Yuki Obata, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor

2021-Present: Assistant Professor, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX

2016-2021: Postdoctoral Fellow (EMBO, HFSP Long-Term Postdoctoral Fellow), The Francis Crick Institute, London, UK

2015-2016: Postdoctoral Fellow (JSPS SPD), The Institute of Medical Science, The University of Tokyo, Japan

2010-2015: Graduate student, Graduate school of Medicine, Chiba University, Japan

• Inter-organ Communication
• Intestinal Neural Circuits
• Neuro-Immune Circuits

Featured Publications

Neuronal programming by microbiota regulates intestinal physiology.

Obata Y, Castaño Á, Boeing S, Bon-Frauches AC, Fung C, Fallesen T, de Agüero MG, Yilmaz B, Lopes R, Huseynova A, Horswell S, Maradana MR, Boesmans W, Vanden Berghe P, Murray AJ, Stockinger B, Macpherson AJ, Pachnis V, Nature 2020 02 578 7794 284-289

The epigenetic regulator Uhrf1 facilitates the proliferation and maturation of colonic regulatory T cells.

Obata Y, Furusawa Y, Endo TA, Sharif J, Takahashi D, Atarashi K, Nakayama M, Onawa S, Fujimura Y, Takahashi M, Ikawa T, Otsubo T, Kawamura YI, Dohi T, Tajima S, Masumoto H, Ohara O, Honda K, Hori S, Ohno H, Koseki H, Hase K, Nat Immunol 2014 Jun 15 6 571-9

Commensal microbe-derived butyrate induces the differentiation of colonic regulatory T cells.

Furusawa Y, Obata Y, Fukuda S, Endo TA, Nakato G, Takahashi D, Nakanishi Y, Uetake C, Kato K, Kato T, Takahashi M, Fukuda NN, Murakami S, Miyauchi E, Hino S, Atarashi K, Onawa S, Fujimura Y, Lockett T, Clarke JM, Topping DL, Tomita M, Hori S, Ohara O, Morita T, Koseki H, Kikuchi J, Honda K, Hase K, Ohno H, Nature 2013 Dec 504 7480 446-50

Symbiotic polyamine metabolism regulates epithelial proliferation and macrophage differentiation in the colon.

Nakamura A, Kurihara S, Takahashi D, Ohashi W, Nakamura Y, Kimura S, Onuki M, Kume A, Sasazawa Y, Furusawa Y, Obata Y, Fukuda S, Saiki S, Matsumoto M, Hase K, Nat Commun 2021 04 12 1 2105

Enteric glia as a source of neural progenitors in adult zebrafish.

McCallum S, Obata Y, Fourli E, Boeing S, Peddie CJ, Xu Q, Horswell S, Kelsh RN, Collinson L, Wilkinson D, Pin C, Pachnis V, Heanue TA, Elife 2020 08 9

Linking neurons to immunity: Lessons from Hydra.

Obata Y, Pachnis V, Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2020 08 117 33 19624-19626

Commensal-bacteria-derived butyrate promotes the T-cell-independent IgA response in the colon.

Isobe J, Maeda S, Obata Y, Iizuka K, Nakamura Y, Fujimura Y, Kimizuka T, Hattori K, Kim YG, Morita T, Kimura I, Offermanns S, Adachi T, Nakao A, Kiyono H, Takahashi D, Hase K, Int Immunol 2020 04 32 4 243-258

Sox8 is essential for M cell maturation to accelerate IgA response at the early stage after weaning in mice.

Kimura S, Kobayashi N, Nakamura Y, Kanaya T, Takahashi D, Fujiki R, Mutoh M, Obata Y, Iwanaga T, Nakagawa T, Kato N, Sato S, Kaisho T, Ohno H, Hase K, J Exp Med 2019 04 216 4 831-846

NALT M cells are important for immune induction for the common mucosal immune system.

Date Y, Ebisawa M, Fukuda S, Shima H, Obata Y, Takahashi D, Kato T, Hanazato M, Nakato G, Williams IR, Hase K, Ohno H, Int Immunol 2017 12 29 10 471-478

The Effect of Microbiota and the Immune System on the Development and Organization of the Enteric Nervous System.

Obata Y, Pachnis V, Gastroenterology 2016 11 151 5 836-844

• HFSP Long-Term Fellowship
  (2017-2020)
• EMBO Long-Term Fellowship
  (2016-2017)
• Inoue Research Award for Young Scientists
  Inoue Foundation for Science (2016)
• Ikushi Prize
  Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) (2015)
• Superlative Postdoctoral Fellow (SPD)
  Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) (2015-2016)