Research Support Office Research Advancement Division. Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology
| TEL | +81-42-367-5944 |
|---|---|
| FAX | +81-42-367-5946 |
This program is supported by MEXT’s scientific technology human resource development fee grant, "Program to Disseminate Tenure Tracking System".
Home > Tenured Faculties > Komatsu Ken
Komatsu Ken
| Affiliation | Institute of Agriculture |
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| Division | Division of Bioregulation and Biointeraction |
| Research field | Plant Pathology, Plant Virology, Molecular Biology |
| Keyword(S) | Plant virus, RNA, replication, plant resistance against viruses |
| Url | http://web.tuat.ac.jp/~plantp/labjtop.html |
| Research experience | ･Apr. 2007-Mar. 2008: Research Fellow, Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, The University of Tokyo |
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| Educational background | ･2002, Bachelor of Agriculture in Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, The University of Tokyo |
| Awards | * The latest information is shown at the member's website. ･2013: The Young Scientist Award in the Phytopathological Society of Japan |
| Selected papers and publications | * The latest information is shown at the member's website. ･Komatsu K., Hashimoto M., Okano Y., Keima T., Kitazawa Y., Nijo T., Takahashi S., Maejima K., Yamaji Y., and Namba S. “Construction of an infectious cDNA clone of radish mosaic virus, a crucifer-infecting comovirus. ” Archives of Virology 158 (2013) 1579-1582. |
My field of research is plant pathology, which is the study of plant disease and pathogens that cause disease. Considering the increasingly serious food problems in the future, it is very important to control plant diseases that could reduce plant yields by as much as 30%. To date, my research has focused on plant viruses, especially RNA viruses, which cannot be controlled by chemical application that can effectively control fungal and bacterial diseases. In the early stages of an academic career, I had concentrated on diagnosis of plant diseases including viruses and the identification of the causal agents of the diseases. Recently, I have been investigating molecular mechanism underlying symptom expression by plant viruses, especially of systemic necrosis that can lead to death of the whole plant. To date, our results have provided evidence for the continuity between systemic necrosis and plant defense responses against viruses. Based on these results, I am now trying to expand my research into the field of plant disease control. Toward this goal, I am focusing virus replication, an early stage of plant virus infection. Understanding the mechanisms by which plants resist virus infections may highlight possible targets for future development of antiviral drugs.
The TUAT Tenure Track Program is a meaningful project that provides ideal research environments including a sufficient startup fund, an independent laboratory space, and strong mentoring supports. Also, during the tenure-track period, administrative duties such as teaching and management are reduced. Thanks to these special treatment, we can focus on research projects, expanding our scope of research. Members of this program can take advantage of this opportunity to build basis for long-term, original research.
Plant pathology, one of my research fields, is an interdisciplinary science field that intergrates knowledge including microbiology, plant science, genetics and biochemistry. To date, it has made a significant contribution in disease protection of food crops, as well as in scientific develoment of other fields such as molecular biology and plant biotechnology. Also, findings from this academic field can lead to the solution to the global food problem. I' m going to promote frontier researches on this field, which can attract young students and introduce them to the field. Through these efforts, as well as discussion and collaboration with other members of TUAT, I would like to contribute to facilitating research activities in the University in the future.
