 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
Innovation
Shinya Inoué
MBL Distinguished Scientist
Recipient of the 2003 International Prize for Biology
Standing out at the MBL is like trying to stand out in a large school of talented, brilliant fish. But MBL Distinguished Scientist Shinya Inoué, with his maverick ways and fearless attitude, often swims outside the school altogether—doing his research on his own terms, inventing his own tools, and quietly shaping humankind’s understanding of basic cellular processes and structures.
Inoué, Director of the Architectural Cell Dynamics Program since its founding in 1992 and a member of the MBL research community since 1949, says “the non-urban marine environment, the presence of fresh marine cells, and the freedom of interaction unmarred by academic politics, busy work, or departmental separation,” all have contributed to his success here.
He is known internationally for his expertise in cellular and developmental biology, and for his innovative work with polarized light microscopy, both of which he has elevated to entirely new levels. It’s work that has gained the recognition of his peers, and netted him the 2003 International Prize for Biology from the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science.
Most days Inoué can be found in his lab on the first floor of Lillie, focused on a seven-foot microscope of his own creation, which he continuously upgrades and refines. One significant refinement was the introduction of a video camera to the microscope in 1980—an invention that revolutionized cell biology by revealing the pulsating movement and minute structures of cellular life that had never before been visible.
Such achievements seem to come easily to Inoué, especially at the MBL. His secret, he once told the American Society of Cell Biologists, is “devising new tools and letting nature herself tell what questions to ask.” In fact, during one of his first MBL summers, he used his polarized light microscope to document the existence of spindle fibers—strand-like mechanisms that help move chromosomes during mitosis. Inoué’s discovery changed the world’s view of cell division forever and settled a 50-year debate over whether spindles existed at all. He was still a Princeton graduate student at the time.
Inoué’s bold discoveries and optic inventions helped lay the foundation for the work of the MBL’s Architectural Dynamics in Living Cells Program, where he and his colleagues study the structures that help cells function and differentiate, the spatial and temporal organization of these structures, and their physiological and genetic control. Could such a program—which also promotes the creation of new microscopes—succeed anywhere but the MBL? “It must be possible, but where?” says Inoué.
When he isn’t peering into cells or refining his microscope, Inoué is likely to be teaching the next generation of scientists. His gift for teaching—and his amazing videos of cells in action—have gained him an international reputation and made him a popular instructor of many MBL courses, including Embryology, Physiology, Neurobiology, Optical Microscopy, and Analytical and Quantitative Light Microscopy—a course of his own design.
Shinya Inoué has spent his career making his unique approach to scientific discovery and teaching look effortless. But swimming outside the school has taken a lifetime of work, unswerving focus, and innovation. “I have a desire to understand the workings of nature and to share discoveries with others,” he says. “I enjoy figuring out how to solve problems. I’m not satisfied by superficial answers.”
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
