Technology Partnership of Nagoya University, Inc.
World Class Research Contributing to Society
Takema Sasaki
Assistant Professor
Graduate School of Science
Nagoya University
BIO.
Dr. Takema Sasaki received his Ph.D. in 2015 from SOKENDAI (The Graduate University for Advanced Studies), where he studied plant–microbe interactions. He then began research on the plant cytoskeleton in the laboratory of Dr. Yoshihisa Oda at the National Institute of Genetics (NIG), Japan. After a postdoctoral stay in University of Tübingen, Germany, he returned to NIG as an assistant professor. Since 2022, he has been serving as an assistant professor at the Graduate School of Science, Nagoya University. His current research focuses on plant-specific cytoskeletal regulation during cell division and morphogenesis.
Regulation of Microtubule Dynamics During Plant Cell Division and Morphogenesis
Plant cells lack centrosomes and are encased in rigid cell walls, yet they robustly execute precise cell division and morphogenesis. Our research focuses on plant-specific cytoskeletal mechanisms that support these processes, particularly through the dynamic regulation of microtubules.
We have been investigating plant-specific microtubule-associated proteins, such as CORD and MAP70, which regulate microtubule orientation, flexibility, and severing. For example, CORD recruits the microtubule-severing protein Katanin to accelerate phragmoplast expansion during cytokinesis, whereas MAP70 induces local microtubule bending, enabling the formation of complex three-dimensional cell walls in xylem vessels. More recently, we have turned our attention to a transient microtubule-based structure that may functionally substitute for centrosomes in plant cells. This structure assembles on the nuclear envelope prior to spindle formation and guides spindle orientation. Its disruption leads to defects in division axis positioning, suggesting that land plants possess a conserved, acentrosomal mechanism to ensure accurate mitotic orientation.
In this presentation, we will share our recent findings and discuss how plants utilize evolutionarily conserved and specialized cytoskeletal modules to precisely regulate cell division and differentiation.
Selected Publication
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Sasaki et al. (2023) Confined-microtubule assembly shapes three-dimensional cell wall structures in xylem vessels. Nature Communications Vol14: 6987.🔗
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Sasaki et al. (2019) A novel katanin-tethering machinery accelerates cytokinesis. Current Biology Vol29: 4060-4070.e3.🔗
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Sasaki et al. (2017) CORTICAL MICROTUBULE DISORDERING1 Is Required for Secondary Cell Wall Patterning in Xylem Vessels. Plant Cell Vol29: 3123-3139.🔗
Full list of Publication
Fanny Bellegarde
Assistant Professor
Graduate School of Bioagricultural Sciences,
Institute for Advanced Research
Nagoya University
BIO.
Dr. Fanny Bellegarde studied plant nutrition and epigenetics at the University Montpellier II in France. In 2017, she earned her PhD in Agronomy under the supervision of Prof. Alain Gojon and Dr. Antoine Martin at Montpellier SupAgro for her research on the epigenetic control of nutritional and developmental regulation in Arabidopsis. After a postdoctoral fellowship in computational automation for image analysis at INRA (Colmar, France), Dr. Bellegarde joined Nagoya University in 2019 as an assistant professor in Prof. Hitoshi Sakakibara's laboratory, a leader in phytohormone studies. There, she developed a research project combining epigenetic, nutritional, and hormonal regulation, focusing on phytohormone biosynthesis and nitrogen fluctuation, especially the phytohormone cytokinin (CK). Since 2023, she has been employed as a YLC (Young Leading Cultivation Program) Assistant Professor and has joined the early career development program, T-GEx (Tokai Pathway for Global Excellence). In addition to studying plant behavior to single nitrogen fluctuation stress, she has extended her research to repeated stress and plant memory. Her research goal is to improve crop tolerance to nitrate fluctuation stress, thereby stabilizing plant production and reducing fertilizer input in the field.
Fluctuation in nitrate availability impacts cytokinin biosynthesis in Arabidopsis roots through histone modifications for growth acclimation
In soil, nitrate concentration often fluctuates, which is a limiting factor of crop growth and development. Cytokinin (CK), a class of hormone that promotes cell division, is necessary for the long-distance nitrate signaling, especially an intermediate form of trans-zeatin (tZ): the tZ-riboside (tZR). Interestingly, genes encoding for the enzymes permitting the production of this tZR, IPT3 and CYP735A2, are strongly induced by nitrate and repressed by starvation but the underlying mechanisms remain poorly understood. Our research aims to understand how CK biosynthesis contributes to plant growth acclimation in a fluctuating nitrate environment, focusing on the function and transcriptional regulation of CK biosynthesis genes. Growing evidence has shown that chromatin modifications play a vital role in regulating plant responses to abiotic stresses and nutrient homeostasis, especially the dynamic of two antagonistic histone H3 methylations: H3K27me3 (repressive mark) and H3K4me3 (active mark). Our results reveal that the balance between H3K4me3 and H3K27me3 constitutes a mechanism of IPT3 transcriptional regulation depending on nitrate availability. In this presentation, I will present recent results revealing the importance of CK biosynthesis regulation in plant growth acclimation and its underlying mechanisms mediated by histone modification. Our findings provide insight into the epigenetic mechanisms that regulate CK biosynthesis which have the potential to enhance plant acclimation to a fluctuating nutritional environment.
