The 2023 Kyoto Prize – Dr. Ryuzo Yanagimachi –

On November 10, an award ceremony of the 2023 Kyoto Prize, which honors outstanding achievements in the fields of science and the arts, was held at the Kyoto International Conference Center (Kyoto City). On the following day, November 11, a commemorative lecture by the laureates was held. In the Advanced Technology section, the prize was awarded to Professor Emeritus Ryuzo Yanagimachi of the University of Hawaii, U.S.A., for his research on mammalian fertilization mechanisms and the establishment of the ICSI technique that laid the foundation for infertility treatment. Unfortunately, however, Dr. Yanagimachi passed away on September 28 (Japan Standard Time) after the award decision was made. Dr. Hidenori Akutsu of the National Center for Child Health and Development and Dr. Ogura, head of our laboratory, gave a lecture introducing Dr. Yanagimachi’s achievements. Dr. Akutsu explained mainly about Dr. Yanagimachi’s personality and contributions to medicine, and Dr. Ogura introduced the overview of Dr. Yanagimachi’s research from the 1960s to the present.
(Some of the photos are from the Inamori Foundation Kyoto Prize official website)