by Kotaro Tsutsumi
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With the generous support of Friends of of UTokyo, Inc., I spent this Summer participating in the University of Tokyo Research Internship Program. As a biochemistry major, I have been primarily utilizing molecular biological lab techniques at Northwestern, my home institution, in investigating protein characterization in Parkinson’s disease cell models. This primarily utilizes molecular biological lab techniques, and in exploring other scientific perspectives, I wanted to participate in research that employs additional chemical approaches in the exploration of molecular biology. Consequently, conducting research at UTokyo’s Ozawa laboratory was the perfect opportunity for me to explore this realm of science.
My project in the Ozawa lab centered around a signaling protein called G-protein coupled receptor. Much of prior investigation regarding this protein have been conducted in vitro using molecular biological techniques such as Western blotting. However, such methods do not necessarily illuminate the life course activity of a single protein. Hence, the aim of my project was to elucidate the in vivo kinetics of GPCR using total internal reflection microscopy, which allows for single-molecule imaging.
Prior to this project, I had minimal exposure to single-molecule imaging, let alone fluorescence microscopy. This opportunity presented me with a variety of eye-opening approaches that enhanced my scientific knowledge and capacity to think critically as a scientist, and will be of great use as I move forward in my academic career.
It was not only my passion for science, however, that made this experience a crucial aspect of my future career. It was also the opportunity for me to grasp Japanese culture, both within and without the lab, that made UTRIP so meaningful. As a Japanese-American, I have lived in the United States throughout my entire life. Despite my fluency in the Japanese Language and many visits to Japan, I had never lived in Japan for an extended period of time, and hence never fully understood the social culture of Japan. From the late night discussions with lab mates about the international variations in education to spontaneous interactions with people on the subway, the six weeks I spent in Japan was filled with occasions that exposed me to the characteristics of modern Japanese society, and allowed me to truly internalize my cultural identity.
Outside of the laboratory, UTRIP gave me many opportunities to explore the multifaceted nature of Japan. A trip to the Nikko Toshogu shrine, botanical garden, and yuba factory presented me with the longstanding Japanese traditions that has been maintained for centuries. The exquisite taste of fresh yuba reminded me of the delicacy of Japanese dishes, which in fact is not an exclusive element of cuisine, but is a prominent aspect of the overall Japanese culture that makes it so beautiful.
On the contrary, a visit to the Shibuya ward illuminated the modern millennial culture of Japan that is filled with excitement and energy. Another trip to an outskirt neighborhood of presented yet another side of Tokyo that is filled with trendy cafes and Jazz bars that offers a relaxing and comforting atmosphere. It is breathtaking that such a diverse array of subcultures exists within this city, and is the precise element that made my life in Japan continually engaging and exciting.
Reflecting upon such unforgettable memories, I feel that my internship in Japan was truly a scientifically and culturally stimulating experience, and I hope to embrace it all as I move forward in my career.
Yumi Nakayama, D.V.M., Ph.D. (中山由実) is currently a scientist of Hematology/Oncology in Translational Development and Diagnostics at the Celgene Corporation. She specializes in cellular and molecular immunology in hematological malignancy, infectious diseases, organ transplantation, and autoimmune diseases and has spent more than ten years in academia and the biopharma industry, committed to finding improved outcomes and better treatments in cancer and immune disorders through translational research and drug discovery. She has received several honors and awards including Excellence in delivering exceptional results from the Celgene Corporation in 2017 and the Young Investigator Award from the American Society of Transplantation in 2010. She received her Bachelor of Science and Doctor of Veterinary Medicine from University of Tokyo and her Ph.D. from the Department of Pathobiological Science at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and was a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Center for Vascular and Inflammatory Diseases at University of Maryland, School of Medicine.
Akiko Koide (小出明子) is a Research Assistant Professor in the Department of Medicine at New York University School of Medicine and Laura and Isaac Perlmutter Cancer Center at NYU Langone Health. She is an expert in protein engineering, directed evolution and microbiology with >25 year experience in cutting-edge research. Together with her husband, Professor Shohei Koide, she has established the Monobody system, technology to generate small synthetic binding protein based on fibronectin type III domain that achieves potency that rivals antibodies. She is known as the mother of all Monobodies. In parallel, she has made important contribution to the development of synthetic antibodies, technology to develop antibodies without the use of animals. Using these powerful technologies, she has been developing novel therapeutics against cancer. She received her B.S., M.S. and Ph.D. degrees from the University of Tokyo (農学部農芸化学科), Japan, and has published >70 peer-reviewed articles. She is the proud mother of two amazing daughters.
Shohei Koide, Ph.D. (小出昌平) is Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Pharmacology at New York University School of Medicine and the Director of Cancer Biologics platform in the Perlmutter Cancer Center at NYU Langone Health.
Takeshi Komoto （河本 雄）serves as Minister at the Japanese Embassy in the United States of America since June 2018. His portfolio covers policy areas including economy, trade, industry and energy.
