Previous Fora / 2003
Speakers
|
|
 |
Professor Masao Ito |
|
Special Advisor |
Dr. Masao Ito is the team leader and Director General of the Frontier Research Program at the Institute of Physical and Chemical Research (RIKEN) in Japan.
Within the field of neuroscience, Dr. Ito has researched the inhibitory action of cerebellar Purkinje cells, and the characteristic synaptic plasticity or long-term depression (LTD) in these cells. Based upon his findings, Dr. Ito has developed a theory that the cerebellum is a general learning machine for acquiring not only motor skills, but also implicit memory in thought.
Dr. Ito has served as president of IBRO from 1980 to 1986, and as Honorary President since 1987.
As well, Dr. Ito has served on the following committees and boards: IUPS (President 1994-); FAOPS (President 1990-); ICSU (General Committee and Executive Board, 1984-); Science Council of Japan (member, 1988-, President 1994-); Prime Minister's Council for Science and Technology (1994-); Japan Neuroscience Society (President 1983-).
Dr. Ito is a member of the Japan Academy and a foreign member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Science, the Royal Society, the Armenian Academy of Science and the Russian Academy of Science.
Throughout his career, Dr. Ito has received the following awards of recognition: Fujiwara Prize (1981); Academy Prize and Imperial Prize (1986); Robert Dow Neuroscience Award (1993); IPSEN Foundation Award (1993); Person of Cultural Merit (1994); Japan Prize (1996); Order of Culture (1996). He has also been given an Honorary Degree of Science from The University of Southern California (1995) and from Torino University (1996).
Major Books
Ecclec,J.C., Ito,M. and Szentagothai,J., The Cerebellum as a Neuronal Machine. Springer-Veriag, 1967.
Ito,M., Noh no Sekkeizu (Blueprints of the Brain), CHUOKORON-SHA.INC. Tokyo, 1984.
Ito,M., The Cerebellum and Neural Control., Raven Press, New York, 1984.
Academic Papers
M.Ito, The electrical activity of spinal ganglion cells investigated with intracellular microelectrodes, Jpn.J.Physiol., 7,297-323, 1957.
M.Ito, P.G.Kostyuk and T.Oshima, Further study on anion permeability of inhibitory post-synaptic membrane of cat motoneurones., J.Physiol.(Lond.), 164, 150-156, 1962.
M.Ito and T.Oshima, Electrical behavior of the motoneurone membrane during intracellularly applied current steps., J.Physiol (Lond.), 180, 607-635, 1965.
Ito,M. and Yoshida,M., The Origin of cerebellar-induced inhibition of Deiters neurons., Exp.Brain.Res. 2,330-349,1966.
Obata,K., Ito,M., Ochi,R. and Sato,N., Pharmacological properties of the postsynaptic Inhibition by Purkinje cell axons and the action of -aminobutyric add on Details neurons., Exp. Brain Res., 4, 43-57, 1967.
Ito,M., Neural design of the cerebellar motor control system., Brain Res., 40, 81-84, 1972.
Dufosse,M., Ito,M., Jastreboff,P.J. and Miyashita,Y., A neuronal correlate of rabbit's cerebellum to adaptive modification of the vestibuloocular refex., Brain Res., 150, 611-616, 1978.
Ito,M., Cerebellar control of the vestibulo-ocular reflex-around the flocculus hypothesis., Annu.Rev.Neurosci., 5.275-296, 1982.
Ito,M., Sakurai,M. and Tongroach.P., Climbing fibre-induced depression of both mossy fibre responsiveness and glutamate sensitivity of cerebellar Purkinje cells.,J.Physiol.(Lond.), 342, 113-134, 1982.
Ito,M., Long-term depression., Annu.Rav.Neurosci., 12, 85-102, 1989.
Nagao,S. and Ito,M., Subdural application of hemoglobin to the cerebellum blocks vestibuloocular reflex adaptation., Neuro Report 2, 193-198, 1991.
Ito,M., Movement and thought: Identical control mechanisms by the cerebellum., Trends in Neuroscl., 16, 448-450, 1993.
Nakazawa,K., Mikawa,S., Hashikawa,T. and Ito,M., Transient and persistent phosphorylation of AMPA-type glutamate receptor subunits in cerebellar Purkinje cells., Neuron 15, 697-709, 1995.