2026 Inamori Research Grants Recipients

Incubate

The Natural Sciences

[Science and Engineering ] 21 recipients

Name	Affiliation	Research Title
Yosuke Ashida	Assistant Professor, Graduate School of Science, Tohoku University	Enhancing Astronomy by Neutrino Observations over Wide Energy Range
Norihito Arichi	Assistant Professor, Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Kyoto University	Photochemical Modification of Proteins at Methionine Residues
Takahisa Igata	Assistant Professor, Faculty of Science, Gakushuin University	Generalization of the local geometric description of the light deflection angle in the strong deflection limit
Kentaro Ueda	Lecturer, Graduate School of Engineering, The University of Tokyo	Development of ultralow-temperature techniques for the exploration of unconventional superconductors
Takao Oto	Associate Professor, Department of Information Science and Technology, Yamagata University	Development of high-efficiency red-light-emitting devices using plasmonic nanocavities within honeycomb lattice
Takuya Ohmura	Assistant Professor, Research Institute for Electronic Science, Hokkaido University	Revealing mechanism to regulate propelling forces under photoresponsive unidirectional motion of spherically symmetric microorganism
Daichi Oka	Associate Professor, Graduate School of Science, Tokyo Metropolitan University	Development of Deep Ultraviolet Transparent Conductors Based on High-Conductivity Epitaxial Interface
Tatsuro Kawakami	Associate Professor, Graduate School of Mathematical Sciences, The University of Tokyo	Study of the Extension Problem for Differential Forms in Positive Characteristic
Shunsaku Kitagawa	Associate Professor, Graduate School of Science, Kyoto University	Probing novel quasiparticles arising from multiple superconducting state phase boundaries
Naomi Kuze	Lecturer, Faculty of Systems Engineering, Wakayama University	Hierarchical committee architecture for efficient cross-shard communication
Reiko Kuriyama	Associate Professor, Graduate School of Engineering, Kyoto University	Design and validation of fluorescent nanoprobes toward a novel method for wall shear stress measurement
Kenji Takada	Associate Professor, Graduate School of Organic Materials Science, Yamagata University	Fabrication of Next-generation Engineering Plastics Based on Sugar Units
Makoto Fukushima	Associate Professor, Graduate School of Advanced Science and Engineering, Hiroshima University	Elucidating the Functions of Structural Connectivity Patterns in the Brain Connectome
Takafumi Furuhata	Assistant Professor, Graduate School of Engineering, The University of Tokyo	Establishment of indirect ubiquitinating agents towards targeted degradation of transcription factors
Kyota Mikami	Assistant Professor, Graduate School of Engineering, Kyoto University	Physics-based modeling of SiC p-channel MOSFETs towards high-temperature electronics
Kiyoshi Miyata	Associate Professor, Faculty of Science, Kyushu University	Development of Novel Method for Reaction Intermediate Analysis Using Ultrafast Mixing and Ultrafast Spectroscopy
Megumi Mukoyoshi	Assistant Professor, Graduate School of Science, Kyoto University	Development of High-Entropy Metal–Organic Frameworks via Continuous Flow Synthesis
Katsuya Mutoh	Lecturer, Graduate School of Science, Osaka Metropolitan University	Development of functional superatoms based on spin-spin interactions
Akiko Yagi	Professor, Institute of Transformative bio-Molecules, Nagoya University	Creation and Application of Novel Isolated π-Electron Systems
Motohiro Yasui	Assistant Professor, Faculty of Molecular Chemistry and Engineering, Kyoto Institute of Technology	Design and Synthesis of Functional Complexes from Unexplored Heterocyclic Scaffolds
Ryoya Yamasaki	Assistant Professor, Hitotsubashi Institute for Advanced Study, Hitotsubashi University	Unimodality-Promoting Regularized Learning for Ordinal Data

［Biology］19 recipients

Name	Affiliation	Research Title
Tatsuya Ikuta	Senior Assistant Professor (Non-tenured), School of Medicine, Keio University	Understanding the hormone receptor system that induces vasoconstriction
Hiroyuki Uechi	Associate Professor, Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Kyoto University	Organization of the tricellular junction by phase separation
Takuya Osakada	Specially Appointed Associate Professor, School of Life Science and Technology, Institute of Science Tokyo	Identification of circuit dynamics controlling appropriate response towards social stress in rodents
Yuya Karita	Assistant Professor, Graduate School of Science, The University of Tokyo	Revealing the mechanism of soil bioremediation via pore-scale spatio-temporal analysis
Akane Kawaguchi	Assistant Professor, National Institute of Genetics, Research Organization of Information and Systems	Unraveling specific transcription mechanisms during regeneration processes
Yoshinobu Konishi	Hospital-Specific Assistant Professor, Kyoto University Hospital, Kyoto University	Spatial immune analysis for response prediction and resistance mitigation of bispecific antibody therapy in multiple myeloma
Taiki Sakaguchi	Project Assistant Professor, Graduate School of Medicine, The University of Osaka	Development of novel ulcerative colitis therapy promoting mucosal repair via epithelial stem cell differentiation control
Mio K. Shiubta	Assistant Professor, Faculty of Science, Yamagata University	Role of the vegetative nucleus in guiding sperm cells in the growing pollen tube
Wataru Shihoya	Associate Professor, School of Medicine, Keio University	Structure-function analysis of a novel ultraviolet light channel rhodopsin and its application to optogenetics
Rigel Suzuki	Assistant Professor, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Kyushu University	Comprehensive analysis of the transcriptional regulatory mechanisms of hepatitis B virus mediated by novel host factors
Genichi Tasaka	Senior Research Fellow, Center for Biosystems Dynamics Research, RIKEN	Unraveling Dopamine Dysregulation in Maternal Behavioral Deficits
Kenta Tamaki	Assistant Professor, Graduate School of Science, Nagoya University	Creation of Light-responsive Cyborg Microtubules and Dynamic Control of Their Function
Tomokazu Tamura	Associate Professor, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Kyushu University	Elucidation of Translational Mechanisms Determining Pathogenic Diversity in RNA Virus Infections
Koji Noshita	Assistant Professor, Faculty of Science, Kyushu University	Revealing morphological diversity of leaf vein networks
Takuya Matsumoto	Associate Professor, Graduate School of Engineering, Osaka Metropolitan University	Proteoliposome-based artificial cell system for glucose-driven energy conversion
Naoyuki Matsumoto	Project Assistant Professor, National Institute of Genetics, Research Organization of Information and Systems	In vivo imaging for neural circuit refinement at the single cell level
Kazuhisa Murai	Assistant Professor, School of Health Sciences, Kanazawa University	Development of Antiviral Strategies Based on the Multistep Regulation of Viral Infection by Lipases
Masato Yamamichi	Associate Professor, National Institute of Genetics, Research Organization of Information and Systems	Effects of environmental variation on evolutionary rescue: Theory and experiments
Tomomi Wakabayashi	Assistant Professor, Graduated School of Science and Technology, Nara Institute of Science and Technology	Intraspecific polymorphism and adaptive evolution of thermoinhibition of germination in Lotus japonicus

