クロフツ アンドルュー

My expertise lies in the field of Plant Cell Biology and my research focus is on the sub-cellular targeting of protein and messenger RNA.

After completing a PhD with Jurgen Denecke studying chaperone complexes in the endoplasmic reticulum, I left the UK for a long-term Post-doctoral research position with Tom Okita in the Institute of Biological Chemistry at Washington State University. Since 2009 I have been working at Akita International University.

For more than 15 years, my research has been focused on gaining a detailed molecular understanding of the mechanism of RNA localisation in rice seeds. RNA localisation is a highly conserved mechanism which allows the spatial and temporal distribution of gene products (proteins) to be tightly controlled based on the active transport of genetic information (messenger RNA).

In addition to my laboratory-based research, I am also interested in science education and the use of technology and hands-on active learning in the classroom and laboratory.