25 March 2025 – EMBO Fellow Koichi Sasaki knew early on that he was interested in pursuing research opportunities outside Japan. He initially worked as a JSPS (Japan Society for the Promotion of Science) Overseas Research Fellow at Imperial College London after graduating with a PhD from Kyushu University and was awarded an EMBO Postdoctoral Fellowship in 2023. “I always wanted to do research in an international setting”, he notes. “This goes from a very practical level with a desire to improve my English proficiency to immerse myself in a new academic culture and to learn to solve problems in a different way.”
Becoming an EMBO Postdoctoral Fellow was a pivotal step in Sasaki’s journey. While Sasaki was already aware of the immediate advantage of conducting research with greater autonomy, the networking opportunities at the Annual EMBO Fellows Meeting provided an additional layer of benefits that he had not anticipated.
“I was able to connect with a very dynamic scientific network”, he says. “I met amazing scientists who share passion for science and inspire each other in scientific and philosophical perspective. I think that the wonderful atmosphere of this community is made possible by people from all over the world coming together. The EMBO Postdoctoral Fellowship is a stepping stone in my career and a foundational step for me.”
Looking ahead, Sasaki hopes to continue working globally to further refine his soft skills and to contribute to innovative research. “My ambition is to engineer molecular systems for therapeutic applications in diseases that are currently untreatable”, he concludes. “I am fascinated by the beauty of molecular systems and the possibility to engineer completely new cellular functions in order to develop new therapies in the future.”
