We are pleased to announce that Prof. Dongryeol Ryu from Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology (GIST), Korea, will join Second Conjoint RIKEN – ISM 2026 as a speaker and give a presentation entitled Living Probiotics, Microbial Metabolites, and Mitochondrial Resilience: A Pathway to Healthy Aging.

Prof. Dongryeol Ryu leads the Molecular and Integrative Biology (MIB) Lab at GIST, will discuss how microbiota-derived metabolites directly enhance mitochondrial resilience and promote healthy aging, positioning the gut microbiome as a source of bioactive compounds that sustain mitochondrial quality control and delay age-associated functional decline.

Mitochondrial decline is a hallmark of aging, driving sarcopenia, metabolic dysfunction, and systemic frailty. Prof. Ryu’s work sits at the convergence of microbiome science and mitochondrial biology, demonstrating that specific microbial metabolites can activate endogenous protective pathways to counteract this decline.

During his talk, he will present a two-part framework. First, he will summarize recent advances in Urolithin A (UA), a microbiota-derived metabolite that has emerged as a leading example of translational microbiome therapeutics for aging and muscle health. Second, he will introduce his group’s recent work on 3-phenyllactic acid (PLA), a metabolite produced by Lactiplantibacillus plantarum, which shows translational relevance in patients with sarcopenia. Finally, he will share ongoing efforts to identify next-generation microbiota-derived metabolites that may further expand the therapeutic landscape for healthy aging and systemic resilience.

The 2^nd RIKEN-ISM Conjoint Meeting
Tokyo Microbiota 2026
September 24-25, 2026 – The University of Tokyo, Japan
tokyo.microbiota-ism.com