Synthetic Biology
Yachie Laboratory

The University of British Columbia
Osaka University

"Look-Back-in-Time" Biology

Cells proliferate from a fertilized egg, pass their genomic information to their offspring, and dynamically change their functions to form diverse tissue structures. Throughout development, intracellular and environmental cues trigger patterns of gene expression that govern cell state transitions and produce additional cellular and environmental cues, leading cells to self-organize into functional clusters within spatially distinct areas. How can these processes be investigated? Our research program is working on the idea of DNA event recording. In this idea, molecular and cellular events of a multicellular organism are progressively stored in synthetic “DNA tapes,” like a molecular ticker tape. Such a system allows for the readout of historical molecular expression profiles of many cells using high-throughput single-cell sequencing. Analogous to a video camera system, the requirements of DNA event recording systems are: (1) high-capacity DNA “memory” modules embedded in chromosomes; (2) highly sensitive “sensor” modules to capture cell divisions and cell types; (3) information “writer” modules to alter DNA tapes; and (4) high-capacity information “reader” modules to reconstruct complex biological history information written in DNA tapes. Our current landmark goal is the mapping of high-content cell lineage and cell differentiation trajectories of the whole mouse body development.

Member

• 
• • Visiting Professor
    Nozomu YACHIE
  Research Area: Synthetic Biology

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