Combined Program on Microbiology and Immunology. Osaka University.
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The 21st Century COE program

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Research Institute for Microbial Diseases

One hundred years ago, microbiology and immunology were two aspects of one research discipline which endeavored to study infectious diseases. As science has advanced, each discipline has become an independent research field with unique areas of inquiry. For example, based upon the origin of pathogens, microbiology has specialized into bacteriology, virology, and parasitology. As each specific field has become further specialized and complexity has increased, the association among respective fields has tended to be lost. Until recently, immunologists have mainly focused on elucidating the mechanisms of the immune system itself. For that reason, the most original and basic duty of this field, the study of the host response against pathogens, had been set aside. However, infectious disease remains the world’s leading cause of death despite the achievements and advancements of modern medicine in each field. Furthermore, humanity is now facing new challenges including the emergence of drug tolerant bacillus, such as tubercule bacillus, the threats of emerging/reemerging infectious diseases (AIDS, Ebola virus, SARS, etc.), the globalization of infectious diseases, and political threats such as bio-terrorism. Although much progress has been made toward understanding the complex mechanisms of the immune system, the rapid advance of medicine has led to an increase in immunocompromised hosts. In addition, there has been a sudden increase in the number of patients suffering from various allergies, and definitive treatments for autoimmune disease and immunotherapy for cancers have not yet been established. Because of these serious issues, the medical community has begun to reconsider the importance of combining microbiology and immunology as an integrated research field to overcome the aforementioned problems. This new point of view reflects an evaluation of the fact that for decades, the medical community has emphasized microscopic analyses in each specific field without integrating the enormous body of accumulated information to create macroscopic assessments. That is, microbiologists had studied only pathogens while immunologists had studied only hosts. Now we realize that, to elucidate the etiology and to establish treatments for infectious diseases, extensive studies on both pathogens and host responses must be carried out. On the other hand, to understand pathogenesis and to discover treatments for immune diseases, host responses and the characteristics of each pathogen need to be taken into account through studying innate immunity.

The Research Institute for Microbial Diseases, at Osaka University, the head organization of this program, has won worldwide acclaim for its outstanding achievements in the field of immunology and microbiology. In the field of microbiology, examples of the institute’s accomplishments include: the discovery of vibrio parahaemolyticus by Tsunesaburo Fujino, the discovery of cell fusion by Yoshio Okada, the identification of viral oncogenes by Kumao Toyoshima, and the development of various vaccines by Yoshitomi Okuno, Tsunehisa Amano, and Noriaki Takahashi. Of great significance in immunology, Yuichi Yamamura initiated clinical trials using GCG-CWS, became a founder of the Japanese society of Immunology, and made a significant contribution to the development of immunology in Japan. Among the outstanding immunologists who have studied under the tutelage of Dr. Yamamura, Chuzo Kishimoto has become an internationally acclaimed specialist in cytokine research through his discovery of IL-6. On the other hand, the Research Institute for Microbial Diseases has always sought to connect excellence in basic medicine with clinical medicine for practical application. Under this vision, the Research Foundation of Microbial Diseases of Osaka University was founded 70 years ago. In this foundation, various vaccines have been manufactured and supplied both to Japan and many foreign countries, and have contributed to the prevention of infectious diseases.

Following in this tradition, the research groups in microbiology and immunology from 13 laboratories in the Graduate School of Medicine, at Osaka University, are currently participating in a special program with the vision of investigating the interactions between pathogens and hosts. The main themes in immunology include mechanisms involved in pathogen recognition especially due to innate immunity, and the molecular mechanisms involved in the processes of activation of innate immunity to the induction of acquired immunity. The main themes in microbiology include the molecular mechanisms of infecting hosts as well as the schemes that pathogens utilize to avoid the host immune response and remain in the host. Based on the results obtained from these research programs, we aim to develop a novel strategy to conquer infectious diseases/immune diseases. In addition, we commit to promote this program not only in Japan but also among the international community, to actively enhance scientific and technological information exchange with foreign research groups, and to provide opportunities for researchers from developing countries to learn a most advanced knowledge in these fields.

To establish such a program, we plan to recruit professors by special appointment and recruit postdoctoral researchers who will participate in a combined program in microbiology and immunology. These researchers are expected to work in research projects that transcend the boundaries of microbiology and immunology. As for postdoctoral researchers, we give higher priority to place microbiologists to immunology laboratories, and immunologists to microbiology laboratories. In this way, these scientists will be provided with the opportunity to learn knowledge and technology from both fields

We plan to provide three special programs for educational purposes: a combined program in microbiology and immunology, a research program in microbiology and immunology, and an international cooperative research/education program. Particularly as a part of the microbiology and immunology educational program, we will set up a new graduate school lecture/seminar series targeted towards graduate students/young researchers and invite world-renowned researchers both from Japanese research institutions and from abroad. The invitational lectures given by such specialists will provide unparalleled opportunities for graduate students/young researchers to learn the latest information and cutting-edge technologies in both fields. As part of the research/education program in microbiology and immunology, we plan to start an exchange program with foreign institutions of excellent reputations, which will increase the opportunities for our young researchers/graduate students to study abroad on a short-term basis, while in turn, we will open the door for young researchers/graduate students from those institutions. We believe this exchange program will stimulate and encourage young researchers to become active facilitators in the combined research field, and at the same time, will expose them to different cultures and allow them to grow as true members of the international community in an age of globalization. To promote the international cooperative research/education program, we plan to recruit the most promising researchers from developing countries where infectious diseases are still a daily concern and serious social issue. We will provide valuable guidance to these researchers, work together to create an advanced research program on infectious diseases, and contribute our excellence to the international community. Finally, our focus is to develop young researchers armed with combined knowledge in microbiology and immunology and with the capability to utilize both technologies, so that they can be excellent contributors to future research against infectious diseases. Through the 21st century COE program, we are confident that Osaka University provides the most advanced program and will remain a nucleus of research in microbiology and immunology in Japan.

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