Welcome to the IUPS Beacon Symposium 2026, co-hosted by the National Institute for Physiological Sciences (NIPS), in Okazaki, Japan.

Physiology explores how organisms maintain, adapt, and thrive through the coordinated action of organs, cells, and molecular systems.  Our theme, “Physiology Ahead: Orchestration of Multiple Systems,” emphasizes physiological function as dynamic interaction among neural, endocrine, immune, metabolic, and behavioral systems.

Advances in life science now enable investigation across scales, from molecules and cells to neural circuits, organs, behavior, and whole organisms.  Meanwhile, climate change, artificial light exposure at night, changing diets and lifestyles, emerging infectious diseases, and population aging present new challenges for human and animal health.  Addressing these challenges requires an integrated understanding of how organisms respond to their internal and external environments and preserve homeostasis.

The program brings together leading researchers from around the world to explore these interactions across physiological systems.  Sessions cover thermoregulation and energy homeostasis; circadian and seasonal regulation; the neuro-immune-gut axis; CNS function in health and disease; maternal behavior and neurodevelopment; and the autonomic nervous system.  Oral presentations, posters, and discussion will showcase advances in neural-circuit analysis, imaging, molecular and cellular biology, and integrative physiology.

We also welcome early-career researchers and students, whose posters bring diverse ideas and approaches.  We hope that exchanges across expertise, backgrounds, and career stages will foster discussion, collaboration, and new directions in physiological research.

On behalf of the organizing committee, we warmly welcome all participants and thank our speakers, presenters, chairs, and colleagues at NIPS.  We hope these two days in Okazaki will offer an inspiring opportunity to share discoveries, build connections, and consider the future of integrative physiology.

Kazuhiro Nakamura (Chairperson)

On behalf of the organizing committee

Kazuhiro Nakamura, Takeshi Hiyama, Satoshi Koba, Yoshihiro Kubo

Interactions among multiple systems/organs, covering topics such as:

-- Thermoregulation and fever

-- Metabolism, obesity, and energy homeostasis

-- Feeding and other instinctive behaviors

-- Brain–endocrine homeostasis and hypothalamic regulation

-- Thirst and salt appetite

-- Exercise, stress, brain, and cardiovascular interactions

-- Gut–brain communication, microbiome, and enteric neurons

-- Neuroimmunology

-- Biological clocks, rhythms, and sleep

-- Parent–infant relationships

-- Puberty onset