TK (Takashi DY) Kozai

Neurocomputation, Glial Biology, and Neurotechnology Innovations Brain-Computer Interface, Neural Recording, Neurostimulation

Podcast of what we've been working on for the last 15 years is on #SoundCloud on.soundcloud.com/qvlbgDbjkuYa...
#NeuralEngineering #BCI #BrainComputerInterface #UniversityofPittsburgh #Neurostimulation #BrainMachineInterface Hosts made a couple of mistakes, but not bad!

Our work on bi-directional brain-tech communication, focusing on glial & mural cells in neural engineering thrives w/ @NIH
& @NSF support, driving rigorous, impactful research on neurocomputational roles of understudied cell types. #NeuralEngineering #ScienceFunding #NIH #NSF

Thrilled to be promoted to full professor! Grateful to my students, colleagues, & peers in review. Your challenges & support sharpened our science for impact. What a 10-yr journey it's been since starting my lab in 2015! #AcademicTwitter #Science

Basic science publications have been falling for a decade. NIH budget cut would likely accelerate the decline The number of basic science papers published by NIH grant recipients has been falling since 2013, when the agency’s budget was cut by 5%.

www.statnews.com/2025/07/21/n...

Senate committee endorses NIH budget increase, rebuking Trump administration’s proposed 40% cut Senators from both parties endorsed a $400 million increase to the budget of the National Institutes of Health on Thursday

www.statnews.com/2025/07/31/n...

Big win for American health & jobs! Senate panel boosts NIH budget by $400M, rejecting 40% cut. NIH research saves lives, fuels innovation, & returns $2.20 per $1 spent. MAGA taxpayers, this is YOUR win! Call your reps & keep pushing for science! #NIHFunding #AmericaFirst

“In an interview after the hearing, Britt told STAT, “I think about what it would be like if my child had a rare disease or was looking for a diagnosis. I would want every single tool in my toolbox available to help my baby, to help my kid… And in my mind, that’s exactly what NIH research is doing.”

Basic science is declining, hurting American jobs, security & our kids’ future. This started pre-Trump. Cuts now will tank biomedical, manufacturing & defense tech. Tell Congress: Fund science to keep America #1! #AmericaFirst #Jobs

Maximizing taxpayer-funded research means capping journal fees, but we must avoid delays & support early-career scientists. Share ideas for equitable, cost-effective publishing with NIH by 9/15/25: osp.od.nih.gov/comment-form... #OpenAccess #SciencePolicy #NIH

Senate Appropriations Committee meets tomorrow.

Tell Senators Shelley Moore Capito, R-WV; Susan Collins, R-ME; Katie Britt, R-AL; Bill Cassidy, R-LA; Dave McCormick, R-PA
what you think. Add your voice NOW! Call: senate.gov

Trump Administration Scraps Effort to Pause Health-Research Funding The administration halted and then restarted billions in new research grants flowing from the National Institutes of Health.

share.google/WvJsXgZEa1YJ...

Transparency wins! OMB’s Russell Vought tried to pause $15B in NIH research funding on 7/29/25, but WSJ’s reporting & public outcry forced a reversal in hours. Taxpayers win with protected health research & jobs. Speak up, share info, ignore the naysayers! #ScienceMatters #TaxpayerWin #NIH

NIH Budget Cuts Threaten to Cripple U.S. Biomedical Innovation Deep NIH cuts could cripple U.S. biomedical research, inflate healthcare costs, and weaken public health security, a new Harvard-led analysis warns.

globalbiodefense.com/2025/07/28/n...

🚨 NIH budget cuts threaten America’s defense! 40% slashes for 2026 gut labs that beat COVID with Warp Speed vaccines. We lose scientists, strength & readiness for the next crisis. China gains, we weaken. Protect NIH funding... keep USA #1! #NationalDefense #Biodefense #NIH #America #Innovation

Odds of winning NIH grants plummet as new funding policy and spending delays bite Funding multiyear grants up front will sharply cut number of investigators receiving awards

www.science.org/content/arti...

