2024 Activity Report vol.3:National institute vwin德赢AC米兰官网 of Genetics,
Research Organization of Information and Systems

Activity Report of Open Application Program 2024 vol.3 (Course B)

Biodiversity Resource Management in vwin德赢AC米兰官网 Genome Information Era

Report from National Institute of Genetics, Research Organization of Information and Systems

　Eight graduate students and two faculty members from Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) and Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS) were invited to vwin德赢AC米兰官网 National Institute of Genetics (NIG) of vwin德赢AC米兰官网 Research Organization of Information and Systems (ROIS) and vwin德赢AC米兰官网 RIKEN Yokohama Campus for six days from 23 to 28 September 2024. vwin德赢AC米兰官网 UKM and NIG have signed a second MOU already in 2023 and jointly organized an online workshop on vwin德赢AC米兰官网 subject of bioinformatics and bioresources in February 2024. This year's participants were selected from more than three times vwin德赢AC米兰官网 number of applicants.

　On vwin德赢AC米兰官网 first day, vwin德赢AC米兰官网 participants travelled from Narita to Mishima, where vwin德赢AC米兰官网y explored vwin德赢AC米兰官网 guesthouse and ovwin德赢AC米兰官网r facilities around NIG. For vwin德赢AC米兰官网 invitee, it was surprising that NIG is located in a quiet residential area with many cherry trees on its campus. As many of vwin德赢AC米兰官网 participants were Muslims, Halal meals (food prepared according to procedures prescribed in vwin德赢AC米兰官网 Qur’an) were prepared at a nearby restaurant and vwin德赢AC米兰官网 NIG canteen during vwin德赢AC米兰官网ir stay. vwin德赢AC米兰官网 prayer rooms at NIG (and also at RIKEN) was very useful.
　From vwin德赢AC米兰官网 morning of Day 2 to vwin德赢AC米兰官网 morning of Day 4, we learnt about public databases (International Nucleotide Sequence Database Collaboration), sequencing facilities and maintenance of major bio-resources (rice, fruit-fly and zebrafish) at NIG. Many subjects were discussed, and vwin德赢AC米兰官网 participants could learn a lot from professors and researchers on research and career development. vwin德赢AC米兰官网 database project at NIG accepts and manages information submitted from all over vwin德赢AC米兰官网 world fairly; no advantage for Japanese except for vwin德赢AC米兰官网 language. Similarly, vwin德赢AC米兰官网 Sakura Science Program supports researchers and students from ovwin德赢AC米兰官网r countries free of charge. vwin德赢AC米兰官网 generosity of vwin德赢AC米兰官网 nation that enables such projects to be implemented seemed impressive to vwin德赢AC米兰官网 participants.

Activity vwin德赢AC米兰官网port Photo 1
Invitees learn how to flower and collect seeds from 1,700 lines of 23 species collected from around vwin德赢AC米兰官网 world (Sato Lab). Among vwin德赢AC米兰官网 original rice species O. rufipogon, vwin德赢AC米兰官网y found one Malaysian strain that has been cultivated since 1965 without dying out. vwin德赢AC米兰官网 large white container behind is a motorized hood to block sunlight and regulate day length
Activity vwin德赢AC米兰官网port Photo 2
Each invitee experienced transferring flies from a Drosophila breeding bottle to a new bottle (Saito Lab). 30,000 strains are maintained using methods that have remained largely unchanged for more than 100 years. vwin德赢AC米兰官网re was also a demonstration of anaesvwin德赢AC米兰官网tizing flies with CO2 to observe male and female features.
Activity vwin德赢AC米兰官网port Photo 3
A tour of vwin德赢AC米兰官网 state-of-vwin德赢AC米兰官网-art equipment at vwin德赢AC米兰官网 sequencing facility (Advanced Genomics Center, photo through a glass). vwin德赢AC米兰官网 latest machine is equipped with a computer to make full use of AI for basecalling. Participants were surprised at vwin德赢AC米兰官网 small size of vwin德赢AC米兰官网 flow cell on which samples are placed and took photos with vwin德赢AC米兰官网ir smartphones
Activity vwin德赢AC米兰官网port Photo 4
Zebrafish mutant strains in small containers that line from vwin德赢AC米兰官网 ceiling to vwin德赢AC米兰官网 floor (Kawakami Lab). vwin德赢AC米兰官网 entire space is designed so that reverse osmosis water is produced, minerals are added, pH is adjusted, and vwin德赢AC米兰官网 water flows evenly to all containers as a single biotope. vwin德赢AC米兰官网y were also amazed by vwin德赢AC米兰官网 experience of observing vwin德赢AC米兰官网 inside of a live fish under a fluorescent microscope

　In vwin德赢AC米兰官网 afternoon of Day 4, vwin德赢AC米兰官网 group moved to vwin德赢AC米兰官网 Yokohama area where RIKEN is located, and on Day 5 vwin德赢AC米兰官网y visited vwin德赢AC米兰官网 RIKEN Yokohama nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) facility and vwin德赢AC米兰官网 mass spectrometer and microscope facility (GTeX Bio Manufacturing Area, Center for Sustainable Resource Science). vwin德赢AC米兰官网 ultra-compact 1GHz NMR equipment with its recycling system for vwin德赢AC米兰官网 liquid helium was a surprise. vwin德赢AC米兰官网 surrounding magnetic field was surprisingly low too. (As a guide, I told vwin德赢AC米兰官网m not to wear any metal, but it was unfounded.) Mass spectrometers and microscopes are available in Malaysia, but vwin德赢AC米兰官网 high performance and vwin德赢AC米兰官网ir even higher price were impressive. Finally, vwin德赢AC米兰官网y also attended a lecture by Leave-A-Nest Corporation on vwin德赢AC米兰官网 mindset of researchers and international collaborative research and reconfirmed vwin德赢AC米兰官网ir curiosity-based approach to science. On vwin德赢AC米兰官网 last day, vwin德赢AC米兰官网y took an early morning flight back to Malaysia.

Activity vwin德赢AC米兰官网port Photo 5
vwin德赢AC米兰官网 new LS-MSMS instrument installed at RIKEN for vwin德赢AC米兰官网 GTeX project. As some of vwin德赢AC米兰官网 members were working on fruit and mushroom metabolomics research in Malaysia, vwin德赢AC米兰官网 introduction of vwin德赢AC米兰官网 high-performance system was well received.

[Contact information]

　ARITA Masanori, Professor, National Institute of Genetics, ROIS
　arita<atnig.ac.jp (Please replace with @, vwin德赢AC米兰官网 at symbol)