About

Teruo Okano is a faculty member at the College of Pharmacy, specifically associated with the Department of Molecular Pharmaceutics. His research focus involves molecular pharmaceutics, contributing to the development and understanding of pharmaceutical sciences. The page indicates his role within the department and his contact information, but does not provide detailed information about his background, specific research contributions, or key achievements.

Research topics

• Biology
• Medicine
• Pathology
• Cell biology
• Anatomy
• Chemistry
• Biomedical engineering
• Surgery
• Bioinformatics
• Immunology
• Cancer research
• Biochemistry

Selected publications

• Visible-light-triggered recovery of biologically intact cells using smart fluoropolymer-nanocoated materials

  Journal of Controlled Release · 2025-03-20 · 5 citations

  articleSenior author
  PublisherDOI

• Effective cell sheet preparation using thermoresponsive polymer brushes with various graft densities and chain lengths

  Biomaterials Science · 2025-01-01 · 7 citations

  articleOpen accessSenior author

  silanization and subsequent atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP). The density of the PNIPAAm brushes was modulated by changing the ATRP initiator and co-adsorber composition, while the PNIPAAm brush length was modulated by changing the monomer concentration in the ATRP. The hydrophilicity of the PNIPAAm brushes increased with increasing PNIPAAm brush length because long PNIPAAm brushes tended to hydrate. Fibronectin adsorption increased with decreasing PNIPAAm brush concentration because the exposed hydrophobic co-adsorber in the dilute PNIPAAm brush enhanced the adsorption of fibronectin. The cell-sheet fabrication ability was investigated using six types of PNIPAAm brushes. An endothelial cell sheet was fabricated using a dense, short PNIPAAm brush. NIH/3T3 sheets can be fabricated using three types of PNIPAAm brushes: dense-long PNIPAAm brushes, moderately dense-short PNIPAAm brushes, and dilute-long PNIPAAm brushes. MDCK cell sheets could not be prepared using the PNIPAAm brushes. A549 cell sheets were prepared using a dense-short PNIPAAm brush and moderately dense-short PNIPAAm brushes. These results indicate that the optimal PNIPAAm brush conditions for cell sheet preparation vary depending on cell type. Thus, modulation of PNIPAAm brush density and length is an effective approach for preparing target cell sheets.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Toward Standardized MSC Sheet Fabrication: Role of Initial Seeding Density in Structural and Paracrine Optimization

  Stem Cell Reviews and Reports · 2025-10-24

  articleSenior author
  PublisherDOI

• PS12.4: Regenerative effects of mesothelial cells sheet for damaged peritoneum in a mice model.

  Transplantation · 2025-10-01

  article
  PublisherDOI

• Stable preparation of in vivo transplantable periodontal ligament-derived mesenchymal stem cell sheets in thermoresponsive culture dishes with tunable cell detachability

  Regenerative Therapy · 2025-01-13

  articleOpen access

  Tissue engineering plays a pivotal role in the advancement of regenerative medicine. Thermoresponsive culture dishes, coated with specialized polymers that control cell adhesion through temperature fluctuations, enable the processing of cells into sheets for medical applications while maintaining their intact state. Cell sheets prepared using these culture dishes have been incorporated into several commercial pharmaceutical products. However, controlling the detachability of cell sheets using conventional thermoresponsive culture dishes remains a challenge, and often leads to unexpected detachment during cultivation. In this study, we developed a thermoresponsive culture dish with tunable cell detachability using a thermoresponsive block copolymer, poly(butyl methacrylate)- b -poly( N -isopropylacrylamide) (PBMA-PIPAAm), which is a specialized polymer that allows precise control of the amount of surface-immobilized polymer and polymer layer thickness. Culturing periodontal ligament-derived mesenchymal stem cells on these dishes demonstrated fully tunable detachability without compromising cell properties compared to conventional thermoresponsive dishes (UpCell®). Thermoresponsive PBMA-PIPAAm-coated culture dishes enable the complete on-demand detachment of transplantable cell sheets, thereby avoiding unexpected detachment that may increase production costs and reduce technical hurdles in the manufacturing process. The PBMA-PIPAAm coating method has the potential to contribute to biomedical and clinical applications of mesenchymal stem cell sheets. • A thermoresponsive culture dish (SSCW®) with tunable cell detachability was developed by coating surfaces with PBMA-PIPAAm. • The optimal SSCW® to suppress the unexpected detachment of PDL cell sheets was identified by adjusting PBMA-PIPAAm coating. • PDL cells cultured on SSCW® and conventional UpCell® dishes showed minimal changes in cell characteristics . • SSCW® shows potential in tissue engineering for various cell types beyond PDL cells.

