Evolutionary Genomics / Comparative Genomics

Yawako W KAWAGUCHI

Postdoctoral Researcher, National Institute of Genetics, Japan

I am an evolutionary genomicist interested in how genomes evolve in size, structure, and sequence. My research combines comparative genomics, genome assembly, and molecular evolutionary analyses across diverse organisms, from unicellular algae to vertebrates.

Portrait of Yawako W KAWAGUCHI Collecting samples with a plankton net at a pond

Publications

Peer-reviewed papers and preprints, newest first.

2026

  1. Shifts in high-light acclimation strategies associated with molecular evolutionary rates in duckweeds

    Yawako W KAWAGUCHI, Masaru Kono, Minako Isoda, Kensuke Kawade, Hiromitsu Tabeta, Ryosuke Sasaki, Akira Oikawa, Masami Y. Hirai, Evelina Josephine, Levina Valerie, Natsu Katayama

    Preprint bioRxiv doi:10.64898/2026.09.07.749874

  2. Tracing genome size dynamics in sharks and rays with inclusive sequence analysis by the Squalomix Consortium

    Shigehiro Kuraku, Yawako W KAWAGUCHI, Taiki Niwa, Ryo Misawa, Yohey Ogawa, Mitsutaka Kadota, Kazuhiro Saito, Waichiro Godo, Tatsuya Sakamoto, Wataru Takagi, Sachiko Isobe, Kenta Shirasawa, Akane Kawaguchi

    Genome Research 36(8): 1708–1723 doi:10.1101/gr.281149.125 Preprint

  3. Shark sexing from forensic, archival, and developmental samples using sex-linked DNA markers

    Akane Oishi, Yawako W KAWAGUCHI, Taiki Niwa, Yoshinobu Uno, Shigehiro Kuraku

    Preprint bioRxiv doi:10.64898/2026.05.02.722412

  4. Improved genome assembly of whale shark, the world’s biggest fish: revealing intragenomic heterogeneity in molecular evolution

    Yawako W KAWAGUCHI, Rui Matsumoto, Shigehiro Kuraku

    GigaScience 15: giag014 doi:10.1093/gigascience/giag014 Preprint

2025

  1. A single episode of sexual reproduction can produce large variation in population growth rates under dual stressors

    Yawako W KAWAGUCHI, Masato Yamamichi

    Journal of Evolutionary Biology 38(6): 778–785 doi:10.1093/jeb/voaf041 Preprint Press release

  2. Nationwide diversity of symbolic “city flowers” in Japan is increasing

    Yoichi Tsuzuki*, Haruna Ohsaki*, Yawako W KAWAGUCHI*, Sayaka Suzuki, Shogo Harada, Yurie Otake, Naoto Shinohara, Koki R. Katsuhara

    Ecological Research 40(4): 463–474 doi:10.1111/1440-1703.12540 Press release

2024

  1. Diversity of genome size and chromosome number in homothallic and heterothallic strains of the Closterium peracerosum–strigosum–littorale complex (Desmidiales, Zygnematophyceae, Streptophyta)

    Yuki Tsuchikane, Misaki Watanabe, Yawako W KAWAGUCHI, Koichi Uehara, Tomoaki Nishiyama, Hiroyuki Sekimoto, Takashi Tsuchimatsu

    Journal of Phycology 60(3): 654–667 doi:10.1111/jpy.13457

2023

  1. Extensive Copy Number Variation Explains Genome Size Variation in the Unicellular Zygnematophycean Alga, Closterium peracerosum–strigosum–littorale Complex

    Yawako W KAWAGUCHI, Yuki Tsuchikane, Keisuke Tanaka, Teruaki Taji, Yutaka Suzuki, Atsushi Toyoda, Motomi Ito, Yasuyuki Watano, Tomoaki Nishiyama, Hiroyuki Sekimoto, Takashi Tsuchimatsu

    Genome Biology and Evolution 15(8): evad115 doi:10.1093/gbe/evad115

2019

  1. Plant adaptation and speciation studied by population genomic approaches

    Masaru Bamba, Yawako W KAWAGUCHI, Takashi Tsuchimatsu

    Development, Growth & Differentiation 61(1): 12–24 doi:10.1111/dgd.12578

* Equal contribution.

CV

Academic Positions

  • Oct 2023 – present NIG Postdoctoral Fellow
    Molecular Life History Laboratory (Kuraku Lab), National Institute of Genetics
  • Apr 2023 – Sep 2023 Project Researcher
    Theoretical Ecology and Evolution Laboratory (Yamamichi Lab), National Institute of Genetics
  • Apr 2020 – Mar 2023 JSPS Research Fellow (DC1)
    Japan Society for the Promotion of Science

Education

Awards

  • Aug 2025 Best Oral Presentation Award — Society of Evolutionary Studies, Japan
  • Jul 2024 GBE Best Student Paper Award — Society for Molecular Biology and Evolution
  • Aug 2019 Poster Presentation Award — Society of Evolutionary Studies, Japan

Research Grants

  • Oct 2026 – Sep 2027 Kurita Water and Environment Foundation Research Grant
  • Jul 2024 – Mar 2026 JSPS KAKENHI Grant-in-Aid for Research Activity Start-up
  • Apr 2020 – Mar 2023 JSPS KAKENHI Grant-in-Aid for JSPS Fellows

Other Activities

PhyloWeaver
An interactive phylogenetic tree editor that runs in your browser. Rearrange and annotate trees with drag-and-drop, then export publication-ready figures and data. GitHub Zenodo
Blog — だれかのためのバイオインフォマティクス
Bioinformatics how-tos for beginners, written from my own trial and error (in Japanese).