村野 友幸 · MD, PhD
I am a Lecturer in the Division of Systems Medical Science, Center for Medical Science, Fujita Health University, Japan, where I work in the Miyakawa Lab. My main research theme is neuronal hyperactivity, which I study from both sides: its pathological effects — how it contributes to psychiatric disorders — and its physiological effects — how repeated neuronal activation, as in electroconvulsive therapy, rewrites the state of neurons and produces antidepressant effects. I combine optogenetics, calcium imaging, transcriptomics and epigenomics, and meta-analysis of human disease data with computational tools that I develop.
Keywords: Neuronal hyperactivity · Electroconvulsive therapy and antidepressant mechanisms · Pathophysiology of psychiatric disorders · Transcriptome analysis and meta-analysis of human disorders · Epigenomics · Optogenetics · Calcium imaging · Bioinformatics
tomoyuki.murano@fujita-hu.ac.jp · murano.mg@gmail.com ·
+81-562-93-9383
Division of Systems Medical Science, Center for Medical Science, Fujita Health University,
1-98 Dengakugakubo, Kutsukake-cho, Toyoake, Aichi 470-1192, Japan
Precisely because new technologies keep making larger-scale measurement and manipulation of the brain possible, I believe research should be guided by fundamental questions — first, what is essentially important, and then, what we want to know — and these questions should shape how we choose and use the tools. I want to treat the cell state of a neuron itself — not only its firing or its synapses — as a unit of plasticity. My research began with a question raised by the striking therapeutic effect of electroconvulsive therapy, and has grown into the principle that neuronal hyperactivity can rewrite the state of mature neurons. I will continue to focus on new types of plasticity to uncover the basic principles of the brain and how they relate to disease.
FY = Japanese fiscal year (April–March). Project titles are listed in the CV.
Peer-reviewed papers, preprints and conference presentations are listed on the Publications page. All papers are open access (CC BY 4.0).