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About

Tomoki Arichi is a leading developmental neuroscientist whose research centers on understanding how the human brain’s sensorimotor systems mature before and immediately after birth. His work has been instrumental in mapping the functional organization of the developing cortex, particularly in preterm infants—a population at heightened risk for conditions like cerebral palsy. Arichi’s most influential paper (2015, 109 citations) revealed how sensorimotor functional responses mature during this critical period, while his subsequent somatotopic mapping study (2018, 96 citations) demonstrated that the preterm brain already exhibits an organized “homunculus” representation of body parts. To enable these discoveries, Arichi has pioneered innovative fMRI-compatible robotic interfaces, including a wrist stimulator (2013) and a device for studying touch and pain (2016), allowing precise, non-invasive investigation of neonatal brain function. His multimodal sensory learning study (2020, 22 citations) further showed how newborns process and adapt to complex sensory experiences. By combining advanced neuroimaging with custom robotic tools, Arichi has provided foundational insights into early brain development, with direct implications for understanding and mitigating neurodevelopmental disorders.