Yuichiro Kuwama, M.D. (桑間雄一郎) has been Medical Director at the Japanese Medical Practice Division of Mount Sinai Beth Israel in New York since 2000. Dr. Kuwama serves as one of the primary care physicians for the Japanese community in the greater New York Metropolitan Area. He also engages in medical education activities by teaching medical students at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and doctors-in-training at Mount Sinai Beth Israel. He is currently an associate professor of medicine at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.
Koichi Hamada (濱田宏一) is the 
Sumiko Ito (伊藤澄子)
Shigenori (Shig) Matsushita (松下重悳): Upon graduating from the Department of Electrical Engineering (with Major in Communications) of UTokyo in March 1959, he joined Toshiba Corporation in April 1959 where he designed basic transistor circuits for computers. He was a chief design engineer for a patch-board programmed computer and a magnetic drum internal-program computer. In 1962 he was awarded a Fulbright scholarship and studied at the University of Illinois, where he worked as an assistant to develop a pattern recognition computer, ILLIAC III, in the Digital Computer Laboratory, and received his MS degree in August 1963.
Nobuko Sakurai (桜井信子) graduated from the University of Tokyo (French Studies), and spent one year in Paris as a student. After working at Air France in Tokyo for six years, she was employed at the 
Hisashi Kobayashi （小林久志） is a 
Dr. Masaaki Yamada (山田雅章) is a Distinguished Laboratory Research Fellow at 
Junji Masuda （桝田淳二）has been a partner of 
Hiroshi Komiyama (小宮山宏) became Chairman of the Institute of Mitsubishi Research Institute, Inc. and President Emeritus at the University of Tokyo in April 2009, after completing a four-year presidency at the University of Tokyo. He was appointed the 28th president of the University of Tokyo in April 2005, after having served as a vice-president and executive vice-president for a year each, respectively. Prior to that he was Dean of the School of Engineering from April 2000 till March 2002. Dr. Komiyama received his Bachelor’s, Master’s, and Doctoral degrees, all in chemical engineering, from the University of Tokyo in 1967, 1969, and 1972, respectively. From 1973 to 1974, he was a post doctoral fellow at the University of California at Davis. He became a full professor in the Department of Chemical System Engineering, University of Tokyo in 1988. Dr. Komiyama specializes in chemical engineering, advanced materials engineering, and global environment engineering. His research work and papers have received awards three times from the Society of Chemical Engineers of Japan. In addition to his positions at Mitsubishi Research Institute, Inc. and the University of Tokyo, he serves as an adviser to the Japanese Government, the media, and several non-profit organizations.
Dr. Tai Hasegawa is the president of the Henry Taube Institute, a non-profit organization founded in Palo Alto in honor of his mentor (1983 Nobel laureate). Hasegawa-san obtained his BS, MS and Ph.D. in Chemistry from the U. of Tokyo, and did his research at the Institute of Physical Science, the Polish Academy of Sciences in Warsaw, until joining the Chemistry Department of Stanford University. He got a tenured research professorship at the Institute of Molecular Medical Sciences, former Biochemistry division of the Linus Pauling Institute (Dr. Pauling is the only person so far to win two unshared Nobel Prizes, 1954 and 1962) before establishing the Henry Taube Institute. He likes to play various instruments including the violin, the viola, and the piano, and is an active member of Palo Alto Philharmonic and Choral Cosmo. He is the president of the Stanford Silicon Valley Akamon-kai, an alumni group of the U. of Tokyo for Stanford and Silicon Valley area members. He is also the president of the Silicon Valley Japan Association.
Takatoshi Ito, Professor at the School of International and Public Affairs of Columbia University, has taught extensively both in the United States and Japan since finishing his Ph.D. in economics at Harvard University in 1979. He taught at the University of Minnesota (1979-1988), Hitotsubashi University (1988-2002), and the University of Tokyo (2004-2014) before assuming his current position in 2015. He held visiting professor positions at Harvard University, Stanford University, Columbia Business School, and the University of Malaya. He has held distinguished academic and research appointments such as President of the Japanese Economic Association in 2004; Fellow of the Econometric Society since 1992; and Research Associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research since 1985. Ito served as Senior Advisor in the Research Department at the International Monetary Fund and as Deputy Vice Minister for International Affairs at the Ministry of Finance of Japan, and was a member of the Prime Minister’s Council on Economic and Fiscal Policy. He is the author of many books, including The Japanese Economy, and more than 60 refereed journal papers. He frequently contributes op-ed columns to the Financial Times. In June 2011, the Government of Japan awarded him with the National Medal with Purple Ribbon in for his excellent academic achievement.
Shunichiro Kishioka （岸岡駿一郎）is currently Chairman of 
Dr. Geeta Mehta (ギータ・メータ) joined the Advisory Committee of FUTI in April 2011. She is currently an adjunct professor at the