Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS)]
Investigator: Tohru Yano
Project: 魚類の鰭に見いだされた微小形態「鰭節間関節」の構造と機能
Grant: Scientific Research (C) "Generative Research Fields" [Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS)]
Investigator: Tohru Yano
Project: 器官サイズの再生現象における痛みシステムバランスの理解
Grant: Scientific Research (C) "General" [Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS)]
Investigator: Masataka Okabe (Tohru Yano is the Co-Investigator (kenkyū-buntansha))
Project: 四肢動物の祖先モデルとしての古代魚ポリプテルスの実験動物化にかかる基盤整備
Grant: Grant-in-Aid for Young Scientists (B) [Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS)]
Link: KAKEN -Database of Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research-
Grant: JSPS Research Fellowships for Young Scientists (学振DC1) [Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS)]
Investigator: Tohru Yano
Project: ゼブラフィッシュ胸鰭上皮形成の発生・進化メカニズム
Link: KAKEN -Database of Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research-
Grant: IIARE scholorship for "Doctoral course students of the Institute" [Institute for International Advanced Research and Education (IIARE)]
Investigator: Tohru Yano
Project: ゼブラフィッシュ胸鰭上皮形成の発生・進化メカニズム
Grant: IIARE scholorship for "Master's course students of the Institute" [Institute for International Advanced Research and Education (IIARE)]
Investigator: Tohru Yano
Project: 発生学を基盤とした多角的アプローチによる、対ビレから四肢への進化の証明
I have started my research about fin-to-limb evolution since 2006, when I was an undergraduate student.
My current topics include fin development, fin regeneration, and appendage evolution in vertebrates.
Link: ZFIN Person (https://zfin.org/ZDB-PERS-140122-7)
自己紹介（日本語）
昔も今もずっと好きな映画に「Back to the Future」があります。幼い頃から生き物を育てたり、化石を集めたりというように生き物の誕生・進化に興味があった私は、この映画に出てくるタイムマシンさえあれば過去の生き物に会えるのに・・・とよく考えていたものです。
そんな私にとって、ヘッケルの「反復説」を中学校で知ったときの衝撃は人生をも変えるものでした。
生物の発生過程をみることで生物の進化を知るEvo-Devo研究に興味をもち、東北大へ発生生物学を学びに行ったのにはこうした経緯があります。
医者になりたいと（一瞬）思ったきっかけですが、頭が良くないとなれないことを知り、やめました。
でも研究者になれば、医者でなくとも病気を治せるんじゃないかという思いで研究の世界に進む決心をしました。
冗談にみえて、ホントの話です。
そんなこんなで現在は博士課程からの仕事の続きとして、
①器官の再生メカニズム －魚のヒレはなぜ切っても切っても元の形に戻る（再生する）のかー
②器官の発生とその形態進化 ー鰭（ヒレ）と手足は相同器官なのに形が全然違うのはなぜかー
に興味をもち、主にゼブラフィッシュを用いて研究をしています。
理学部・生物学科を卒業し、博士号も取得し、生物のすべてを知った気でいました。
ところが医学部で展開されるヒトを中心とした基礎医学という学問は、これまでの理学の勉学のなかではほとんど触れられずにきた領域でした。
そこで現在は
③ヒトの基礎医学を着眼点とした組織・器官構築メカニズム
を開始しています。また当講座では世界で唯一、ポリプテルス（Polypterus senegalus）の胚を継代飼育できること・ホールゲノムデータを有することをアドバンテージとして
④原始魚類ポリプテルスを用いた分子生物学的・遺伝学的・発生学的解析
も展開中です。
略歴
2003年 私立早稲田中学・高等学校 卒業
2007年 東北大学 理学部生物学科 卒業
2009-2012年 日本学術振興会 特別研究員（DC1 面接免除）
2012年 東北大学大学院 生命科学研究科博士課程 修了