Hisashi obtained his PhD at Saitama University in Japan in the lab of Hirokazu Inoue, working on transcriptional control of laccase in Neurospora. After postdoctoral work at the Max-Planck-Institute for Molecular Genetics in Berlin, Germany, with a stipend from the Humboldt Foundation, he joined the lab of Eric Selker at the University of Oregon, USA. There, he studied epigenetic regulation in Neurospora. Among many other publications, he was first author of a milestone paper describing the interdependency of DNA methylation and histone modifications.
Following a stay in the lab of Tetsuji Kakutani at the National Institute of Genetics in Japan, Hisashi joined the GMI in 2006, where he worked as a junior group leader till 2014. He and his lab members studied the epigenetic reprogramming that occurs in pollen, the male gametophyte, of the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana. His group made fundamental contributions to our understanding of the dynamics between DNA methylation and heterochromatin reconfiguration and how epigenetic states are reset during plant reproduction. Hisashi helped to establish a strong tradition of curiosity-driven, fundamental research in epigenetics and plant chromosome biology in the early years of the GMI. Hisashi’s legacy, the knowledge he generated, and the people he inspired, will not be forgotten.
For Hisashi, his time at the GMI was the most rewarding period in his scientific life, as he expressed earlier this year:” I was very proud and excited to work at the institute given the name of the greatest geneticist, Gregor Mendel. My research life could not have been better, and I had a feeling my scientific career has reached its peak at the GMI. I thank my former lab members for that.”
We extend our deepest condolences to his family, friends, collaborators, and former lab members. Some of them shared their view on the work with Hisashi as follows here.
Zsuzsanna Mérai
“Hisashi was a brilliant scientist; I always enjoyed our stimulating scientific discussions. His real curiosity and intuition to deeply understand the molecular mechanism and biological relevance of heterochromatin decondensation in pollen was a true art of science. It was an honor to work with him.”
Marcelina García Aguilar
“I feel grateful to life for having allowed me to know and work with Dr. Hisashi, a restless, genuine scientist, a lover of art, beauty, and butterflies. Rest in peace, dear friend, your legacy in science remains here forever, and your memory lives on in the hearts of those of us who were fortunate enough to know you.”
Tatsuo Kanno
“Tamaru-san, the sincerity you devoted to your research left a lasting inspiration on my own academic life.
Outside of research, your unique and remarkable personality made every conversation we shared truly delightful. Thank you.
May you rest in peace.”
Hirokazu Inoue
"Hisashi Tamaru was the first student of mine at Saitama University. He was optimistic about the possibility of science and enjoyed the pleasure of achieving scientific discoveries. At the end of his Master’s Course, he was not decided which way he should go further, despite his success to publish a nice paper about regulatory mechanisms of extracellular laccase. He and I talked about various possibilities and finally he decided to follow my suggestion to continue scientific work in a foreign country. As I expected, he achieved several wonderful discoveries in the USA and in Austria. I am very proud of him.
When he temporarily came back to Japan, we enjoyed various discussions about research, occasionally mixed with ironical criticisms. I loved his smile and his characteristic way of thinking. I am so sad that our meetings cannot be continued in the future."
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