Mitinori Saitou MD, PhD

Dr. Mitinori Saitou is a professor at the Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto University. His research over the last two decades focused on understanding the mechanisms that regulate the specification, proliferation, development, and function of germ cells in vitro. His laboratory was the first to succeed in reconstituting the mouse germ cell specification pathway in culture and to generate functional male and female gametes from embryonic stem cells and somatic cells reprogrammed to induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC) [1, 2]. He has since expanded on these groundbreaking achievements by improving technology, expanding to species other than mice, and providing new clues regarding germ cell development. We asked him to reflect on his career progress and current challenges, future goals, and significance of research in the germ cell field.