Tokyo Tech Faces and Findings okyo ech aces and -stories from the lab- indings All of the faces have various stories. -stories from the lab- All of the stories have passion. B R A I N Tokyo Institute of T ec hno http://www.titech.ac.jp/ logy ■東京工業大学 顔シリーズ冊子／P1-P2（英語版） 仕上：A4_ A3 二つ折（W210×H297mm） okyo ech -storiesaces from the and lab- indings index Research highlights 3 A life dedicated to researching volcanos Kenji Nogami 51 It all started with a microscope Yoshinori Ohsumi 7 Chemical synthesis of natural organic compounds Keisuke Suzuki 53 Promoting large-scale power electronics research 9 55 Using diamonds to shed light on earth’s history Kei Hirose with private sector partners in the next ten years Hirofumi Akagi Infinite possibilities originating from the materials around us Akira Ohtomo 11 Diamonds as the ultimate semiconductors Mutsuko Hatano 57 Curiosity in the lab led to the creation of interesting molecules Michito Yoshizawa 13 Conserving coral reef ecosystems Kazuo Nadaoka 59 Fractals will enrich our future Misako Takayasu 15 Early cancer intervention with gut bacteria Takuji Yamada 61 Dreaming of wireless technology 17 surpassing wired communication Kenichi Okada The environment, international activities, and a fusion of the arts 19 and sciences: civil engineering is expanding day by day Shinjiro Kanae Manipulating electrons well to elicit the potential of materials Hideo Hosono 21 Creating artificial bones for faster bone regeneration Junzo Tanaka Toshiyuki Ikoma 29 I Solving the mysteries of chaperones: 31 proteins that assist other proteins throughout their life cycle Hideki Taguchi The joy of creating surgical assist robots through D 33 medicine-engineering collaboration Kotaro Tadano A scientific approach to design Céline Mougenot 35 E Innovative theory for designing quantum computers Hidetoshi Nishimori 37 Harnessing the potential of unexplored terahertz waves Yukio Kawano 39 Seeking photocatalysts to convert solar into chemical energy Osamu Ishitani 41 A breakthrough in lithium batteries Ryoji Kanno 43 Tomofumi Tada Satoru Matsuishi 45 Spirit of new materials creation Masaaki Kitano A A determined quest toward new horizons in cancer treatment Shinae Kondoh 49 1 2 reating new materials that defy conventional wisdom, analyzing the inner structure of The series “FACES: Tokyo Tech Researchers,” published on our website, highlights C the Earth, developing surgical robotic arms to meet the needs of today’s hospitals — Tokyo Tech members who are at the forefront of their respective fields, engaging in from the development of technologies that enrich our lives to the discovery of answers to world-leading research with vision and unswerving dedication. mysteries that draw worldwide attention, the achievements of Tokyo Tech abound in both These are the stories of how the researchers, often despite many failures, accom- focused and interdisciplinary fields. plished their goals. Note: Affiliations and titles mentioned are those held at the time of the interview. Researcher highlights Yoshinori Ohsumi Ryoji Kanno All-solid-state lithium battery system There is still much we do not While all-solid-state lithium bat- Negative Positive Negative Positive know about the mechanism of electrode electrode electrode electrode teries have great merits, their one autophagy and this calls for seri- disadvantage is in initiating a con- ous study. I hope to go on to C CoO2 All solid- C CoO2 tact because, unlike organic sol- X-- Li+ state study autophagy at the molecular Li+ Li+ Li+ Li+ LiLi+ Li+ Li+ Li+ Li+ Li+ vent, contact requires an inter- level, to tackle the mechanism Li+ X-- face. If we can solve this problem, head-on. That is my mission. Li+ Li+ Li+ Li+ LiLi+ Li+ Li+ Li+ Li+ Li+ the goal of commercialization will Li+ X-- be within reach. Organic electrolyte solution Inorganic solid electrolyte Hideo Hosono C12A7(12CaO・7Al2O3) Hidetoshi Nishimori An example traveling salesman problem It is a material called C12A7 (12- Quantum computers incorporate CaO·7Al2O3), which is a constitu- quantum mechanics into software ent of alumina cement, and it’s of and algorithms. ! course transparent (in powder form it’s white). It’s endlessly fas- START & cinating. It’s kind of like a toy GOAL chest for me. Kenji Nogami Hideki Taguchi Céline Mougenot Junzo Tanaka / Toshiyuki Ikoma While this does not always have Even though life sciences has con- I think I joined Tokyo Tech at a We were looking for a way to to be outdoors, you need to siderably advanced, we still cannot very good time because there recycle fish scales that get dis- see, touch, and observe. You create proteins with catalytic func- are many things in education posed of around seacoasts. should be willing to reach out tions - something that life forms can and research that are related to That's how our research started. and explore. Such experience do very easily. In a sense, some- design. increases your motivation to thing very mysterious is happening. improve your skills and deepen I really enjoy myself every day your insight. because I get to conduct research on chaperones, which support these mysterious functions of proteins. 