  PublisherDOI

• Comparison of human juvenile and adult donor-derived chondrocyte sheets for scalable allogeneic regenerative therapy

  European Cells and Materials · 2025-11-28 · 1 citations

  articleOpen accessSenior author

  Background: Regeneration of damaged cartilage is challenging, and no reproducible regenerative therapies using mass-producible cell products have been established. This study evaluated the cartilage regeneration capability and therapeutic scalability using cell sheets derived from routinely available surgical waste cartilage tissues of young and adult patients, while also investigating the mechanisms that define the characteristics of each cell type. Methods:We compared the viability, proliferation, and cell sheet characteristics of juvenile cartilage-derived chondrocytes (JCCs) from patients with polydactyly (2.2 ± 1.6 years) and adult cartilage-derived chondrocytes (ACCs) from patients with femoroacetabular impingement (FAI) (34.1 ± 10.6 years)in vitro. Thein vivocartilage regeneration capability of each cell sheet was validated in a nude rat knee cartilage defect model using histological O’Driscoll score evaluation on Safranin-O-stained tissues and immunohistochemistry. JCC sheets (n = 13) and ACC sheets (n = 8) were analyzed using established bulk RNA sequencing pipelines for gene ontology (GO) analysis, gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA), and ingenuity pathway analysis (IPA). Interferon gamma (IFN-γ) was applied to JCC sheet culture for confirmation of the interferon signaling involvement in cell proliferation, cell sheet characteristics, and chondrogenic differentiation.Results:JCC demonstrated higher colony-forming ability and stable high proliferation compared to ACC. Both JCC and ACC sheets formed positively stained hyaline cartilage for Safranin-O, type II collagen, aggrecan, and human vimentin, while being negative for type I collagen, four weeks after rat transplantation. However, the regenerated cartilage from ACC sheet transplantation was found to be thinner compared to that from JCC sheet transplantation. Comprehensive gene analysis revealed significant activation of IFN signaling in the ACC sheets. Furthermore, the addition of exogenous IFN dramatically reduced the proliferation and cartilage formation capability of JCC.Conclusions:JCC sheets exhibit high therapeutic scalability due to their proliferation and cartilage regeneration capabilities presumably derived from sustained low IFN-γ activity. Consideration of the donor age and tissue inflammatory status is essential for the cell source in allogeneic cell therapies. Given their sustainable sourcing from routine surgical discards, JCCs present a commercially viable and scalable option for allogeneic regenerative therapy in cartilage repair.

  PublisherDOI

• A Study on iPSC-Associated Factors in the Generation of Hepatocytes

  Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine · 2024-11-04 · 4 citations

  articleOpen access
  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Differentiated and Untreated Juvenile Chondrocyte Sheets Regenerate Cartilage Similarly <i>In Vivo</i>

  Tissue Engineering Part A · 2024 · 4 citations

  Senior authorCorresponding
  • Chemistry
  • Cell biology
  • Anatomy

  JCC sheet predifferentiation from other JCC donors with different healing capacities should be balanced against their increased culture costs over conventional sheets.

