Masahiro Ito

Department of Biological ResourcesProfessor
Bio-Nano Electronics Research CenterResearcher
Course of Life SciencesProfessor
Last Updated :2026/03/22

■Researcher basic information

Degree

  • 博士(工学), 東京工業大学
  • 修士(工学), 東京工業大学

Research Interests

  • Deinococcus radiodurans
  • radiation-resistant bacteria
  • Biomass Refinery
  • Bioethanol production
  • Na^+/H^+ antiporter
  • Alkaliphiles
  • Alkalihalobacillus pseudofirmus
  • Extremophiles
  • Alkaline environment adaptation mechanisms
  • pH homeostasis
  • Na^+ cycles
  • イオンチャネル
  • proton motive force
  • bacterial flagellar motor
  • イオンチャンネル
  • Sodium motive force
  • アルカリカチオン

Research Areas

  • Environmental science/Agricultural science, Environmental load reduction/restoration technology, 高機能放射性抵抗性細菌
  • Life sciences, Applied microbiology, バイオリファイナリー
  • Life sciences, Molecular biology, 遺伝子工学
  • Life sciences, Applied microbiology, 極限環境微生物学
  • Life sciences, Biophysics, 生体ナノマシン

■Career

Research History

  • Apr. 2021 - Present
    Bio-resilience Research project (BRRP), Project leader
  • Apr. 2009 - Present
    Toyo University, Factory of Life Sciences, Professor
  • Apr. 2001 - Mar. 2009
    Toyo University, Factory of Life Sciences, Associate professor
  • Apr. 1997 - Mar. 2001
    Toyo University, Factory of Life Sciences, Lecturer
  • Apr. 1994 - Mar. 1997
    Mount Sinai School of Medicine, Department of Biochemistry, postdoctoral researcher

Education

  • Apr. 1989 - Mar. 1994, Tokyo Institute of Technology, Graduate School of Science and Engineering, 化学工学専攻

Committee Memberships

  • Mar. 2025 - Present
    Editorial Board Member, Extremophiles
  • Apr. 2024 - Present
    副会長, 極限環境生物学会
  • Dec. 2023 - Present
    Engineering Microbiology誌、Editorial Board Member
  • Oct. 2023 - Present
    Expert committee, Special Committee on Genetically Modified Foods, The Food Safety Commission of Japan (FSCJ) , Cabinet Office
  • Feb. 2017 - Present
    Associate Editor, Frontier in Microbiology誌
  • Jan. 2016 - Present
    Advisory Board Member, Journal of Biochemistry誌
  • Jan. 2015 - Present
    Editorial Board Member, Applied and Environmental Microbiology誌
  • Jan. 2013 - Present
    General affairs secretary, Japanese Society for Extremophiles
  • Apr. 2013 - Mar. 2020
    Center for Academic Research Promotion Deputy-Directors, Toyo University
  • Jan. 2013 - Mar. 2020
    庶務担当幹事, 極限環境生物学会
  • Apr. 2015 - Mar. 2017
    専攻長, 東洋大学大学院生命科学研究科生命科学専攻
  • Aug. 2008 - Jul. 2010
    Program officer, Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT)

