ぴーからぶー

This time we hear from Dr. Makito Miyazaki, team leader of the Laboratory for Bottom-up Cell Biology, about his research and laboratory. The laboratory was established at the BDR in April 2023.

Before establishing your laboratory at RIKEN, where and what kind of research were you doing?

Up until my master’s program, I was researching the movements of single molecular motors using the most advanced optical microscopes at the time to observe and manipulate them. Realizing that I needed a better knowledge of physics to understand the principles of molecular motor operation, I decided to pursue a PhD in theoretical research related to nonequilibrium statistical mechanics.

During this period, I was also questioning my career path choice. Thinking back to my early childhood when I was infatuated with insects, I realized that I wanted to study something a little more related to living organisms, so from my postdoc I started working on reconstitution experiments which tie into my current research. I was very fortunate to find an environment where I was able to conduct research freely as I pleased. It was there that, when struggling to get the desired results, I became aware of the challenges of research but was also able to find my own unique research path.

Afterwards, I had the opportunity to work at Kyoto University’s Hakubi Center, which also provided an open environment to allow me to continue concentrating on my research. I also took advantage of Kyoto University’s Study Abroad Support Program to start a joint research project with the Institut Curie, located in the center of Paris. Unfortunately, just as I was starting to get the hang of the experiments and collecting results, my stay was cut short due to the outbreak of Covid-19 and we had to suspend our joint research. Upon returning to Japan, I began looking for a new position while starting a new research project, and eventually found a position at RIKEN.

What kind of research are you aiming to conduct at RIKEN?

Living organisms have complex hierarchical structures spanning molecular to individual scales, and our lab’s research aims to bridge the molecular and cellular scales which are the boundary between matter and life.

For example, in physics, during the industrial revolution in the 18th century, the use of steam engines drove the development of the field of thermodynamics, a field that studies empirical laws describing the relationship between pressure, volume, etc. based on observed data. This relationship is simple and beautiful, however, the phenomenon is governed by molecules, and there is a large gap between single molecular level Newtonian mechanics and macro-level thermodynamics. This is when statistical mechanics, which can explain thermodynamics from the behavior of a molecule, emerged and linked the micro- and macro-scale worlds.

It’s unclear whether something like this will work as well in living organisms, but the “constructive approach” is what will make it (or should make it) possible. I think many of us have experienced taking apart and reassembling Lego blocks, cars, origami, or clothes with our own hands to get a clear picture of how they work or are put together. The challenge for us is to do the same thing with cells. It may seem like a wild challenge, but I believe that we can get closer to understanding the mechanisms of how life forms from molecules.

Additionally, since coming to RIKEN, we have begun research aimed at connecting the scales of cells and cell populations by using artificial cell technology developed in previous studies.

What is the composition of your lab members like?

There are currently three postdocs, one research associate, one technical staff and an assistant. We are starting to feel more like a research team with the recent addition of two of the postdocs. We have people with backgrounds in biophysics, cell biology, synthetic biology, and structural biology, and one person is also from Vietnam. We also have plans to host a student trainee (originally from India and who specializes in active matter physics) from our joint research partner, who will come on occasion to run experiments.

Please tell us something that is unique to your laboratory.

The team’s greatest strength is having the technology that allows us to mix purified proteins and encapsulate them in cell-sized liposomes, and in particular having the technology to reconstitute the actin cytoskeleton. Another strong point of our lab is having technology for extracting the cytoplasm from eggs of African clawed frogs. Recently, we have made optogenetic technology available for use in reconstituted systems.

As for equipment and software, we try and build much of it ourselves when possible. This may take time, but making our own equipment and software will allow us to gain a deeper understanding of the apparatus or program and make it customizable to our needs leading to the creation of a one-of-a-kind experimental technology.

What is your hobby?

I have many hobbies, but I’ll mention a few that are somewhat related to my research. I enjoy both eating and cooking food. My first supervisor told me that someone who is a good cook is also good with experiments, and since hearing those words, I try to be in the kitchen whenever I have the chance. I have a few friends who are chefs, and when I see how they spend their days and the work they put in to create new recipes, I think the process is similar to researchers and I get a lot of inspiration from them.

I also like to stroll around town in a manner similar to Bura Tamori*. It is fun to uncover interesting things from everyday life that might otherwise be overlooked, and to have them all suddenly connect together to reveal how that town came to be. I think this is an important attitude and useful skill to have, especially when your research feels stagnant because it is not yielding expected results.

Then there is drawing. I enjoy taking my sketchbook, pencils, and watercolors with me when I travel and draw the landscapes I see. The process of extracting the core elements from among the complex architecture, plants and trees of the landscape and drawing them as simple lines and colors is kind of similar to research.

Personally, I secretly think that research is also a hobby, but I feel like everything is connected.

Is there anything that surprised you when you joined RIKEN?

I was blown away by the wide range of common equipment and facilities available to researchers.

What type of people do you want to join your lab?

In a few words, someone who enjoys research. If one can’t enjoy the daily grind of research, it’s easy to fall into a negative mindset, like “Nothing worked out today either. It’s a total failure.” Instead, if you can find something interesting from the failed experimental data and come up with unconventional hypotheses—enjoying the Bura Tamori style guesswork—you are sure to find joy in the daily research routines even when the results you obtain are not what you were hoping to get. If you can enjoy doing research with a relaxed mindset, interesting ideas will surely come to mind.

My research thus far has focused on the cytoskeleton, but I hope to expand my research target here at RIKEN. So even if it is not related to the cytoskeleton, we are open to suggestions on reproducing some biological phenomena or for proving a hypothesis that you have come up with using a simple reconstituted system.

＊Bura Tamori: A Japanese TV series that was broadcasted on NHK, where the host Tamori strolls around cities or regions around Japan with local experts to explore and learn about the local history, culture, and how the landscapes were formed.