  PublisherDOI

• Regenerative Variability of Human Juvenile Chondrocyte Sheets From Different Cell Donors in an Athymic Rat Knee Chondral Defect Model

  Cartilage · 2024 · 5 citations

  Senior authorCorresponding
  • Medicine
  • Anatomy
  • Pathology

  PURPOSE: This study aimed to establish a combined histological assessment system of neo-cartilage outcomes and to evaluate variations in an established rat defect model treated with human juvenile cartilage-derived chondrocyte (JCC) sheets fabricated from various donors. METHODS: JCCs were isolated from the polydactylous digits of eight patients. Passage 2 (P2) JCC sheets from all donors were transplanted into nude rat chondral defects for 4 weeks (27 nude rats in total). Defect-only group served as control. Histological samples were stained for safranin O, collagen 1 (COL1), and collagen 2 (COL2). (1) All samples were scored, and correlation coefficients for each score were calculated. (2) Donors were divided into "more effective" and "less effective" groups based on these scores. Then, differences between each group in each category of modified O'Driscoll scoring were evaluated. RESULTS: (1) Modified O'Driscoll scores were negatively correlated with %COL1 area, and positively correlated with %COL2 area and COL2/1 ratio. (2) Four of 8 donors exhibited significantly higher modified O'Driscoll scores and %COL2 areas. JCC donors were divided into two groups by average score values. Significant differences between the two groups were observed in modified O'Driscoll categories of "Nature of predominant tissue," "Reconstruction of subchondral bone," and "Safranin O staining." CONCLUSION: efficacy assessments of cartilage defect regeneration models. Variations in histological scores among juvenile cartilage-derived chondrocyte donors were correlated to the quality of regenerated cartilage hyaline structure and subchondral bone remodeling observed in the nude rat defect model.

  PublisherDOI

• Engineered Bone Marrow Stem Cell-Sheets Alleviate Renal Damage in a Rat Chronic Glomerulonephritis Model

  International Journal of Molecular Sciences · 2023-02-13 · 7 citations

  articleOpen accessCorresponding

  Although mesenchymal stem cell (MSC)-based regenerative therapy is being developed for the treatment of kidney diseases, cell delivery and engraftment still need to be improved. Cell sheet technology has been developed as a new cell delivery method, to recover cells as a sheet form retaining intrinsic cell adhesion proteins, which promotes its transplantation efficiency to the target tissue. We thus hypothesized that MSC sheets would therapeutically reduce kidney disease with high transplantation efficiency. When the chronic glomerulonephritis was induced by two injections of the anti-Thy 1.1 antibody (OX-7) in rats, the therapeutic efficacy of rat bone marrow stem cell (rBMSC) sheet transplantation was evaluated. The rBMSC-sheets were prepared using the temperature-responsive cell-culture surfaces and transplanted as patches onto the surface of two kidneys of each rat at 24 h after the first injection of OX-7. At 4 weeks, retention of the transplanted MSC-sheets was confirmed, and the animals with MSC-sheets showed significant reductions in proteinuria, glomerular staining for extracellular matrix protein, and renal production of TGFß1, PAI-1, collagen I, and fibronectin. The treatment also ameliorated podocyte and renal tubular injury, as evidenced by a reversal in the reductions of WT-1, podocin, and nephrin and by renal overexpression of KIM-1 and NGAL. Furthermore, the treatment enhanced gene expression of regenerative factors, and IL-10, Bcl-2, and HO-1 mRNA levels, but reduced TSP-1 levels, NF-kB, and NAPDH oxidase production in the kidney. These results strongly support our hypothesis that MSC-sheets facilitated MSC transplantation and function, and effectively retarded progressive renal fibrosis via paracrine actions on anti-cellular inflammation, oxidative stress, and apoptosis and promoted regeneration.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

Frequent coauthors

• Masayuki Yamato

  Tohoku University Hospital

  620 shared

• Akihiko Kikuchi

  Social Insurance Saitama Chuo Hospital

  404 shared

• Tatsuya Shimizu

  Tokyo Women's Medical University

  256 shared

• Jun Kobayashi

  Josai University

  211 shared

• Yoshikatsu Akiyama

  Tokyo Women's Medical University

  178 shared

• Yasuhisa Sakurai

  Mitsui Memorial Hospital

  155 shared

• Hideko Kanazawa

  Keio University

  147 shared

• Kazunori Kataoka

  Johns Hopkins University

  144 shared

Education

• Ph.D., Polymer Chemistry

  Waseda University

  1979

• M.S., Polymer Chemistry

  Waseda University

  1976

• B.S., Applied Chemistry

  Waseda University

  1974