Prof. Saito is Deputy Director and Professor at Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (CiRA), Kyoto University. After completing predoctoral training at the University of Tokyo and SUNY Buffalo in USA, he received his Ph.D. from the University of Tokyo in 2002. He is interested in the field of RNA synthetic biology & nanotechnology. He aims to understand design principle of living systems and develop new biotechnology to create desired cells. Recently his group developed RNA and protein-responsive “synthetic RNA switches” that purify target cells and program cell-fate.