- Q: What is your current research topic?
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We are conducting research into the development of surrogate parent fish techniques and aquaculture. The surrogate parent fish technique involves, for example, transplanting tuna reproductive stem cells into mackerel to create mackerel that produce tuna reproductive cells in their bodies. Our research aims to develop more efficient aquaculture techniques that do not exist with existing methods, using developmental engineering techniques that have never been used before.
- Q: What motivated you to start researching this?
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- As a pioneer of the surrogate parent fish technique, Professor Goro Yoshizaki of our laboratory was conducting research using salmonid fish, but when the university's Tateyama Station decided to launch a research project to apply that technique to marine fish, Professor Yoshizaki approached me. I graduated from this university, and I was attracted to the idea of ??being able to use my strengths, such as fish breeding and marine fish breeding, in addition to molecular biology research, to tackle new research using cutting-edge technology, so I got involved in the research.
- Q: What is interesting and rewarding about your research?
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- When we started researching the surrogate parent technique, it was a unique technique that only we were using. Being able to do research that no one else has done before is the most rewarding thing for a researcher. The fact that we combine cutting-edge technology with the everyday, painstaking work of caring for fish is also a unique aspect of our research, and is also a strength of ours.
- Q: What are some of the challenges of research?
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Experiments and research can only be successful if we comprehensively understand all stages, from extremely microscopic things like DNA to cells, tissues, individual fish, and groups of these. This is difficult, but also makes it rewarding.
- Q: What kind of social impact can you expect from your research?
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- By utilizing the surrogate parent fish technique, it is now possible to cultivate fish species that were difficult to cultivate using conventional methods, and we can also expect to reduce farming costs and improve efficiency. Furthermore, we believe that by promoting the development of farmed fish that are resistant to disease, grow quickly, and taste good, we can contribute to the sophistication of the aquaculture industry. We also believe that this technology can contribute to breeding fish that are resistant to environmental changes and to the conservation of genetic resources.
- Q: To which SDGs can your research contribute?
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"Goal 1: End Poverty" has the potential to create new industries
Supporting food supply through efficient aquaculture technology "Goal 2: Zero Hunger"
Contributing to the supply of safe and healthy fish "Goal 3: Ensure good health and well-being for all"
Reducing energy used in aquaculture (Goal 7: Affordable and clean energy)
Goal 12: Responsible Consumption and Production, promoting the sustainability of aquaculture
There is a problem that farmed fish escape into the natural ocean environment and crossbreed with wild fish, causing genetic disruption. As a countermeasure, we are developing a technique to sterilize farmed fish so that they do not produce the next generation, which contributes to "Goal 12: Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas, and oceans" as well as Goal 14. - Q: What is the significance of conducting research at Tokyo University of Marine Science and Technology?
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- We are researching farmed fish that live in fish tanks and aquariums, and our university has many professors who are conducting top-level specialized research in fields such as fish feed, diseases, breeding techniques, algae, microorganisms, statistical resource forecasting, resource surveys and management, fishing gear, and fishing methods. I feel that it is a great advantage to be able to communicate with such people on a daily basis and create new research frameworks that could not be achieved with just the skills and knowledge of my own field. In addition, within the framework of our university's study of the ocean, I think it is also advantageous that students who have the ambition to research fish farming and physiology and ecology can enroll and become excellent partners with whom they can conduct research when they join our laboratory.
- Q: What are your priorities and policies when conducting research?
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- There are many phenomena in nature whose mechanisms have yet to be fully understood, and some cannot be solved in a researcher's lifetime. However, we continue our research with the awareness of "not leaving mysterious things mysterious," and seek ways to solve or understand these problems.
- Associate Professor Ryosuke Yazawa's OA paper is here
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Paper title: Bluefin tuna sperm production is hastened by surrogacy in small Euthynnus.
Authors and co-authors: Kawamura W, Yazawa R, Takeuchi Y, Kamio S, Ichida K, Hattori RS, Morita T, Hayashi M, Yoshizaki G.
Published in: Nature Communications Publication date: June 2024
DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-52393-4
