70-year-old fashionistas

Japan. A country known for its beauty, food, and so much more. Visiting it a few years ago left me not only happy but in awe of the country’s kindness, respect, and hospitality. I’ve never seen anyone as nice as the people there. And everyone, and I mean everyone, from toddlers to grandmas, dress like they are gonna be on a runway. But what if there was more to the Japanese than kind smiles and Chanel scarves? What if their brains create as much awe as their personalities?

Japan is a global powerhouse in neurological and neurosurgical research, driven by its aging population. Those grandmas I saw on the subway in Japan wearing high fashion, well, they mean more to neurological research than you would think. They are the driving force behind Japan’s neurological research, inspiring researchers to develop innovative therapies and uncover remarkable facts about the human brain. The National Center of Neurology and Psychiatry in Japan has done ground-breaking research on various neurological diseases, including Multiple Sclerosis, muscular dystrophy, and more. Some Japanese organizations have discovered novel therapies that reverse early-stage Alzheimer’s in preclinical models.

In addition, clinical trials at institutions like Keio University have achieved milestones such as using lab-grown neural stem cells to restore standing ability in patients paralyzed from the neck down. In Tokyo, researchers are engineering 3D brain-like tissues from stem cells to model complex circuitry and diseases like schizophrenia. The list goes on.

The University of Tokyo is often considered the #1 neurological university in Asia. But what does this mean for the future? Can Japan’s talented researchers and physicians find cures to diseases and solve neurological mysteries that have been plaguing millions of people around the globe? Well, I guess time will tell.