Professor of Sexual Plant Reproduction

Fujian 100 Foreign Expert

Contact Information

Haixia Institute of Science and Technology (HIST)
Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University (FAFU)

15 Shang xia dian Road

Fuzhou, Fujian 350002, P. R. China

Phone: 86-591-83563521

Email: kasahara@fafu.edu.cn
Education

2002-2007, Ph.D., University of Utah, Mentor, US

2000-2001, Private Researcher, Faculty of Science, Kobe University, Japan

1998-2000, M.S., Kobe University, Japan

1994-1998, B.S., Hirosaki University, Japan

Professional Experience

2017-Present, Professor, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, China

2013-2017, JST PRESTO Researcher/ Invited Professor, Nagoya University, Japan

2011-2013, Postdoctoral fellow, Nagoya University, Japan

2007-2011, Postdoctoral fellow, Nagoya University Japan

Research Interests

My research focuses on mechanisms regulating plant sexual reproduction. 

1. Callose gate: We hypothesize that callose forms a gate to control nutrients fluxes into the ovule for seed development. We are interested in elucidating the mechanisms regulating the opening and closing of this gate. 
2. Functional regulation of synergid cells: MYB98 is a master regulator of pollen tube attraction related molecular players of the functional synergid cells in plant female gametophyte. It is specifically expressed in the synergid cells. However, the molecular machineries involved in its such precise expression is yet undiscovered. We identified cis elements conserved in MYB98pro and transcription factors which binds to the cis elements. We are studying in the function of these transcriptional factors.

Publications

Prakash Babu Adhikari, Xiaoyan Liu, Ryushiro D. Kasahara*. Mechanics of Pollen Tube Elongation: A Perspective. Frontiers in Plant Science. 11: 589712 (2020). Review.

Yujiro Honma, Prakash Babu Adhikari, Keiko Kuwata, Tomoko Kagenishi, Ken Yokawa, Michitaka Notaguchi, Ken Kurotani, Erika Toda, Kanako Bessho-Uehara, Xiaoyan Liu, Shaowei Zhu, Xiaoyan Wu, Ryushiro D. Kasahara*. High-quality sugar production by osgcs1 rice. Communications Biology 3: 617 (2020).

Prakash B. Adhikari, Xiaoyan Liu, Ryushiro D. Kasahara*. Fertilization defective gametophytic mutant screening: A novel approach. Frontiers in Plant Science 11: 967 (2020). Review.

Prakash B. Adhikari, Xiaoyan Liu, Xiaoyan Wu, Shaowei Zhu, Ryushiro D. Kasahara*. Fertilization in flowering plants: an odyssey of sperm cell delivery. Plant Molecular Biology 103: 9-32 (2020). Review.

Xiaoyan Liu, Xiaoyan Wu, Prakash B. Adhikari, Shaowei Zhu, Yoshihiro Kinoshita, Frederic Berger, Tetsuya Higashiyama, Ryushiro D. Kasahara*. Establishment of a Novel Method for the Identification of Fertilization Defective Mutants in Arabidopsis thaliana. Biochem Biophys Res Commun 521: 928-932 (2020).

Xiaoyan Liu, Prakash Babu Adhikari, Ryushiro D. Kasahara*. Pollen tube contents from failed fertilization contribute to seed coat initiation in Arabidopsis. F1000Research 8:348 (2019).

Ryushiro D. Kasahara*. The Regulation of Sperm Cells Delivery to the Embryo Sac. Pollination in Plants Chapter 2, DOI: 10.5772/intechopen.75359 (2018). Review

Ryushiro D. Kasahara*, Michitaka Notaguchi, Yujiro Honma. Discovery of pollen tube-dependent ovule enlargement morphology phenomenon, a new step in plant reproduction. Communicative Integrative Biology 10: e1338989 (2017).

Ryushiro D. Kasahara*, Michitaka Notaguchi, Shiori Nagahara, Takamasa Suzuki, Daichi Susaki, Yujiro Honma, Daisuke Maruyama, Tetsuya Higashiyama. Pollen tube contents initiate ovule enlargement and enhance seed coat development without fertilization. Science Advances 2(10): e1600554 (2016).

Daisuke Maruyama., Yuki Hamamura, Hidenori Takeuchi, Daichi Susaki, Moe Nishimaki, Daisuke Kurihara, Ryushiro D. Kasahara, Tetsuya Higashiyama. Independent control by each female gamete prevents the attraction of multiple pollen tubes. Dev. Cell 25, 317-323 (2013).

Ryushiro D. Kasahara*, Identification of the ‘’Fertilization Recovery System’’ Plant Morph. 25, 83-88, (2013). Review.

Ryushiro D. Kasahara*, Daisuke Maruyama, Tetsuya Higashiyama. Fertilization recovery system is dependent on the number of pollen grains for efficient reproduction in plants. Plant Signal Behav. 8, e23690 (2013).

Ryushiro D. Kasahara, Daisuke Maruyama, Yuki Hamamura, Takashi Sakakibara, David Twell, Tetsuya Higashiyama. Fertilization Recovery after Defective Sperm Cell Release in Arabidopsis. Current Biology 22, 1084-1089 (2012). (Cited 113 times as of 2020)

Ryushiro D. Kasahara and Tetsuya Higashiyama, Identification of pollen tube attractants, Lure proteins, reveals new functions of synergid cells in plant. Seibutsuno Kagaku Iden 64 8-14 (2010). Review.

Satohiro Okuda, Hiroki Tsutsui, Keiko Shiina, Stefanie Sprunck, Hidenori Takeuchi, Ryoko Yui, Ryushiro D. Kasahara, Yuki Hamamura, Akane Mizukami, Daichi Susaki, Nao Kawano, Takashi Sakakibara, Shoko Namiki, Kie Itoh, Kurataka Otsuka, Motomichi Matsuzaki, Hisayoshi Nozaki, Tsuneyoshi Kuroiwa, Akihiko Nakano, Masahiro M. Kanaoka, Thomas Dresselhaus, Narie Sasaki and Tetsuya Higashiyama. Defensin-like polypeptide LUREs are pollen tube attractants secreted from synergid cells. Nature 458, 357-361 (2009).

Ryushiro D. Kasahara and Tetsuya Higashiyama, Approaches to identify the pollen-tube attractant. Regulation of Plant Growth & Development Vol.43, No.2, 115-122 (2008). Review.

Ryushiro D. Kasahara, Michael F. Portereiko, Linda Sandaklie-Nikolova, David S. Rabiger and Gary N. Drews. MYB98 is required for pollen tube guidance and synergid cell differentiation in Arabidopsis. Plant Cell 17:2981-92 (2005). (Cited 271 times as of 2020) http://www.plantcell.org/content/17/11/2981.long

Dictionary of Biology (ISBN 978-4-8079-0735-9 C3545) Kasahara Ryushiro (As a sharing author) the first edition, Tokyo Kagaku Dojin (2010).

Kasahara, R.D., Hamamura, Y., Higashiyama, T. Plant fertilization captured by live cell imaging. Sperm Cell Res. 190-195. Adthree Publishing (2012).