Selected Publication
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Bellegarde F, Tjahjono O, Yoshino-Kida M, Kiba T, Shibutani M, Kuriyama M, Irving L.J, Kojima M, Miyata M, Sakakibara H. Fluctuation in nitrate availability impacts cytokinin biosynthesis in Arabidopsis roots through histone modifications for growth acclimation. Under revision in Plant Communications.
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Séré D, Cassan O, Bellegarde F, Fizames C, Boucherez J, Schivre G, Azevedo J, Lagrange T, Gojon A, Martin A. Loss of Polycomb proteins CLF and LHP1 leads to excessive RNA degradation in Arabidopsis. J Exp Bot. 2022 Sep 12;73(16):5400-5413. 🔗
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Jacquot A, Chaput V, Mauries A, Li Z, Tillard P, Fizames C, Bonillo P, Bellegarde F, Laugier E, Santoni V, Hem S, Martin A, Gojon A, Schulze W, Lejay L. NRT2.1 C-terminus phosphorylation prevents root high affinity nitrate uptake activity in Arabidopsis thaliana. New Phytol. 2020 Nov;228(3):1038-1054. 🔗
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Bellegarde F, Maghiaoui A, Boucherez J, Krouk G, Lejay L, Bach L, Gojon A, Martin A. The Chromatin Factor HNI9 and ELONGATED HYPOCOTYL5 Maintain ROS Homeostasis under High Nitrogen Provision. Plant Physiol. 2019 🔗
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Bellegarde F, Herbert L, Séré D, Caillieux E, Boucherez J, Fizames C, Roudier F, Gojon A, Martin A. Polycomb Repressive Complex 2 attenuates the very high expression of the Arabidopsis gene NRT2.1. Sci Rep. 2018 May 21;8(1):7905 🔗
Full list of Publication
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Amanda Avila Cardoso
Assistant Professor
Department of Crop and Soil Sciences
North Carolina State University
BIO.
Dr. Amanda Cardoso is an assistant professor of crop physiology at NC State University. Her program seeks to identify crops that are climate-resilient and efficiently use resources as well as to generate knowledge on best management practices to future-proof plant production. Crops of interest include soybean, cotton, maize, turfgrass, and horticultural crops. Dr. Cardoso strives to collaborate with researchers from various disciplines to devise innovative solutions for the complex challenges we face in agriculture.
Plant hydraulic traits influencing crop production in water-limited environments
Annual crops commonly experience production losses due to soil water limitation and increased vapor pressure deficit (VPD). Crop species and genotypes vary in their ability to sustain production during drought, which reflects variations in drought resistance mechanisms. Limited transpiration constitutes a critical drought avoidance mechanism through which plants conserve soil water for the reproductive stage and ensure grain production and quality in water-limited environments. Genotypes with low hydraulic conductances and/or reduced stomatal density and conductance efficiently limit transpiration during moderate soil drought and high VPD, thus avoiding excessive plant and soil water losses. While drought avoidance is certainly important to sustain production under moderate and terminal droughts, the importance of tolerance traits to crop production during drought remains debatable. As crop fields experience increasingly drier soils and greater VPD, tolerance mechanisms might become critical to crop production.
Selected Publication
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Haverroth EJ, Da-Silva C, Taggart M, Oliveira LA, Cardoso AA (2025) Shoot hydraulic impairments induced by waterlogging: parallels and contrasts with drought. Plant Physiology 197: kiae336. 🔗
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Simpson E, Haverroth EJ, Taggart M, Andrade MT, Villegas DA, Carbajal EM, Oliveira LA, Suchoff D, Milla-Lewis S, Cardoso AA (2024) Dehydration tolerance rather than avoidance explains drought resistance in zoysiagrass. Physiologia Plantarum 176: e14622. 🔗
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Pereira TS, Oliveira LA, Andrade MT, Haverroth EJ, Cardoso AA, Martins, SCV (2024) Linking water-use strategies with drought resistance across herbaceous crops. Physiologia Plantarum 176: e14114. 🔗
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Haverroth EJ, Oliveira LA, Andrade MT, Taggart M, McAdam SAM, Zsögön A, Thompson AJ, Martins SCV, Cardoso AA (2023) Abscisic acid acts essentially on stomata, not on xylem, to improve drought resistance in tomato. Plant, Cell & Environment 46: 3229–3241. 🔗
Full list of Publication
Acer VanWallendael
Assistant Professor
Departments of Horticulture and Crop & Soil Sciences
North Carolina State University
BIO.
