In Memoriam: Minoru Tomita, MD, PhD, 1934–2010

Abstract

Professor Minoru Tomita, MD, PhD, died of cancer on 17 January 2010. He was aware of his illness for half a year and had been doing well. He fought against the disease bravely like a Samurai, although some treatments such as chemotherapies were not very effective. He had been discussing the details of brain microcirculation and was writing new papers to be submitted until several days before his death. The world of cerebral circulation and metabolism has lost one of its most outstanding scientists. Tomita was born in 1934 in Okazaki, Aichi Prefecture, Japan and graduated from Keio University School of Medicine in Tokyo in 1959. He was trained in neurology and also performed research on cerebral blood flow and metabolism in the laboratory of Professor Toyozo Aizawa at Keio University. In 1963, he went to work for Professor John Stirling Meyer at the Unit of Cerebrovascular Disease, Wayne State University, in Detroit, for 2 years before returning to Keio University in 1965. He originated a technique for measuring cerebral blood volume (CBV) using a unique photoelectric method that he applied to animals under the auspices of Professor Fumio Gotoh at Keio University. Tomita's deep insight led him to find many new phenomena, including ‘low perfusion hyperemia', during acute ischemic states. Upon his father's death in 1970, he succeeded him at Tomita Hospital at Okazaki but pursued his passion and activity for research on cerebral microcirculation at the CBF laboratory at Keio as a Visiting Assistant Professor. His research activities were not confined to Keio University. He was appointed as a visiting researcher at the National Institute of Physiology in Okazaki and also as a Visiting Assistant Professor in Miyazaki Medical College. These laboratories established a high reputation soon after he started contributing to their research. In 1995, he was nominated as a Visiting Professor of Keio University. Tomita's research activities covered a wide range in the pathophysiology of cerebral circulation and metabolism. However, his main interest was intracranial pressure and cerebral microcirculation. He invented and developed numerous new techniques for measuring cerebral blood flow and volume, including the photoelectrical method for measuring CBV, video-enhanced contrast and differential interference contrast microscopy for observing the ultrastructural dynamics of vessel components in vitro, and high-speed confocal laser microscopy. In his later years, his interest was focused on the glio-vascular relationship under ischemia or during cortical spreading depression, even up until a few days before his death. His most outstanding innovation was a magnificent computer program for the automated measurement of the mean transit time (KEIO-IS1), followed by a tracking program for vast numbers of fluorescein isothiocyanate-labeled red blood cells in microvessels of the brain in vivo (KEIO-IS2) using a high-speed confocal microscopy developed in collaboration with a Hungarian guest scientist at Keio University, Dr Istvan Schiszler. Tomita held a number of major professional memberships at scientific societies. He was a member of the Stroke Council of the American Heart Association and a member of the New York Academy of Science, an honorary member of the Hungarian Society of Stroke (1996), and a member of the International Society for Cerebral Blood Flow & Metabolism (ISCBFM). In the ISCBFM, he served as Chairman of the Membership Committee (1994–96), Director of the ISCBFM, and Editorial Board Member of the Journal of Cerebral Blood Flow & Metabolism. He also served as an honorary member of the Japanese Society of Cerebral Blood Flow & Metabolism. He received many awards, including the Highest Award for Medical Scientist from the Japanese Medical Association (1995), the Award from the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare in Japan (1997), the Mihara Award (2001), and the Roy and Sherrington Award (2008). Tomita enjoyed discussing cerebral microcirculation with researchers all over the world. He also enjoyed travelling overseas to attend meetings and to visit other research laboratories to discuss and inspire new insights into brain microcirculation. He was a highly appreciated speaker and visiting scientist at many research institutes. He actively invited and educated young scientists not only from his own country but also from outside Japan, including the United States, Europe, and Asia. His international activities are reflected in his list of publications, which contains more than 10 edited monographs and over 500 peer-reviewed articles. With Tomita's death, international and Japanese neuroscientists have lost one of their most prominent leaders. He was an enthusiastic scientist and an outstanding mentor who was willing to offer his constructive criticism and to elaborate on his insightful ideas to everybody. His death has left an aching void in our hearts; however, his ideas, thoughts, and enthusiasm will forever remain alive in subsequent generations of researchers. In memory of his passing, I recommend visiting his home page (http://mtomita.jp/index.htm). There, he will teach you about the truth of brain science.