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Research interests
Mathematical models allow us to determine which evolutionary transitions are plausible and which are inaccessible. Currently, I am focusing on the following research themes.

(i) Genomics and speciation theory for non-model organisms
(ii) Fitness landscape theory that connects genotype, phenotype, and fitness and analysis of evolutionary experiments
(iii) Predicting the dynamics of viral infectious diseases using evolutionary ecology theory

Mathematical biology fits widely into various fields of biological sciences with bioinformatics analysis, and we would like to contribute to life sciences from evolutionary aspects.
Research Keywords
Mathematical model / Mathematical biology, Population genetics, Speciation, Evolutionary experiment
Overview of previous works
​1) Speciation and biodiversity
Countless abundant species inhabit the earth. The number of described species is more than 1.5 million, and the number is said to be millions to tens of millions. This number is a tiny percentage given the vast number of species that have ever existed and become extinct on earth. While research on extinction and ecosystem stability is an urgent issue, the origin of species diversity is still not well understood.
    I propose various theories related to speciation and patterns of species diversity in nature by theoretical models and computer simulations. In particular, there are many underexplored topics about speciation that repeatedly occur, not once, to understand extant species diversity.
​2) Evolutionary experiments and speciation
Evolutionary processes have traditionally been regarded as unobservable long-term phenomena. However, research has been recently developed to clarify the evolutionary dynamics at the genome level on the scale of hundreds to tens of thousands of generations through evolutionary experiments based on the culture system of model organisms. As a consequence, the demand for theoretical research that can make an evolutionary prediction is also increasing. In this study, I constructed a mathematical model of the drug resistance evolution experiment of Saccharomyces cerevisiae, a budding yeast. The theory enables us to explain the population differentiation between independently cultured strains. New species are likely to arise in evolutionary experiments with strong selective pressure, such as in a rapidly changing environment.
​3) Taxonomy and biogeography
In addition to the theoretical research mentioned above,  I am also engaged in fieldwork-based taxonomic and biogeographical research that combines genomic sequencing, morphological description, and mating experiments. The main organisms targeted so far are Japanese butterflies, leaf beetles, and Southeast Asian butterflies. I am also working on research using museum specimens.
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