Unit News

Research Update

World’s First Simultaneous Genetic Sequencing of Host Coral and Symbiont Algae

Dr. Shinzato and his collaborators have successfully sequenced the genetic information of the host coral and its symbionts simultaneously.

20 January 2014

Research Update

The Genes Behind My Pearls

The academic journal, Zoological Science, published a special issue devoted to pearl oysters. Dr. Takeshi Takeuchi of the OIST Marine Genomics Unit was the driving force behind this special issue.

15 October 2013

Research Update

A coral symbiont genome decoded for first time

The Marine Genomics Unit has decoded the genome of the algae Symbiodinium minutum. This is a major advance in understanding the complex ecology of coral reefs.

Research Update

OIST Researchers Contribute to Findings Behind Mealybug Symbiosis

A research team including OIST's Prof. Noriyuki Satoh has discovered that mealybugs have a tripartite symbiosis dependent on genes from multiple diverse bacteria.

Research Update

Churaumi’s Coral Clone

Behind the doors of the Churaumi Plaza at the Ocean Expo Park in Okinawa, visitors can now view a live display of the exact staghorn coral whose genome was first decoded by the OIST Marine Genomic Unit.

30 January 2013

Research Update

Study Provides First Genomic Evidence for Common Deuterostome Ancestor

Noriyuki Satoh and researchers have found the first genomic evidence for a common deuterostome ancestor – bringing together a diverse lineage of animals ranging from humans to sea stars.

29 October 2012

Research Update

Two OIST Units Team Up to Probe Life’s Beginnings

As we grow, an intricate choreography of genetic controls begins to differentiate our cells, turning some genes off and others up to full-blast, eventually yielding fully-formed animals. Researchers at OIST are working to learn more about this choreography.

Research Update

OIST Researcher Discovers New Fish Species in Ryukyu Streams

Ken Maeda, a researcher in OIST’s Marine Genomics Unit, has identified a new freshwater goby species on the islands of Okinawa and Iriomote. The species, Stiphodon alcedo, is described in the latest issue of the journal Cybium.

Research Update

Paper by OIST Researchers Published in Zoological Science

A picture taken by Dr. Chuya Shinzato of the Marine Genomics Unit appeared on the cover of the latest issue of Zoological Science.

Research Update

OIST Meeting Homes in on Long-standing Evolutionary Puzzle

From March 5-7, a group of genomics researchers and evolutionary biologists met at OIST in pursuit of an ambitious goal: to develop a new theory of evolution.

Research Update

OIST Scientists Decode the Pearl Oyster Genome

The OIST Marine Genomics Unit, in collaboration with Japanese research groups including from the University of Tokyo and Mikimoto Co., Ltd., has completed the first decoding of the genome of the Japanese pearl oyster.

08 February 2012

Research Update

World’s First Coral Genome Decoded

A coral genome has been decoded for the first time by the Marine Genomics Unit at the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology (OIST).