HIROAKI Taniguchi, Ph. D.

Assistant Professor, Institute of Genetics and Animal Breeding the Polish Academy of Sciences

Field of interest

Neuroscience, Cancer Molecular Biology, Reproductive Biology, Epigenetics, and Transcriptional Gene Regulation

Research Outcome

29 JCR publications, H-index=12

Selected scientific achievements

He demonstrated that a transcription factor Hamlet (Prdm3 in mammals) controls the epigentic state of Notch target promoters and olfactory neuron cel fate on the fly. This study was published in Nature Neurosci and recommended by the Faculty of 1000 Biology (also introduced in Sci. Signal and Nat Neurosci). He has also demonstrated the functional importance of the noncoding and coding of mutations in Japanese liver cancer (published in Nature Genetics). He has expertise in transcriptional gene regulation in the gonad and neuronal system (Mol.Endocrinol. 2005; Endocrinology 2005; J.Mol.Endocrinol. 2009, BBRC2017). Additionally, he has many years of published experience in broad areas of research including proteomics (Mol.Cell.Biol. 2013; Sci.Rep. 2015; BBRC 2016), epigenetics (Nat.Neurosci. 2012; Bioessays 2014), and cancer genome biology (Oncogene 2015; Sci.Rep. 2016; Nat.Genet. 2016).

Realized research projects

1. Grant-in-Aid for Young Scientists Type B from Japan Society for the Promotion of Science, (April2011-March2013) Functional analysis of HAMLET to determine the fate of neuronal cells by histone methylation
2. Takeda Science Foundation (April2014-March2016) Cancer progression caused by dysfunction of cellular metabolism and epigenetics
3. Grant-in-Aid for Young Scientists Type B from Japan Society for the Promotion of Science, (April2015-March2017) Mechanism of liver cancer development and malignant due to mutations of the nuclear receptor HNF4A
(10 grants including Astellas Foundation 2012 and Kyowahakko-bio Seeds Contest 2013)

Organizational activity, dissemination and others

He obtained his Ph. D. from Laval University (Canada) in 2007. After training at several highly qualified research institutes (Mgill University, Riken Brain Science Institute), he was appointed as an assistant professor (2012-2014) and adjunct lecturer (2015-2016) at Doshisha University in Kyoto, Japan. He is currently appointed as a visiting scientist at Doshisha University (2014-) and Riken Brain Science Institute (2017-). He organized the Riken-Research Administorator meeting that was supported by the RIKEN presidential fund, and he served as a scientific observer at the Japan-UK Symposium Neuronal Epigenetics Meeting. He collaborates with researchers from different countries (Japan, China, Bangladesh, India, England, Germany, US, and Canada).

Selected publications and patents

1. Taniguchi H, Okamuro S, Kohji M, Waku T, Kubo K, Hatanaka A, Sun Y, Chowdhury AM, Fukamizu A, Kobayashi A. Possible roles of the transcription factor Nrf1 (NFE2L1) in neural homeostasis by regulating the gene expression of deubiquitinating enzymes. Biochem.Biophys.Res.Commun. 2017; 484:176-183.
2. Fujimoto A, Furuta M, Totoki Y, Tsunoda T, Kato M, Shiraishi Y, Tanaka H, Taniguchi H et al. Whole-genome mutational landscape and characterization of noncoding and structural mutations in liver cancer. Nat.Genet. 2016; 48: 500-509.
3. Taniguchi H, Moore AW. Chromatin regulators in neurodevelopment and disease: Analysis of fly neural circuits provides insights: Networks of chromatin regulators and transcription factors underlie Drosophila neurogenesis and cognitive defects in intellectual disability and neuropsychiatric disorder  models. Bioessays 2014; 36: 872-883.
4. Tsuchiya Y, Taniguchi H, Ito Y, Morita T, Karim MR, Ohtake N, Fukagai K, Ito T, Okamuro S, Iemura S, Natsume T, Nishida E, Kobayashi A. The casein kinase 2-nrf1 axis controls the clearance of ubiquitinated proteins by regulating proteasome gene expression. Mol.Cell.Biol. 2013; 33: 3461-3472.
5. Endo K, Taniguchi H*, Karim MR*, Krejci A, Kinameri E, Siebert M, Ito K, Bray SJ, Moore AW. Chromatin modification of Notch targets in olfactory receptor neuron diversification. Nat.Neurosci. 2012; 15: 224-233. *contributed equally

Links to professional profiles

https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Hiroaki_Taniguchi4