■Research activity information

Awards

  • Nov. 2025
    極限環境生物学会, Young Researcher Poster Award
    Constitutive Expression of Gdx via Riboswitch Mutation Confers High Cesium Resistance in Escherichia coli
    Daiki Kojima;Masahiro Ito
  • Nov. 2025
    1st East Asia Conference on Extremophiles, Young Researcher Excellent Poster Award
    Riboswitch Disruption Drives Constitutive Gdx and High Cesium Tolerance in Escherichia coli
    Daiki Kojima;Masahiro Ito
  • Aug. 2025
    日本農芸化学会関東支部, 日本農芸化学会関東支部年会・優秀発表賞(⼝頭発表部⾨)
    グアニジニウムエクスポーター Gdx による⼤腸菌の新規 Cs+ 排出機構の発⾒
    小嶋 大喜、伊藤 政博
  • Sep. 2024
    14th International Congress on Extremophiles (Extremophiles2024), ISE Young Scientist Poster Award
    Stabilization of ribosomes for Cs+ resistance in high-concentration Cs+ resistant Escherichia coli strain ZX-1
    Daiki Kojima, Ayane Kurosaki, and Masahiro Ito
  • Aug. 2023
    Kanto Branch, Japan Society for Bioscience, Biotechnology, and Agrochemistry (JSBBA), Excellent poster award
    Analysis of the Cs resistance mechanism in the Escherichia coli Cs-resistant strain ZX-1.
    Daiki Kojima;Shunsuke Tanaka;Masahiro Ito
  • Sep. 2019
    日本農芸化学会関東支部, 優秀発表賞(ポスター発表部門)
    高濃度セシウム耐性菌Microbacterium sp. TS-1株の新規セシウム耐性機構の同定
    是恒貴宏;石内絵梨;手島美結;石田義基;伊藤政博
  • Dec. 2018
    Japanese Society for Extremophiles, Excellent Poster Award
    好アルカリ性細菌Microbacterium sp. TS-1株の高濃度セシウム耐性機構の解明
    Takahiro Koretsune;Masahiro Ito
  • Dec. 2016
    The 1st international Conference on Applied Microbiology in Vietnam, Young Scientist Poster Award (1st)
    Elucidation ion selectivity and identification of ion transport subunits in the Mrp type antiporter
    Mitsue Matsui;Masahiro Ito
  • Nov. 2015
    The 16th Annual Meeting of the Japanese society for Extremophiles, Poster award
    A functional analysis of stator complex of flagellar motor from Bacillus trypoxylicola
    Riku Imazawa;Shun Naganawa;Masahiro Ito
  • Dec. 2014
    The 15th Annual Meeting of the Japanese society for Extremophiles, Poster award
    Elucidation of the differences in Na+ affinity in a neutral pH environment of the Na+-driven stator MotPS in alkaliphilic Bacillus pseudofirmus OF4 and Bacillus subtilis
    Yuka Takahashi;Yukina Noguchi;Masahiro Ito
  • Nov. 2014
    The 15th Annual Meeting of the Japanese society for Extremophiles, Poster award
    Identification for a factor affecting of stimulation of motility in Methylobacterium sp. 121
    Wakabayashi Yuu;Tetsu Shimizu;Akira Nakamura;Masahiro Ito
  • Sep. 2014
    International Congress on Extremophiles 2014, ISE Young Scientist Poster Award
    The clarification of the differences between alkaliphilic and neutralophilic Bacillus influx control of Na+ near neutral pH in the Na+-driven flagellar motor stator MotPS
    Yuka Taakahashi;Yukina Noguchi;Masahiro Ito
  • Mar. 2013
    Blue Earth 2013 (JAMSTEC), Young Scientist Poster Award
    Analytical results of microbiological diversity in the seismogenic zone (Japan trench) sediment at 3 months and 17 months after Tohoku Region Pacific Offshore Earthquake occurred
    Sayumi Kinoshita;Masahiro Ito
  • Nov. 2012
    The 2012 Annual Meeting of the Kanto Branch of the Japan Society for Bioscience, Biotechnology, and Agrochemistry, Poster award
    Elucidation of rotation mechanism of hybrid biomotor that can utilize two types of coupling ions
    Yuka Takahashi;Masahiro Ito
  • Jun. 2012
    Toyo University, Inoue Enryo Prize
    Research on Hybrid Bacterial Flagellar Motor
    Masahiro Ito
  • Nov. 2011
    The 12th Annual Meeting of the Japanese society for Extremophiles, Poster award
