Saving the world with myosin

Q　What was your motivation for joining the program, and what about the program appeals to you?

I developed an interest in environment and energy problems when I was in elementary school. I was constantly being told that if we didn’t change our way of life, the environment would become inhabitable and we would run out of energy. This both alarmed me and made me determined to do something about it. I thought that one solution might be to apply the capacities for sustainable development and energy conservation found in living creatures. When I found precisely the same ideas expressed on the website of this program, I decided to apply.

Q　What is your expertise and who do you want to develop it with the program?

I use imaging technology to study how individual myosin molecules within a sarcomere collaborate to achieve efficient contraction (collective motion). Advancements in myosin research have been made by integrating the knowledge and techniques of biology, engineering, and information science. Learning from this precedent, in HWIP I am hoping to acquire the latest knowledge and techniques and make further advancements in research.

Q　What are your future dreams and goals?

I hope to shed light on the energy-saving, flexible, sustainable, and stable mechanisms of myosin molecules and other machines in the natural world, and apply (or enable others to apply) my findings to human-made machines.