Selection Committee for the Zoological Society of Japan Awards and Other Prizes
Chairperson Kaoru Kubokawa

The committee to select candidates for the 2008 Academic Award, Encouragement Award, and Female Researcher Encouragement OM Award was held on Thursday, April 24, at the Hokkaido University Tokyo Office Conference Room. All seven selection committee members were in attendance, and three other members joined for the selection of the OM Award. For all awards, selection methods were discussed first, followed by deliberations on individual applications.

2008 Zoological Society of Japan Award

There were 5 applications. All applicants met the selection criteria of being "researchers who have achieved academically extremely beneficial results that make an important and remarkable contribution to the progress and development of zoology," as stated in the selection regulations. Furthermore, fitting for applicants representing a broad academic field, their achievements featured diverse animals, a wide range of research fields, various research methods, and all were of a high standard. Therefore, although we discussed the matter from various perspectives, selecting candidates was a difficult task. Given the number of nominations, it was considered reasonable to have only one winner; however, considering it important to widely convey the society's message to society, we selected two candidates and recommend them to the Council as the recipient of the 2008 Zoological Society of Japan Award.

Target research topic:
Elucidation of universal mechanisms of vertebrate developmental processes using small fish
Winner Name, Affiliation, Title:
Hiroyuki Takeda, Professor, Graduate School of Science, The University of Tokyo

Target research topic:
Search for novel hormones involved in osmotic adaptation to the marine environment
Winner Name, Affiliation, Title:
Yoshiro Takei, Professor, Ocean Research Institute, The University of Tokyo

Reasons for the Recommendation

Member Hiroyuki TakedaIn 1991, during his time at RIKEN, he decided to use zebrafish—a small fish that was still rare at the time—for his experiments. Since then, he has consistently focused on their morphogenesis mechanisms, developing advanced research combining experimental embryology and molecular genetics, and steadily achieving world-class results. Member Takeda's research achievements consist of three main areas: 1) Research on mesoderm induction in teleost fish. Through a unique experiment of isolating and transplanting only yolk cells, he demonstrated that these yolk cells are the source of mesoderm induction. This simultaneously suggested that the yolk cells of teleost fish correspond to the vegetal blastomeres of amphibians. 2) Research on the segmentation mechanism of paraxial mesoderm that characterizes the vertebrate body. It is in this research that the fusion of experimental embryology and molecular biology is truly demonstrated, and Member Takeda further made full use of mathematical simulations to brilliantly show that this can be understood as a "coupled oscillation system." This allows us to say that he has established the most convincing theory of vertebrate somitogenesis to date. 3) Adding medaka, which has a accumulated history of research in Japan, as a model, he implemented a genome project and mutant screening, developing it into a system comparable to the zebrafish. In summary, all of Member Takeda's research contents are rich in novelty, large-scale focusing on fundamental problems of morphogenesis, and his publication achievements, including several published in Nature, have consistently reached the highest global standards. In education through research as well, he has nurtured many young-generation researchers,
He has also written several important textbooks. For the reasons stated above, we nominate member Hiroyuki Takeda for the Zoological Society of Japan Award.

Member Yoshiro TakeiSince his days as a graduate student, Dr. Takei has consistently investigated the body fluid regulation mechanisms of vertebrates across all levels from molecules to whole organisms, utilizing a diverse array of methods ranging from physiology to genomic analysis. Regarding the hormones involved in adaptation to environments with different salinity levels, vasopressin and prolactin were conventionally known as hormones essential for adaptation to land and fresh water, but a hormone essential for adaptation to marine environments had not yet been discovered. Dr. Takei utilized various physiological techniques to clarify that angiotensin and atrial natriuretic peptide are important for seawater adaptation. Furthermore, he has identified novel hormones such guanylin and adrenomedullin, and has developed original and cutting-edge research regarding their mechanisms of action in seawater adaptation. In his research on fish osmotic pressure, which forms the core of his achievements, while molecular biological techniques have recently become mainstream, he employs whole-organism physiology as his fundamental approach, making full use of techniques passed down through his laboratory along with improvements based on the ingenuity of his lab members. The fact that he has added deep insights to the results thus obtained, steadily continuing his research and publishing numerous outstanding achievements, has earned him high international acclaim. Meanwhile, Member Takei has produced important research results regarding the diversity and evolution of seawater-adaptation hormones in fish using state-of-the-art methods such as comparative genomic analysis. In this series of studies, Dr. Takei named and proposed the "reverse phylogenetic approach"—the reverse of conventional endocrinology, discovering hormones diversified in fish within mammals—and is positioned as an important researcher leading the world in the field of basic biology, particularly comparative endocrinology. As described above, armed with an original strategy that combines the integration of molecular biology and physiology with comparative genomic analysis techniques, he is expected to make significant contributions to the internationalization of Japanese zoology, centered on the elucidation of osmotic regulation mechanisms. For these reasons, we nominate Member Yoshio Takei for the 2008 Zoological Society of Japan Award.

2008 Zoological Society of Japan Award for Encouragement of Young Scientists

There were 8 applicants. Considering their research originality and achievements, and whether they were deemed worthy of encouragement, two candidates were recommended to the council.