    A novel K+-stimulated flagellar motor from alkaliphilic Bacillus alcalophilus.
    Motohiko Sano;Naoya Terahara;Masahiro Ito
  • Oct. 2011
    The 2011 Annual Meeting of the Kanto Branch of the Japan Society for Bioscience, Biotechnology, and Agrochemistry, Poster award
    Identification of amino acid residues in the flagellar stator involved in the reduction of motility under the neutral environment of the alkalophilic Bacillus pseudofirmus OF4
    Yukina Noguchi;Masahiro Ito
  • Mar. 2011
    the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science, JSPS Prize
    Properties of Bacterial Flagellar Motor Powered by Hybrid Stators
    Masahiro Ito
  • Nov. 2009
    The 10th Annual Meeting of the Japanese society for Extremophiles, Poster award
    Identification and characterization of functional residues in a Multi-subunit type Na+/H+ antiporter Mrp complex from alkaliphilic Bacillus pseudofirmus OF4.
    Masato Morino;Shinsuke Natsui;Tomohiro Ono;Talia H. Swartz;Terry A. Krulwich;Masahiro Ito
  • Oct. 2009
    The 10th Annual Meeting of the Japanese society for Extremophiles, Poster award
    Identification and analysis of amino acid residues important for the rotation mechanism of flagellar stator MotAB, MotPS of Bacillus subtilis
    Yuka Takahashi;Naoya Terahara;Sachiyo Koizumi;Masahiro Ito
  • Nov. 2008
    The 9th Annual Meeting of the Japanese society for Extremophiles, Poster award
    A conversion of the coupling ion specificity of stators in a Bacillus flagellar motor
    Naoya Terahara;Terry Ann Krulwich;Masahiro Ito
  • Jun. 2008
    The 3rd Japan transporter research association, Outstanding performance award(Oral presentation)
    A flagellarstator MotAB from alkaliphilic Bacillus clausii can utilize two types of ions as coupling ions
    Naoya Terahara;Masahiro Ito
  • Nov. 2007
    Kanto Branch meeting of the Japan Society for Bioscience, Biotechnology, and Agrochemistry, Young Scientist Award (oral presentation)
    Bacillus subtilis flagellar motor is a hybrid motor that can utilize two kinds of energy
    Naoya Terahara;Masahiro Ito
  • Nov. 2007
    The 8th Annual Meeting of the Japanese society for Extremophiles, Poster award
    The visualization of the voltage-gated Na+ channel of Alkaliphilic Bacillus pseudofirmus OF4 by using fluorescent protein fusion.
    Shun Fujinami;Masahiro Ito
  • Nov. 2005
    the Japan Society for Extremophiles, Young Scientist Award
    Masahiro Ito
  • Nov. 2004
    The 5th Annual Meeting of the Japanese society for Extremophiles, Poster award
    好アルカリ性細菌Bacillus halodurans C-125株の細胞形態形に関する研究
    Shun Fujinami;Masahiro Ito
  • Sep. 2002
    International Society for Extremophiles (ISE), ISE Award
    Masahiro Ito

Papers

Misc.

Books and Other publications

Presentations

Teaching Experience

  • 東洋大学生命科学部
  • 東洋大学生命科学部
  • 東洋大学生命科学部
  • 東洋大学生命科学部
  • 東洋大学生命科学部

Professional Memberships

  • JAPAN SOCIETY FOR BIOSICENCE, BIOTECHNOLOGY, AND AGROCHEMISTRY               
  • THE JAPANESE SOCIETY FOR EXTREMOPHILES               
  • International society for Extremophiles               
  • American society for Microbiology               

Research Projects

Industrial Property Rights

  • 特願2024-155447, 好アルカリ性細菌による醤油諸味粕の培地利用および減量化               
    伊藤政博
  • 特許7593608, 特開2021-129511, 特願2020-026178, Screening Methods for Specific Inhibitors of Na⁺/H⁺ Antiporters               
    伊藤政博
  • 特開2021-036860, 特願2020-126242, 微生物のイオン耐性を向上させるための添加剤組成物および方法               
    伊藤政博
  • 特開2020-83809(P2020-83809A), 特願2018-219439(P2018-219439), セシウム輸送膜タンパク質を含む組成物               
    伊藤政博