Curriculum Vitae
(Last update, April 2025)
Maisa Sekizawa, Ph. D.
Current Position
Assistant professor, School of Medicine, National Defense Medical College
3-2 Namiki, Tokorozawa, Saitama, 359-8513 JAPAN.
Tel: (+81)-4-2995-1211 Email: maiseki[a]ndmc.ac.jp
Nationality
Japanese
Main Research Fields
Animal Behavior, Behavioral Ecology, Ethology, Primatology
Scientific Biography
2011: B.S. in Biology, Toho University, Chiba, Japan
2011-2019: Research Assistant, Department of Evolutionary Studies of Biosystems, The Graduate University for Advanced Studies, SOKENDAI, Japan
2019: Ph.D. in Biology, The Graduate University for Advanced Studies, SOKENDAI, Japan (Supervisor: Nobuyuki Kutsukake). Doctoral thesis: “Accessibility is a determinant of infant handling in wild Japanese macaques (Macaca fuscata)”
2019-2022: Post-doctoral Research follow, Department of Evolutionary Studies of Biosystems, The Graduate University for Advanced Studies, SOKENDAI, Japan
2022-2025: Post-doctoral Research follow, Research Center for Integrative Evolutionary Sciences, The Graduate University for Advanced Studies, SOKENDAI, Japan
2025 (April)-present: Assistant professor, School of Medicine, National Defense Medical College, Japan
Publications and Conference presentations
see Publications
Research Grants
As a Principal Investigator
2025-2028: Grant-in-Aid for Early-Career-Scientists, WAKATE (total: 1,600 thousand yen), "Investigating the genetic basis of infant handling in wild primates"
2022-2025: Grant-in-Aid for Early-Career-Scientists, WAKATE (total: 1,500 thousand yen), “Effect of experience of contact with infants on the individual’s internal state and fitness in wild primates”
2015-2018: Cooperative Research Program of Primate Research Institute, Kyoto University (total: 390 thousand yen), “The significance of infant handling in wild Japanese macaques”
Other Research Grants
2018-2022: Cooperative Research Program of Primate Research Institute, Kyoto University (as a Co-investigator) (total: 600 thousand yen), “Study on population dynamics of Japanese macaques on Kinkazan Island”
Research Experience
2012-present: Fieldwork on wild Japanese macaques at Kinkazan island, Miyagi prefecture, Japan (Stay 2-5 months every year)
Behavioral data collection: Basic activities (e.g. resting and foraging) and social interaction (e.g. infant handling and grooming) of focal individuals by focal sampling methods
Urine sample collection: Investigation of the relationship between urinary oxytocin levels and infant handling
Long-term demographic data collection: Record births and disappearances of individuals, as well as migration and emigration of males in the focal troop, and create a family tree
2010-2011: Behavioral fieldwork on captive Japanese macaques at zoos in Japan
Editorial Services
Ad hoc reviewer
American Journal of Biological Anthropology, American Journal of Primatology, Behavioural Process, Ethology, International Journal of Primatology, Primates
Language skills
Japanese and English
Statistics
GLMMs in R
Teaching
At National Defense Medical College
Biology (2025-)
Biological practice (2025-)
At Bunkyo Gakuin University
Biology (2024-)
Human Biology (2024-)