Target research topic:
Genetic and Developmental Studies on the Self-Incompatibility Mechanism in Protochordates
Winner Name, Affiliation, Title:
Yoshito Harada, Assistant Professor, Marine Biological Station, Graduate School of Science, Nagoya University

Target research topic:
Taxonomy and Zoogeography of East Asian Mammals
Winner Name, Affiliation, Title:
Masaharu Motokawa, Assistant Professor, Kyoto University Museum

Reasons for the Recommendation

Member Yoshito HaradaHis achievement in successfully identifying the genes involved in the self-incompatibility mechanism of the hermaphroditic sea squirt *Ciona savignyi* was recognized. In many species of sea squirts, eggs and sperm are released simultaneously, but self-fertilization does not occur. Thomas Hunt Morgan, famous for fly genetics, was also interested in this phenomenon and conducted research on it, but the molecular mechanism of self-non-self recognition occurring between eggs and sperm remained shrouded in mystery for nearly 100 years. Member Harada first demonstrated through crossing experiments that self-incompatibility is controlled by two gene loci, and then identified the genes via positional cloning. Details are published in the 2008 issue of *Science*, to which the reader is referred. This is the first report of the identification of self-incompatibility genes in animals, revealing that the self-incompatibility genes for eggs and sperm are closely linked and rich in polymorphism. These results are the outcome of skillfully utilizing the molecular biology and genetics techniques that Member Harada had cultivated through research on sea urchins, sea squirts, and shellfish, along with sea squirt genome sequence information, and their significance has been highly praised.

Member Masaharu MotokawaThis research uses mammals inhabiting East Asia as material, combining orthodox morphological taxonomy with the latest geometric morphometrics, karyotype analysis, and genetic analysis. As a result, it has clarified their distribution changes and speciation, resolved taxonomic confusion, and brought new insights into the underlying environmental changes and relationships with the life history characteristics of the species. These achievements have culminated in 20 first-author papers. Dr. Masaharu Motokawa's activities are international; in addition to overseas fieldwork for specimen collection, he energetically conducts specimen research at museums in various countries, as represented by his research on Chinese small mammal specimens at the Natural History Museum in the UK as a long-term overseas researcher for the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT). In addition, the international collaborative research he promotes has led to the vision of building a network of Asian researchers, and its realization is anticipated. In summary, his exceptionally advanced and broad achievements for a young mammalian taxonomy researcher were highly evaluated.

2008 Female Researcher Encouragement OM Award

Initially, the number of applications was small, so the application period was extended by two weeks, resulting in 8 applications. The selection criteria evaluated originality in research, and further took into consideration presentations at the annual meeting and in Zoological Science, as well as the research environment. Since the supplementary prize was carried over for fiscal year 2008,
Three candidates were selected for evaluation. All maintained a high level of research, and the applicants varied widely in age and research environment circumstances, making the selection difficult. However, after prolonged discussion, we decided to recommend the following three to the board of trustees.

Target research topic:
Research on the evolution of skeletal muscle development mechanisms using cyclostomes (lampreys)
Winner Name, Affiliation, Title:
Rie Kusakabe, Project Research Fellow, Graduate School of Science, Kobe University

Target research topic:
Research on the mechanism of periodic positioning of zebrafish spinal primary motor neuron cell bodies
Winner Name, Affiliation, Title:
Mika Maeda, Institute of Development, Aging and Cancer, Tohoku University, Education and Research Support Staff

Target research topic:
Research on the expression, development, and control of social behavior in bees, as well as behavioral releasers governing interindividual communication
Winner Name, Affiliation, Title:
Hiromi Sasagawa, Researcher, Research and Development Department, International Communications Foundation (ICF)

Reasons for the Recommendation

Member Rie Kusakabehas consistently focused on jawless lampreys as research subjects. They succeeded in introducing foreign genes, analyzed the expression mechanisms of muscle-specific genes, and achieved outstanding results in the study of skeletal muscle evolution from jawless to jawed vertebrates. While raising children and holding a fixed-term position, they have produced numerous achievements, constantly developing their research with great enthusiasm, and are expected to show leadership as a role model for female zoologists.

Member Mika Maedahas consistently advanced research on pattern formation mechanisms using cutting-edge methods. Their experimental animals range diversely from hydra to chickens, but they are currently analyzing the mechanisms of cell body arrangement pattern formation in zebrafish embryos, producing outstanding achievements. Although in an unstable position, their motivation for research extends to interdisciplinary collaborations, and it is expected to develop into the advancement of a new zoology.

Member Hiromi Sasakawahas consistently conducted original research related to honeybee behavior. He/she has developed research by integrating diverse fields and methods, such as organic chemistry, molecular biology, cell biology, and behavioral science, including the establishment of a micro-quantification method for juvenile hormone, the chemical similarity between information molecules and orchid floral scents, and the identification and analysis of social behavior-releasing factors. Although in an unstable position, it is expected that his/her motivation and drive for research, as well as outreach activities in zoology, will develop further.

Since the number of submissions for each award was low last year, we sent out multiple calls for nominations via the members' mailing list this year. Although the situation has improved compared to fiscal 2007, further submissions are desired in order to secure multiple candidate nominations. Self-nominations are also increasing for the Encouragement Award and the OM Award, and motivated submissions are encouraged.