Prof. Yukiko Yamashita

Professor Yamashita’s research focuses on the process by which stem cells are renewed, in normal and diseased contexts. A balance between differentiated daughter cells and self-renewing stem cells is critical for life, and asymmetric cell division creates problems: an excess of self-renewal can lead to cancer; an excess of differentiation can deplete the stem cell pool necessary for long-term health. Yamashita seeks to understand the mechanisms underlying asymmetric stem cell division, which are now poorly understood, using Drosophila male germline stem cells (GSCs) as a model system. Among her lab’s current research focuses are the orientation of GSCs’ mitotic spindle during cell division; stem cell-specific centrosomal components and their roles in asymmetric division; and the mechanisms of non-random sister chromatid segregation. Yamashita’s research is also expanding into new territories -- such as functions of satellite DNA, a little-understood constituent of the genome -- prompted by curious observations made in her investigations.