Principal Investigator
Yoshiaki Tsuji, PhD
Professor
Department of Biological Sciences
Environmental and Molecular Toxicology Program
North Carolina State University
Campus Box 7633
Raleigh, NC27695-7633
Phone: 919-513-1106
Fax: 919-515-7169
e-mail: yoshiaki_tsuji@ncsu.edu
The Tsuji lab offers strong research training in terms of thinking and testing hypothesis in the field of cell signaling and gene regulation in mammalian cells. The PI received his postdoctoral training at Stanford University and a research track Assistant Professor position at the Department of Cancer Biology, Wake Forest University School of Medicine. The Tsuji lab started in August 2001 at the Department of Environmental and Molecular Toxicology, located in the NC State University Centennial Campus, Raleigh, North Carolina. The initial core research project was to understand the molecular regulatory mechanism of antioxidant detoxification genes, in particular the human ferritin gene that encodes the major cytoplasmic iron storage protein, under the exposure of environmental chemicals and toxicants such as arsenic. Through our ferritin study, we are also interested in the regulation of iron metabolism in normal and disease conditions. Our ongoing pilot projects are branches and new avenues from the core research projects, including microRNA and gene regulation, histone modifications and gene transcription, the Nrf2-ARE signaling pathway, mitochondrial oxidative stress and neurodegeneration. Our current core research has been supported by the NIGMS, NIH.
The PI has been an active bench worker to do pilot experiments and to direct the research team through interactions with lab members on a daily basis. The Tsuji lab has a weekly lab meeting on Monday from 10-12, where one lab member (including the PI) presents either their research progress or introduction of a recently published manuscript that may be of interest to the lab members for discussion. The PI has an active teaching such as a course coordinator of TOX710 “Molecular and Biochemical Toxicology” and several team-taught classes in the Toxicology and College of Veterinary Medicine graduate programs. The Tsuji lab have trained 9 graduate students (6 PhD, 3 MS), 4 undergraduate students, 5 postdoctoral fellows, and served as a committee member of 21 PhD graduate students. This lab also hosted and mentored 19 new graduate students for their lab rotations (for approximately 5-6 weeks each). Since July 2013, we are in the new organization of the Department of Biological Sciences in the new College of Sciences that brings together exceptional existing programs in biology, microbiology, genetics and toxicology at NC State University.
