Takahiro Yonezawa

Principal Investigator
Professor, Graduate School of Integrated Sciences for Life, Hiroshima University

My specialty is genome evolution. Through phylogeography and population dynamics analysis, I am trying to understand the origin and evolutionary history of species and how they have responded to environmental changes. Currently, my research focuses on the origin and geographical spread process, as well as the adaptation of traits in domestic animals, especially chickens.

Team Members and Research Themes

  • Hideyuki Mannen (Kobe University): Origins and Evolutionary History of Japanese Native Cattle and Goats
  • Masahide Nishibori (Hiroshima University): Origins and Evolutionary History of Japanese Native Pigs
  • Yoshio Yamamoto (Hiroshima University): Origins and Evolutionary History of Japanese Native Chickens
  • Jiaqi Wu (Hiroshima University): Bioinformatics and Population Genomic Analysis

Project Overview

Domesticated animals and cultivated plants have been among humanity’s greatest inventions, profoundly shaping human history. Beyond their role as sources of food, they have been deeply intertwined with human spirituality, folk practices, and cultural rituals. Because they are spread primarily through human activity, they are invaluable for understanding the exchanges of material culture between different regions.
This research project aims to shed new light on the prehistoric human history of the Japanese archipelago by investigating the origins of Japanese native livestock. By conducting comparative genomic analyses with native livestock from Asia—including China and Korea—we seek to unravel the routes and timing of their introduction to Japan, as well as their adaptive traits.

Photos:　A diverse array of livestock breeds, including the Japanese native chicken (left: Onaga-dori, photographed by Professor Emeritus Masaoki Tsuzuki) has been produced in Japan, yet the precise geographic origins of many remain unclear. In the Ryukyu Islands, undescribed populations of unimproved livestock (top right: chicken from Ishigaki Island; bottom right: pig from Ishigaki Island, photographed by Mr. Masaru Takata) continue to be discovered. These populations not only hold value as genetic resources but may also offer crucial insights into the history of livestock in Japan.