Dr. Acer VanWallendael is an Assistant Professor of Weed Genetics at NCSU in the Departments of Horticulture and Crop & Soil Sciences. Dr. VanWallendael's lab studies several aspects of the genetics of weeds and invasive plants, particularly the coevolution of related crop-weed pairs as well as the genomic features that allow rapid evolution in certain weeds. He received an undergraduate degree from Juniata College, then worked for Americorps through the Nevada Conservation Corps. He earned a PhD from Fordham University, with a dissertation on the genetics and evolution of the invasive plant Japanese knotweed. His postdoc at Michigan State University investigated the genetics of plant-fungal relationships in the biofuel crop switchgrass.
Rapid genome evolution in weedy plants
Weedy plants are notoriously difficult to kill. In a time of increasing pressure on agricultural systems and natural ecosystems, learning how weeds cope with stress may help us improve crops and preserve ecosystems. My lab studies evolutionary genomics in rapidly evolving weeds, especially those that are closely related to crop species. We combine field, greenhouse, laboratory, and bioinformatic research to discover what makes weeds unique, and trace our findings to applicable genomic insights. I will present our newest findings related to predicting herbicide resistance outbreaks, and in determining the genetic basis of stress tolerance in weeds.
Selected Publication
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VanWallendael A, Wijewardana C, Bonnette J, Vormwald L, Fritschi FB, Boe A, Chambers S, Mitchell R, Rouquette Jr FM, Wu Y, Fay PA. (2025) Local adaptation of both plant and pathogen: an arms-race compromise in switchgrass rust. New Phytologist. 🔗
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Battlay P, Hendrickson BT, Mendez-Reneau JI, Santangelo JS, Albano LJ, Wilson J, Caizer-gues AE, King N, Puentes A, Tudoran A, Violle C. . . . VanWallendael A. . . Kooyers, NJ. (2025) Haploblocks contribute to parallel climate adaptation following global invasion of a cosmopolitan plant. Nature Ecology & Evolution. 🔗
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VanWallendael A, Benucci GMN, da Costa PB, Fraser L, Sreedasyam A, Fritschi F, Juenger TE, Lovell JT, Bonito G, Lowry DB. (2022) Host genetic control of succession in the switchgrass leaf fungal microbiome. PLOS Biology. 20 (8) e3001681. 🔗
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VanWallendael A, Alvarez M, & Franks SJ. (2021) Patterns of population genomic diversity in the invasive Japanese knotweed species complex. American Journal of Botany, 108(5), 857-868. 🔗
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VanWallendael A, Soltani A, Emery NC, Peixoto MM, Olsen J, Lowry DB. (2019) A Molecular View of Plant Local Adaptation: Incorporating Stress-Response Networks. Annual Review of Plant Biology. 70: 559-583. 🔗
Full list of Publication
Ryoya Nishida
Co-founder and CTO
TOWING Co., Ltd
BIO.
Dr. Ryoya Nishida is the Co-founder and CTO of TOWING Co., Ltd. He has been selected in the Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia 2024 and MIT Technology Review Innovators Under 35 Japan 2022. Before establishing the company, he researched at National Agricultural Research Organization with the inventor of the multiple parallel mineralization method. In 2020, he launched the company as a Nagoya University-based startup to implement this technology and promote circular, sustainable agricultural practices. He was the first in the world to publish a scientific paper on the production of microbe-immobilized biochar utilizing the multiple parallel mineralization method.
Enhancing Soil Health and Sustainability with Soratan: A Biochar Immobilizing Diverse Microbial Consortia
TOWING develops an advanced soil amendment that couples a balanced microbial consortium with a biochar. The system offers three advantages. (1) It establishes a stable community of nitrifiers and ammonifiers—bacteria and fungi cultivated in the biochar—speeding conversion of organic N to plant-available forms, while increasing microbial diversity and functional redundancy that strengthen resilience to soil-borne pathogens (e.g., Fusarium). (2) Using biochar as a protective carrier and colonization medium, rather than direct soil inoculation, enables introduced microbes to persist and express target functions despite competition from indigenous biota. (3) The biochar–microbe complex delivers multiple benefits: durable carbon sequestration; improved physical properties (infiltration and water holding); enhanced chemical properties (higher CEC); and increased soil organic carbon.
This multifunctional approach addresses the three pillars of soil quality while enabling carbon capture. Market engagement (e.g., Brazilian coffee and Thai cassava operations) highlights the demand to reach optimal nitrogen uptake faster when shifting to regenerative practices. This technology delivers an optimized nutrient-release profile from the first year—faster than conventional organics yet more sustained than synthetics—supported by data showing rapid nitrate generation within 2–4 weeks across soil types and greater retention of ammonium and nitrate. This could be a scalable solution for advancing soil health.