[New Research Development and Connection with Fellow Scholars through Study Abroad].

After completing my doctoral training, I joined the Ronald Davis Laboratory at The Scripps Research Institute, Florida. At Scripps, I extended my research and worked to understand the mechanisms of age-related memory impairment. Three and a half years in Florida passed very quickly while I worked with a multi-national multi-cultural team of scientists. Since returning to Japan, I now lead my own research team. My research experience abroad helped me to expand my scope of research, and allowed me to combine the fields of aging and neurosciences to discover solutions for many newly emerging challenges to human health. Beyond the experience I gained from my research, working with researchers from different cultures and with different values broadened my horizons. One of my best memories while working in the USA was to enjoy going to the beach near my laboratory while waiting in between my experiments. Looking back, it was great to have so much time to myself to reflect on my challenging research topic, while also having a chance to make so many new friends. Having friends to share in and cherish each other's successes, or to discuss our research or a wide range of topics-even after returning to Japan-is indeed a great wealth I now possess as a result of having studied abroad.