Team Leader

Chikara Furusawa (Ph.D.)

We study multi-scale dynamics in biological systems, such as differentiation and evolution, using both theoretical and experimental approaches. For example, we analyze phenotypic/genetic changes of microorganisms during experimental evolution, to unveil interplay between the dynamics of adaptation and evolution. We also study the dynamics differentiation process of stem cells using theoretical models to understand how cell-cell interactions bring about cellular diversifications and robust development of multicellular systems.

Research Topics

• Analysis of developmental process using theoretical cell models
• Study of evolutionary dynamics of microorganisms by comprehensive phenotypic/genetic analysis
• Development of algorithm for high-resolution comprehensive phenotypic/genetic analysis

Selected Publications

• Horinouchi, T., Sakai, A., Kotani, H., Tanabe, K. & Furusawa, C.
  "Improvement of isopropanol tolerance of Escherichia coli using adaptive laboratory evolution and omics technologies"
  J. Biotechnol. 255, 47-56 (2017) doi:10.1016/j.jbiotec.2017.06.408
• Yoshida, M., Reyes, S. G., Tsuda, S., Horinouchi, T., Furusawa, C. & Cronin, L.
  "Time-programmable drug dosing allows the manipulation, suppression and reversal of antibiotic drug resistance in vitro"
  Nat. Commun. 8, 15589 (2017) doi:10.1038/ncomms15589
• Horinouchi, T., Suzuki, S., Hirasawa, T., Ono, N., Yomo, T., Shimizu, H., et al.
  "Phenotypic convergence in bacterial adaptive evolution to ethanol stress"
  BMC Evol. Biol. 15, 180 (2015) doi:10.1186/s12862-015-0454-6
• Furusawa, C. & Kaneko, K.
  "Global relationships in fluctuation and response in adaptive evolution"
  Journal of the Royal Society Interface 12, 20150482 (2015) doi:10.1098/rsif.2015.0482
• Kaneko, K., Furusawa, C. & Yomo, T.
  "Universal Relationship in Gene-Expression Changes for Cells in Steady-Growth State"
  Phys. Rev. X 5, 011014 (2015) doi:10.1103/PhysRevX.5.011014
• Suzuki, S., Horinouchi, T. & Furusawa, C.
  "Prediction of antibiotic resistance by gene expression profiles "
  Nat. Commun. 5, 5792 (2014) doi:10.1038/ncomms6792
• Horinouchi, T., Minamoto, T., Suzuki, S., Shimizu, H. & Furusawa, C.
  "Development of an Automated Culture System for Laboratory Evolution"
  Jala 19, 478-482 (2014) doi:10.1177/2211068214521417
• Ohno, S., Shimizu, H. & Furusawa, C.
  "FastPros: screening of reaction knockout strategies for metabolic engineering"
  Bioinformatics 30, 981-987 (2014) doi:10.1093/bioinformatics/btt672
• Furusawa, C. & Kaneko, K.
  "A Dynamical-Systems View of Stem Cell Biology"
  Science 338, 215-217 (2012) doi:10.1126/science.1224311
• Furusawa, C. & Kaneko, K.
  "Adaptation to Optimal Cell Growth through Self-Organized Criticality"
  Phys. Rev. Lett. 108, 208103 (2012) doi:10.1103/PhysRevLett.108.208103