Professor / PI / Deputy Director / iCeMS Analysis Center Director
Mineko Kengaku Mineko Kengaku
Research Interest
Developmental Biology of Nervous System
The brain is an elaborate network of 10 billion neurons that control all our conscious and unconscious behaviors. We seek to understand the mechanism how the brain is constructed by dynamic movement of developing neurons. We also aim to reconstruct cell architectures of the brain in glass dishes for future application to the therapy of damaged brains.
What I like about my science
The brain is the most complex, and most beautiful organ created through evolution. It is the forest that houses the soul of what makes a human human. A journey to unravel its workings is nothing but delightful by all means.
Researcher Q & A
Where are you from?
Born in Chigasaki City, Kanagawa Prefecture, raised in Shinjuku, Tokyo.
Why did you become a researcher?
I went to graduate school to study a little more and started research, became captivated by the thrill of solving a mystery that no one has.
What is your favorite experiment, theory, device, reagent, lab equipment? Why do you like it?
Live-cell imaging. The movement of a living cell is surprisingly dynamic. I discover new things every time I observe.
What is your hobby?
Memento (movie) and The Housekeeper and the Professor (book).
Both are stories based on main characters with anterograde amnesia who lack the ability to memorize day-to-day things. Selfishness and Altruism. Desire to receive and the desire to give. It makes me contemplate on happiness (a reward for the brain).