The Humanities and Social Sciences

［Humanities and Social Sciences］10 recipients

Name	Affiliation	Research Title
Kosuke Kiyama	Assistant Professor, Institute of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Tsukuba	An African-Referenced Inquiry into Ethics of Post-Conflict Reconciliation: Fieldwork in Rwanda, Investigation into Ethical Meaning, and Presentation of Exemplary Models of Post-Conflict Representation
Chiaki Goda	Assistant Professor, Faculty of Nursing, Kansai Medical University	Actual State of Clinical Faculty’s Instruction of Nursing Students in Basic Nursing Education and Difficulties Identified by Clinical Faculty
Yukimura Sakon	Associate Professor, Faculty of Economics, Kyushu University	Comparative Study of Free Ports in Modern Asia
Wakako Satomura	Associate Professor, Institute for Asian and Oceanian Studies, Kyushu University	Mechanisms Behind the Stagnation of Girls’ Education in Post-COVID-19 Laos: Gender and Narratives
Kaoru Sonoda	Senior Assistant Professor, Faculty of Business and Commerce, Keio University	An empirical study for intersectionality of individual social identities on their employment, promotion and assessment within firms
Kayo Takahashi	Associate Professor, Graduate School of Clinical Psychology, Kagoshima University	Development and Effectiveness of AI-Based Employment Placement Support for Persons with Mild Intellectual Disabilities in Medical Institutions
Nobuaki Tanaka	Lecturer, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Kitasato University	The Significance of Johann Gottlieb Graun in Music History: Based on His Instrumental Works
Koya Hirose	Associate Professor, Faculty of Education, Miyagi University of Education	Reconsidering “Japanology” based on materials related to Japanese art in France, with a focus on the Léon de Rosny Collection in Lille
Takuya Matsumoto	Assistant Professor, Faculty of Science, Shinshu University	Elucidating the Influence of Material Culture on Primate Cognition and Sociality: Focusing on Japanese macaques bathing in hot springs
Eiichiro Watamura	Professor, Graduate School of Human Sciences, The University of Osaka	Justice by Two Minds: Constructing a Human–AI Co-Judgment Model through the Reappraisal of Cognitive Bias

Accelerate

The Natural Sciences

［Science and Engineering］4 recipients

Name	Affiliation	Research Title
Hidenori Ando	Associate Professor, Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Tokushima University	Innovative antibody drug discovery targeting membrane proteins for the treatment of malignant lymphoma
Hidetoshi Otono	Associate Professor, Faculty of Science, Kyushu University	Three years since the first observation of neutrinos from a collider: A bridge to further advancements
Kyoko Kitamura	Professor, Graduate School of Engineering, Tohoku University	Development of single-chipped circularly polarized lasers
Kotaro Hiramatsu	Professor, Faculty of Science, Kyushu University	Development and Application of Blinking-Free Super-Resolution Microscopy

［Biology］4 recipients

Name	Affiliation	Research Title
Kazuki Kato	Associate Professor, Institute of Integrated Research, Institute of Science Tokyo	Unraveling the Antiviral Defense Mechanism by CRISPR-Cas protease
Yosuke Togashi	Professor, Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Okayama University	Organelle-Mediated Intercellular Communication
Shuhei Nakamura	Professor, Faculty of Medicine, Nara Medical University	Molecular mechanisms of the lysosomal damage response and its role in aging
Hiroshi Makino	Professor, School of Medicine, Keio University	Elucidation of the neural mechanisms underlying social exclusion behavior

The Humanities and Social Sciences

［Humanities and Social Sciences］2 recipients

Name	Affiliation	Research Title
Teisuke Sakai	Lecturer, Faculty of Human Life and Environment, Nara Women’s University	Towards a Comprehensive History of the Pavilion (Tei/Azuma-ya)
Seiko Suzuki	Associate Professor, Graduate School of Humanities, The University of Osaka	Sound Culture of Traditional Music and Performing Arts in Modern and Contemporary Japan: Representation of Musicologists, Performers and Lecturers as Mediators

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