Kenta received BS from the University of Tokyo, and PhD from The Rockefeller University. His PhD thesis in Professor Leslie Vosshall’s lab elucidated a neuronal mechanism of intensity-invariant chemotaxis behavior. He received his postdoctoral training in Professor David Anderson’s lab at California Institute of Technology, where he uncovered neuronal and genetic elements controlling antagonistic behavior. From 2011 to 2013, he was a Japan Society for the Promotion of Science Research Overseas fellow. Since October 2014, Kenta is an Assistant Professor at The Salk Institute. He loves nature, arts and good coffee. In his scarce free time, he likes to hike trails in San Diego County, snorkel, visit art galleries and try out new cafes.

I am an eclectic scientist and an academic wanderer. My journey began at the University of Bologna where I earned my BS and MS in Pharmaceutical Biotechnology and studied oncolytic herpes viruses. In 2013, I flew to Cambridge (UK) where I met my favourite model organism –Drosophila melanogaster- that helped me explore the mechanisms of asymmetric cell division in larval neuroblast. Fruit flies accompanied me throughout my scientific journey. During my PhD in Molecular Oncology at IFOM (Milan, Italy), I used flies to characterize a novel E3 ubiquitin ligase -Hecw- potentially involved in RNPs regulation and neurodegenerative disease. I continued studying  Hecw during my postdoc at  IFOM, navigating the boundary between neurodevelopment and neurodegeneration. In 2024, I joined the Asahina lab as a Staff Scientist to dive deeper in the neurobiology field and help unravel the mechanisms that regulate social behavior at their origin.  Beyond the bench, I love writing about science to broaden my own horizons – and hopefully those of my readers. I also enjoy long walks and yoga – I’ve dragged almost every lab member to at least one yoga session!

I completed my bachelor’s degree in Molecular and Cell Biology at UCSD in 2022 and my master’s degree in Biology with a specialization in Biology Education at UCSD in 2024. I joined the Asahina Lab in 2023 to further my understanding of neuroscience research; my work over the past two years in the lab has centered around studying chemoreceptors in the eusocial sweat bee Halictus ligatus, largely using molecular biology and bioinformatics techniques. I was recently accepted into MIT’s Brain and Cognitive Science PhD program and will be starting my PhD in the fall of 2025. My research interest is the intersection of neuroscience, bioinformatics, and deep learning. Outside of the lab, I enjoy reading, being outdoors, cooking, and trying new restaurants around San Diego!

I am currently majoring in Neurobiology with a minor in Economics at UCSD. Outside of science, I enjoy reading, playing soccer, and running.

I am completing my degree in BS Mathematics – Applied Science at UCSD. I joined Asahina Lab to build skills in researching neural mechanisms behind social behaviors with insect models. I am broadly interested in biological systems consisting of interacting modules, from cellular signaling to eusocial insects. In my free time, I enjoy going for a bug hunt, playing piano, sketching, and practicing judo.

I received a BS in Biological Anthropology with a minor in Mathematics from UC San Diego, where my coursework focused on evolutionary science, nonhuman animal cognition, and statistics. After graduating, I wanted to explore the neural mechanisms underlying fundamental social behaviors and found the Drosophila melanogaster system to be a compelling model. I joined the Asahina lab in 2022 as a Research Assistant, and also serve as Lab Manager, facilitating daily operations for our ongoing research. Outside of the lab, I enjoy going to zoos, museums, and thrift shops!

I am currently majoring in Neurobiology with a minor in Cognitive Science at UC San Diego. My academic and research interests center around behavioral neurobiology and cognition, particularly in understanding the neural mechanisms that drive behavior. Outside of academics, I enjoy reading, swimming, and exploring new cafes.

I’m currently studying Human Biology at UC San Diego. I joined the Asahina Lab to deepen my skills in scientific research. I am really interested specifically in how internal states and environment impact the way animals respond to each other. Outside the lab, I enjoy lion dancing, shopping, and exploring new hiking spots.

I received a BS in Genetics and Bioengineering from Yeditepe University and I received a MS in Molecular Medicine from Yeditepe University, Turkey. After my graduation, I worked as a postgrad research associate in a neurosurgery lab where I worked on brain tumors, aneurism and neurodevelopmental diseases at Yale University. In 2022, I joined Asahina lab as a Research Assistant II to study neuronal gene expression profiling of Drosophila melanogaster by using 10x Genomics Chromium single cell/nuclei RNA sequencing technology. Outside of lab, I like exploring restaurants and coffee shops, cooking new recipes, traveling and hiking.