Unveiling the Wonders of Life: The Mystery of Self-Other Recognition in Slime Molds

I grew up in the Setagaya and Suginami wards of Tokyo and had always loved nature; even as a baby in my mother's arms, I would react to flowers. By the time I was in preschool, I was drawn to “unusual” creatures like carnivorous plants, succulents, and cordyceps. My first encounter with slime molds (myxomycetes) was at five years old, while watching the NHK documentary Planet Earth. I was absolutely mesmerized by the footage of the amoeba-like organisms in motion, and wanted to see them with my own eyes.    

My mother helped me look for them in the park, but we couldn't find any. Instead of giving up there, though, she reached out to the Japanese Society of Myxomycetology, which opened the door to my destiny. The Society, which included many amateur researchers even back then, welcomed me as a preschooler to their observation outings and presentations.

When I finally spotted a slime mold, my immediate thought was, “I have to take this home and keep it!” As I grew two different species at home, I noticed that their movements differed depending on the species. At the Society’s annual conferences, I was given opportunities to present my observations and research. Looking back, I’m grateful that the members didn't pull any punches. They gave me feedback like, "This verification isn't quite enough. Are you familiar with control experiments?" They treated me as a fellow scientist rather than just a kid, which I deeply appreciate even now.

Learning around third grade that slime molds have the ability to distinguish "self" from "other" captivated me and led to my current research. Since then, I have pursued research and outreach activities: publishing three papers as first author in international peer-reviewed journals, presenting at 29 conferences (including two international ones), single-authoring two books on slime molds, giving 43 lectures, writing articles, appearing in media, and collaborating on workshops and television productions. 

Heading to university, I was looking for an environment where I could supercharge the research I’d been conducting at home. As I already had more than a decade of connections with slime mold researchers, I didn’t really need a lab that specialized in slime molds. Instead, having access to a research environment where I could analyze proteins and DNA at the molecular level was an absolute must. I wanted to dive straight into specialized research, so the ideal was a place where I could do both coursework and lab research right from the beginning.

It turned out that Keio SFC was the only university in Japan that met everything I was looking for. The Institute for Advanced Biosciences (IAB) at the Tsuruoka Town Campus in Yamagata Prefecture, which is open to SFC students, was one of the few places where I could jump right into slime mold research from the first year. The prospect of spending my undergraduate, master's, and doctoral years here felt like the most natural choice for someone like me who wanted the absolute best research environment.

I spent my first undergraduate year at SFC  taking courses in linguistics and the history of philosophy, subjects that had intrigued me in addition to biology. Since my second year, I’ve been living in Tsuruoka, immersing myself in slime mold research. The IAB is fully equipped with facilities for advanced molecular research. I’ve been able to absorb a wealth of knowledge in specialized fields like bioinformatics from my main research advisor, Prof. Nobuaki Kono, and other faculty members who are all active researchers. Here, faculty members and students work on diverse biological research projects and exchange ideas as peers, allowing all to broaden and deepen their own studies in an open and collaborative environment.

Even in this cutting-edge environment, I still continue the hands-on collecting and culturing that have been the foundation of my work since elementary school. All slime molds I use in my experiments are collected from nature, like out in the woods. Because slime molds behave much like animals, growing and moving around, daily feeding and cleaning are essential. I usually look after five to six species, which can add up to 100 Petri dishes in total.

My research centers on self- and other-recognition behaviors in slime molds. By analyzing how slime molds either fuse with or avoid one another, I aim to uncover the underlying patterns in these responses. Furthermore, by using bioinformatics to analyze their genes and metabolites, I’m trying to decode the molecular background behind their abilities.

When I first joined the IAB, I was the only slime mold researcher at the institute. Today, several students have joined to work in the same field. Despite being a student myself, I lead our slime mold research group. In this role, I’m sometimes asked for advice on slime mold research by faculty and students from other universities, middle and high school students, and even researchers abroad.

What’s so wonderful about the IAB is the diverse range of intellect gathered in one place. We’ve all come with different research objectives and motivations, focusing on a variety of things from cancer cells, plants, water bears (tardigrades) to specific molecules like RNA. Being surrounded by research in related fields is really inspiring. Our current director, Prof. Kazuharu Arakawa, and former director, Prof. Masaru Tomita, have fostered this mindset: for us, research starts with play, so let’s be deadly serious about pursuing the fun in it. In that sense, everyone here is treated as a fellow researcher. People who come out of mere curiosity are also very welcome here.

By the time I finish my doctoral program, I want to uncover how slime molds recognize “self” versus “other” and why this behavior matters. Beyond that lies a broader question: what does "self" mean to all living organisms, including us humans? It’s a concept so many people are grappling with. I hope my research can generate new insights and deepen the inquiry. I believe that when researchers engage in this shared exploration, it serves a greater purpose for society, and by extension, for the history of humanity.

Kono Lab

Research Fields:  Synthetic Biology, Bioinformatics, Genomics