3 4 Mutsuko Hatano Kei Hirose Keisuke Suzuki Osamu Ishitani With mutual understanding and Are you familiar with a type of There is a fine line between a I was happy with the positive cooperative competition, things rock called ‘mica’ that peels drug and a poison, and it is evaluation of my research, of that you simply can’ t create into thin layers like paper? We often the case that natural course, but I couldn’t afford to alone emerge. discovered that post-perovskite organic compounds are both dwell on that. Instead, I had to has a crystal structure just like bioactive and toxic. If we decipher the mystery of how mica and conducts electricity change the molecular structure, rhenium complexes could and heat very well. however, we can increase bio- selectively reduce carbon diox- activity and decrease toxicity. ide. Kotaro Tadano Hirofumi Akagi Yukio Kawano Kazoo Nadaoka I think our ultimate goal is to The stability and efficiency of While often thought of as very The benefits we get from eco- make surgical procedures less high-voltage high-current different, light and radio waves systems are known as ecosys- stressful to patients and say, power converters may deterio- are both electromagnetic tem services. If we focus on “Look how easy it is!” through rate with large loads,Finding a waves. What distinguishes the improvement or enhancement medical robot development way to improve efficiency is a two is frequency. of only one aspect among vari- with a brand new concept. very interesting challenge for ous ecosystem services, the me. soundness of the ecosystem may not be maintained. Takuji Yamada Tomofumi Tada/Satoru Matsuishi /Masaaki Kitano Kenichi Okada Shinjiro Kanae Research on the intestinal envi- The most important thing in the Technology in the future can be The term civil engineering often ronment has progressed in the drive to improve ourselves is to developed in your own way if gives the impression of humble right direction, and I already find opportunities and environ- you properly learn the basics work, such as dam construc- feel that we are close to realiz- ments where we are inspired by and learn from failures and tion. However, in fact, the per- ing success in the early detec- others. small successes on the way to centage of internationally active tion of colorectal cancer by your goal. persons who majored in civil utilizing our findings. engineering is very high. Misako Takayasu Michito Yoshizawa Akira Ohtomo Shinae Kondoh The seeds of scientific study The field of medical care, where I often tell students, “what mat- There are many positions avail- can be hidden in ordinary life a drug could, for example, ters most in research is allow- able. Use your time at Tokyo and casual conversation. The deliver medicine to a specific ing yourself to be inspired and Tech to examine your aptitude important thing is to think hard part of the body via a nanocap- having reserves of strength for and reflect on things repeatedly about whatever it is that you sule, is another area where we the duration, because life is a until you are absolutely sure. find interesting and never be would like to see application of long race.” You have to enjoy afraid to ask questions. this research. research. To do this, I want them to embrace new perspec- tives and make new discover- ies. 5 6 Tokyo Tech Faces and Findings ー stories from the lab ー students to naturally confirm things with their own eyes and hopefully make new discoveries with their own eyes too.” It all started with a Yeast vacuole in a state of starvation, Do the things you find truly interesting as seen with an electron microscope. The large white circles inside the cell microscope are vacuoles and we know that a After his success in witnessing autophagy with a microscope, portion of the cellular material is found Professor Ohsumi began work on identifying the genes connected inside them. with autophagy. Autophagy genes are now known as ATG genes. Autophagy, the survival strategy A total of 18 ATG genes have been discovered. only organelle visible under the light microscope, and I often of organisms observed them. My observations under the microscope were the In 1996, Professor Ohsumi transferred to the National Institute for main reason I was able to discover these hitherto unknown Basic Biology in Okazaki, Aichi Prefecture, which has the neces- functions of vacuoles,” sary staff and equipment to elucidate the functions of the proteins Honorary Professor he said. that are encoded by the ATG genes. Several years later, with the “Doing something no one else is doing” was also the motivation assistance of research workers at the Institute, Professor Ohsumi behind choosing to elucidate the mechanism of lytic function of was able to show autophagy to be one of the most basic functions Yoshinori Ohsumi yeast vacuoles when be branched out on his own in 1988.