I was born in Osaka, Japan, and my family moved to California when I was 5. I graduated from UC San Diego with a B.S. in Bioengineering, briefly attended University of Southern California, and then taught English to high school students in Southern California, most of whom were planning to attend universities in Japan. To pursue a career in research, I myself moved back to Japan in 2014 to work in the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery at Tokai University, School of Medicine, and in 2021, obtained my Ph.D. under Dr. Masato Sato, studying cartilage regeneration. My research was focused on the development of chondrocyte cell sheets for the treatment of osteoarthritis of the knee, and the work involved developing translational animal models, novel cell sources for chondrocyte cell sheets, and assisting clinical studies. My current interests are in developing novel therapies for the treatment of cartilage related disease with an emphasis on fast-tracking such therapies to clinical use. Outside of the lab, I enjoy outside activities such as golf and diving, and inside activities such as bowling, watching movies, basketball, and American football. |