Tell Senators Shelley Moore Capito, R-WV; Susan Collins, R-ME; Katie Britt, R-AL; Bill Cassidy, R-LA; Dave McCormick, R-PA
to STOP this policy NOW! Call: senate.gov

PATRIOTS! The Senate’s NIH vote on 7/31 could lock in a disastrous multi-year funding policy, slashing $7B from research. It KILLS jobs in PA, AL, WV, WASTES your tax dollars, hikes healthcare costs, & lets China win in science. #SaveNIH #AmericaFirst

NIH cuts debate: Small group (15-25%, ~465K-1.55M) pushes cuts, shouting loud with 15-25 posts/day & 20-40% bot boost. Bigger group (40-50%, ~1.24-3.1M) defends funding, quieter at 5-15 posts/day. Cuts risk cancer cures & jobs. Taxpayers, speak up! #NIH #SaveScience

Basic science publications have been falling for a decade. NIH budget cut would likely accelerate the decline The number of basic science papers published by NIH grant recipients has been falling since 2013, when the agency’s budget was cut by 5%.

Basic science is declining, hurting American jobs, security & our kids’ future. This started pre-Trump. Cuts now will tank biomedical, manufacturing & defense tech. Tell Congress: Fund science to keep America #1! #AmericaFirst #Jobs
www.statnews.com/2025/07/21/n...

Diamonds in the Mind Despite decades of studying electrical brain stimulation, scientists still don’t fully understand how it affects the networks of the 100 billion neurons in the brain. One researcher at the University ...

Excited to launch our NIH-funded project on wireless doped diamond brain electrodes💎🧠

Built in America, powered by taxpayers, this tech aims to restore sensation, improve neurotherapies, & cut through brain fog with light.
news.engineering.pitt.edu/diamonds-in-...
#NIH #NeuralEngineering #MadeInUSA

NIH proposal on animal research could cost time and money NIH will no longer include research that exclusively uses animal models, leaving scientists wondering how it might affect the future of animal research.

A new NIH mandate, announced last week, would get rid of funding opportunities that use animal research exclusively; neuroscientists worry this is premature.

By @claudia-lopez.bsky.social

#neuroskyence

www.thetransmitter.org/animal-model...

Bridging Minds Much like the inner workings of the brain itself, neural engineers from various departments at the University of Pittsburgh work together to study fundamental neuroscience and create translational app...

news.engineering.pitt.edu/bridging-min... #BCI #NeuroTech #NIHFunded #NeuralEngineering #PittResearch

At the University of Pittsburgh Neural Engineering Cross-Translation (UP NExT) Initiative, taxpayer-funded neural engineering is restoring touch & movement, advancing epilepsy surgery, and training the next-gen STEM workforce. From BCIs to brain imaging, we’re translating science into care.

State modulation in spatial networks with three interneuron subtypes Somatostatin interneurons are the main driver of neural network synchrony.

www.science.org/doi/full/10....

New Paper from UP NExT (University of Pittsburgh) NIH-funded: SOM neurons act as conductors, tuning brain‐wide rhythms. Broad SOM connections enable gradual synchrony; VIP cells modulate safely without extremes. Insights point to new epilepsy & schizophrenia therapies. #NIH #NeuralEngineering

The Trump NIH animal research move is not about organoids, or animals. It's about politics. Be on the lookout for political wedge issues coming from the Trump administration. It's what they do.

"The Trump NIH animal research move is not about organoids, or animals. It's about politics."

New contributed post on our blog today, about political wedge issues.

1/ 🧪

Here is a good link to watch the meeting and COMMENT

www.fda.gov/news-events/...

Their criticism of NIH’s ORIVA as “bureaucratic” while demanding a total phaseout shows inconsistency, prioritizing politics over science.

WCW’s misinformation during COVID-19, pushing unverified lab leak theories, eroded trust in NIH and CDC, endangering lives by complicating public health responses. Worse, WCW faces allegations of illegal fundraising and false reporting risking misuse of taxpayer-supported funds.