Call for Proposal
Basic information of the Research Area
[External Stimulus Sensing]Deciphering External Stimulus Sensing and Development of Innovative Augmentation Technologies
Research Supervisor
Makoto TominagaSpecially Appointed Professor, Nagoya Advanced Research and Development Center, Nagoya City University
Strategic Objective
Augmented Senses and Cognition
Overview
This research area aims to elucidate the mechanisms by which living organisms sense stimuli outside the body, which is an indispensable function that enables organisms to take appropriate survival-oriented actions, and to establish foundational technologies for the mimicry, augmentation, and transmission of those functions.
Humans sense a variety of external stimuli, —ranging from the five senses to temperature, noxious inputs, and even magnetism—integrate the resulting stimulus information, and then adapt to external stimuli in order to live. In other words, human beings cannot survive without sensing stimuli.
However, many aspects of the sensing mechanisms remain unclear, and some senses—such as pain, taste, and smell—lack objective evaluation indices. Although information interfaces that objectively transmit sensory stimuli have been developed and some senses are seeing progress in applications such as robotics of sensory-mimicking devices , for many senses—particularly pain and itch, taste and smell, and temperature—the elucidation of molecular mechanisms of stimulus sensing has not advanced well , and the expansion toward applied studies is also lagging for many senses, particularly pain and itch, taste and smell, and temperature.
For these reasons, it is necessary to promote basic research on sensing mechanisms for diverse external stimuli and to broaden research toward the practical use of technologies based on such basic research. The advancement of this research area can only be achieved through the interaction between biological and physical/engineering researches, and also by incorporating diverse approaches such as mathematical and computational sciences to pursue the essence of sensation; we believe it will lead to answers to the question, “What is human nature?
Research Area Advisors
| Kazuhiro Aoki | Professor, Graduate School of Biostudies, Kyoto University |
|---|---|
| Osamu Oshiro | Professor, Faculty of Health Care Sciences, Jikei University of Health Care Sciences |
| Azusa Kamikouchi | Professor, Graduate School of Science, Nagoya University |
| Shoji Takeuchi | Professor, Graduate School of Information Science and Technology, The University of Tokyo |
| Yoshihiro Tanaka | Professor, Graduate School of Engineering, Nagoya Institute of Technology |
| Akiyuki Taruno | Professor, Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto University / Professor, Graduate School of Medical Science, Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine |
| Yoshie Harada | Specially Appointed Professor, Premium Research Institute for Human Metaverse Medicine (WPI-PRIMe), The University of Osaka |
| Hiroshi Hibino | Professor, Graduate School of Medicine, The University of Osaka |
| Masaaki Mochimaru | Fellow, The National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology |
| Hiroaki Wake | Professor, Activities of the Institutes of Innovation for Future Society, Nagoya University |
Schedule of Selection Process
| Deadline for application | 2026/05/26 at 12:00 noon, Japan time |
|---|---|
| Document-based review | 2026/07/07 |
| JST will contact to the interviewees no later than | 2026/07/14 |
| Interview-based review（ONLINE） ※Interview date and time will be assigned by JST. |
2026/07/24, 25 |
Research Supervisor's Policy
Research Supervisor's Policy of this Research Area can be downloaded from below.
【Research Supervisor’s Message】
Research aimed at elucidating the mechanisms of sensation is attracting significant attention internationally. In this research area, we hope that exchanges among early-career researchers and the integration of research across both the biological sciences and fundamental technology domains will advance further, leading to a deeper understanding of sensory mechanisms.