Announcement of Winners and Awards Ceremony for the 4th Brilliant Female Researchers Award (The Jun Ashida Award )

The Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST) has decided the winners of the 4th Brilliant Female Researchers Award (The Jun Ashida Award). The awards ceremony was held at Miraikan on November 6 (Sun), 2022.

At the awards ceremony JST presented a trophy and certificate to each winner, and the Ashida Fund* offered one million yen as a supplementary prize to the main winner.

*The Ashida Fund was established in 1994 by the late fashion designer Jun Ashida for the purpose of nurturing the younger generation. The Japan International Science and Technology Exchange Center (JISTEC) operates and manages the Ashida Fund on behalf of Jun Ashida Co. Ltd.

The Award for Brilliant Female Researchers (The Jun Ashida Award)

Photo:Yasuka Toda
Yasuka Toda

Senior Assistant Professor at the food functional chemistry laboratory at the Department of Agricultural Chemistry at the School of Agriculture, Meiji University

Dr. Toda has developed a highly sensitive method for evaluating the function of taste receptors, especially umami receptors, and is a world leader in the molecular theory of taste. She is investigating the molecular evolution of umami receptors in birds and primates. The originality and scale of her results deserve special mention. They include the mechanism by which some birds, which have lost their sweet-taste receptor genes, have come to use umami receptors to detect sweet foods such as nectar, the process by which primate umami receptors change their receptiveness during evolution, and the special mechanism by which umami components contribute to human food preferences.
Aside from research, she has made societal contributions by actively giving lectures at numerous symposiums, collaborating in the production of foreign science documentary programs, and enthusiastically disseminating information both domestically and internationally.

Research Fields

Food Functional Chemistry

Research Experience
2007
Researcher at the Research and Development Division, Kikkoman Corporation
(Transferred to the University of Tokyo 2010 - 2016)
2017
Scientists at the School of Agriculture, Meiji University
2018
Researcher at the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (until March 2021)
2021
Senior Assistant Professor at the food functional chemistry laboratory at the Department of Agricultural Chemistry at the School of Agriculture, Meiji University
Awards
2018
JSBBA Award for Young Women Scientists
2020
Hot Topics Award at the Annual Meeting of the Japan Society for Bioscience, Biotechnology, and Agrochemistry in 2020
2020
Lotte Shigemitsu Academic Award
2022
Ando Momofuku Award for Encouragement of Invention and Discovery
2022
Hot Topics Award at the Annual Meeting of the Japan Society for Bioscience, Biotechnology, and Agrochemistry in 2022
2022
Mishima Kaium Academic Award
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The Award for an Organization Supporting Brilliant Female Researchers (The Jun Ashida Award)

LOGO:Tohoku University
Tohoku University(Hideo Ohno, President)

Tohoku University has been encouraging female junior and senior high school students to pursue science after they graduate through the ‘Science Angel’ (currently ‘Science Ambassadors’) program. The university has also actively hired female faculty members, promoted them to higher positions, supported the development of female researchers, and raised awareness to remove unconscious bias, etc. from an early stage – all of which has resulted in an increase in the ratio of female academic staff and doctoral students.
Tohoku University can also serve as a model for other institutions collaborating with domestic and international universities to promote the activities of female researchers and for releasing and disseminating data

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The Award for Brilliant Female Researchers (The JST President Award)

Photo:Kaori Sugihara
Kaori Sugihara

Lecturer, Institute of Industrial Science, The University of Tokyo

As well as achieving remarkable results in the field of nanomaterials, particularly in the study of lipids, which constitute cell membranes, Dr. Sugihara has recently expanded her research focus to include the study of peptides with antimicrobial properties and nonwoven masks for medical use. She engages in a wide range of research activities that involve many challenges, since she not only conducts basic research, but also initiates product development projects and serves as the research leader for many external funding sources.
In terms of her societal contributions outside of research, she has been active in giving lectures on career paths, drawing on her own experience of managing a laboratory in Europe, and organizing events for female junior and senior high school students at her institution.

Research Fields

Biophysical Engineering

Research Experiences
2008
Dr. sc. at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zürich
2012
Postdoctoral Fellow at the Max Planck Institute
2014
Assistant Professor, as a tenure track, at the University of Geneva
2020
Lecturer, at the Department of Materials and Environmental Science, Institute of Industrial Science, the University of Tokyo
Awards
2012
Swiss Society of Biomedical Engineering Research Award(Doctoral Dissertation Award)
2012
ETH Medal(Doctoral Dissertation Award)
2012
Chorafas-Prize 2012(Doctoral Dissertation Award)
2012
Swiss National Science Foundation Fellowships for Prospective Researchers
2013
Humboldt Research Fellowship for Postdoctoral Researchers
2020
The University of Tokyo Excellent Young Researcher
2021
Inoue Research Award
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