Keio University School of Medicine is focusing its efforts on translational research, a far-sighted approach that embodies founder Yukichi Fukuzawa’s scientific philosophy of combining the basic medical sciences and clinical science
The school is also expanding extramural joint research, which aligns with School of Medicine founder Shibasaburo Kitasato’s desire to establish close cooperation between basic and clinical medical fields, “which shall unite us as one family.”
Dr Masanori Shimono
Dr Masanori Shimono is a computational neuroscientist who combines high-density electrophysiological recordings with cutting-edge artificial-intelligence techniques to reveal the brain’s intrinsic workings. By analysing multielectrode and Neuropixels data obtained during natural rest, he has established a system that can generate and translate spike trains across species, thereby articulating the vision of ‘generative neuroscience’, in which spontaneous activity is regarded not as mere noise but as a rich language to be synthesised, manipulated and compared.
His career was launched by pioneering studies of the functional microconnectome, through which he quantified neuron-to-neuron communication and uncovered a small-world network architecture. The rigorous network-science foundations laid in that work now underpin his generative models. Equally notable is his commitment to open science: he routinely releases raw datasets, analysis pipelines and pre-trained models, enabling laboratories worldwide to replicate and extend his findings with ease.
Dr Shimono’s service to the community is no less distinguished. As a programme committee member of the International Conference on Computational Neuroscience (CNS) he helps to shape scholarly discourse, while, as a guest editor for the MDPI journal Algorithms, he curates interdisciplinary special issues. He also leads several JSPS KAKENHI projects, steadily advancing prior research and fostering collaborations that span academia, industry and clinical practice.
Passionate about nurturing the next generation, he provides his students with state-of-the-art recording systems, GPU-based computational resources and international exchange opportunities, cultivating researchers who possess both technical excellence and a broad global outlook.
By opening data, connecting knowledge and fostering talent, Dr Shimono exemplifies how collaboration and creativity can guide neuroscience towards its next frontier.
