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2026.1.20
NGP Exchange Meeting was held on December 22th, 2025
NGP Exchange Meeting was held at Seiryo Campus on Monday, December 22, 2025, hosted by NGP leader Prof. Noriko Osumi and sub-leader Prof. Ken-Ichiro Tsutsui.
During a special lecture, Professor Mayu Takahashi, Department of Physiology, Graduate School of Medicine, Tohoku University, presented her research on neural mechanisms underlying voluntary eye movements. After her talk, the NGP students asked various questions, which led to a lively discussion. The Ex-Seminar was followed by the annual NGP Exchange Meeting, which was also a valuable opportunity to deepen the exchange between students and NGP professors from different fields in a friendly atmosphere, with each student presenting his or her research topic in a flash talk session and a casual get-together.
"NGP Exchange Meeting"
Date:Monday, 22 December 2025 16:00-19:30
①16:00-17:00 Special Lecture
Lecturer:
Professor, Mayu Takahashi
Department of Physiology, Graduate School of Medicine, Tohoku University
Title:
Neural Mechanisms of Coordinate Transformation: From Visual Signals to Eye Movement Control
②17:00-18:00 Flash Talk by NGP and DD Students
③18:00- Casual gathering for NGP students and Professors
Venue:Medicinal Hub, School of Medicine Building 5, Graduate School of Life Medicine, Seiryo campus
Comments from NGP students
Graduate School of Medicine
M2 Double Degree Student Maastricht University
Shantal Florencio
The special seminar at the Graduate School of Medicine provided a valuable opportunity to engage with the research of Prof. Mayu Takahashi from the Department of Physiology at Tohoku University. Her lecture, “Neural Mechanisms of Coordinate Transformation: From Visual Signals to Eye Movement Control,” offered clear and insightful explanations of how the brain converts visual input into accurate and coordinated eye movements.
In addition to the seminar, the NGP Exchange Meeting featured short, two-minute flash talks in which participating students introduced their own research projects. The wide range of topics highlighted the diversity of scientific interests within the program. Listening to the work of peers at similar stages in their academic journey was highly motivating and encouraged further reflection on my own research direction.
The event concluded with a social gathering, which created a relaxed and welcoming atmosphere for informal conversations. This setting made it easier to connect with fellow students and faculty members, allowing for meaningful interactions and the opportunity to build new academic and social connections.
Graduate School of Medicine
D1 Haruka Endo
I participated in the NGP Exchange Meeting and found it to be a very valuable experience. The opening lecture by Professor Takahashi was presented in a clear and accessible manner, and as a beginner in this field, I learned a great deal from it.
During the subsequent flash talk session, I listened to nearly thirty presentations on various neuroscience research projects. This session was engaging and showed me the wide variety of approaches in neuroscience research. When giving my own presentation, I noticed that there were relatively few participants conducting molecular research. Therefore, I focused on clearly explaining the novel and interesting aspects of my work for a broad audience.
Finally, at the networking session, I was able to speak with senior students and learn from their experiences in the NGP program, which I found very helpful.
Graduate School of Life Sciences
D2 Taichi Kawamura
This year, I attended the NGP Exchange Meeting for the second time. I listened to a lecture by Mayu Takahashi, which focused on neural circuits underlying precise eye movement control. This circuit-level approach was very sophisticated and close to the way I conduct my own research, and I found the talk truly exciting.
The 2-minute flash talk session was an important experience for me. Preparing such a short presentation made me rethink how to clearly express my research to a broad audience. It was also a good opportunity to reflect on how to communicate the value of my study across different research fields. During the social gathering after the presentations, I had the chance to talk with students who study similar research themes using different approaches. These conversations were fresh and stimulating. Overall, this meeting gave me a valuable chance to both learn from others and reassess my own research from a new perspective, and I am very grateful to the Neuro Global Program for this opportunity.
