On Thursday, August 21st, the NakanoshimaQross Drug Discovery Cluster Campus Project Kick-off Event was held.

On Thursday, August 8st, the Nakanoshima Qross Drug Discovery Cluster Campus Project Kick-off Event was held at Congress Square Osaka Nakanoshima on the first floor of Nakanoshima Qross.

This event was held to commemorate the launch of the Nakanoshima Qross Drug Discovery and Practical Application Promotion Program Support Project, which was adopted as part of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare's FY6 supplementary budget "Drug Discovery Cluster Campus Development Project."

This project aims to reconstruct and strengthen Japan's drug discovery capabilities by building a new system that provides comprehensive support for the practical application of drug discovery seeds held by startups and academia, with a view to resolving issues such as drug lag and drug loss.
The main objective of this project is to connect a wide range of players, including domestic and international pharmaceutical companies, venture capitalists, medical institutions, regulatory authorities, and local governments, to support the creation of a world-class drug discovery hub and the creation of innovative new drugs.

On the day, approximately 120 people participated in person, and many also watched online.

In his opening remarks, Chairman Sawa emphasized that the Drug Discovery Cluster Campus Project is the most important core project for Nakanoshima Qross, with the aim of strengthening the startup incubation ecosystem and leading to the industrialization and social implementation of healthcare and deep tech. He also reflected on the fact that domestic and international collaborations and diverse initiatives have progressed beyond expectations in the year since the campus opened, and concluded by expressing his gratitude to the guests and calling for their continued support and cooperation.

Guest speaker Dr. Akira Amari (former Secretary-General of the Liberal Democratic Party and former member of the House of Representatives) gave a speech. He pointed out that while Japan excels in technological capabilities, it has lagged behind in commercialization and industrialization, and has lost its former position in drug discovery. He said the reason for this is that the ecosystem from seeds to startups and global expansion is not functioning properly.
He spoke with great enthusiasm about his desire to develop Nakanoshima Qross into a global drug discovery hub, reposition Japan as a "drug discovery powerhouse," and make Japan a country where new innovations are always born.

Also attending as a guest was Hirokazu Shimoda, Coordinator for the Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development (AMED), who commented that in order to return research results to society, it is important to have an "exit" in mind, and that he hopes that collaboration among the diverse players gathered at Nakanoshima Qross will produce results that are internationally competitive. He also expressed AMED's commitment to supporting the process from research to practical application.

Similarly, Osaka Prefecture's Future Medical Industrialization Promotion Supervisor, Takeshi Okumura, spoke of the Osaka Prefecture's support for the formation of an international future medical hub, and expressed his appreciation and expectations for the important role that Nakanoshima Qross is playing as a "hub" connecting industry, academia, and government.

Ken Annaka, Director of the Pharmaceutical Industry Promotion and Medical Information Planning Division, Medical Affairs Bureau, Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, gave a lecture on the background of this subsidy program.
He explained that promoting future medical care, including drug discovery and regenerative medicine, is a national issue that contributes to both the health of the people and industrial development, and is an extremely important policy area for the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare.
He then pointed out that in order to ensure that research results are implemented in society, a system is needed to quickly advance institutionalization while ensuring safety and reliability. This project at Nakanoshima Qross was evaluated as being of great significance in that it brings together diverse actors from industry, academia, and government, enabling research and development and startup support with an eye toward social implementation. Finally, he expressed strong hope that through these efforts, Osaka will be able to disseminate information nationwide and even internationally.

In the panel discussion,
In addition to Chairman Sawa and Assistant Chairman Miyagawa as facilitators, panelists included Ayano Kagami (CIC Japan), Jun Kusunoki (Johnson & Johnson), Tatsuhisa Takahashi (Plug and Play Japan), Ikuo Hayashi (LINK-J), Tomoko Maeda (Boehringer Ingelheim Japan), and Lei Liu (AstraZeneca).
This panel discussed the current state of drug discovery startups in Japan and the role of Nakanoshima Qross.
① The challenge is the ambiguity of exit strategies due to the assumption of an IPO/M&A. It is necessary to design an exit strategy that works backwards from the product profile and use cases, and to strengthen the professional human resources who can understand the needs of global pharmaceutical companies and commercialize the strategy.
② To overcome the "valley of death," it is necessary to prepare funds, information, and human resources in advance, and to foster a common language in a community that encourages constructive dialogue between universities and pharmaceutical companies.
3) As an international model originating from the region, we will take advantage of the proximity of face-to-face locations, with the Osaka Expo as a tailwind, and aim to become a hub that connects with the world by integrating hard (base) and soft (accompanying and network) aspects.
At the end of the session, each speaker expressed their determination to "give up their own experience and network," and Chairman Sawa concluded the enthusiastic discussion by summarizing, "The timing, geography, and people are all coming together, and we will see results in three years and establish a full-fledged ecosystem in five years."

Next, a pitch session was held by the 1 NQ startups selected in the first round.

<1 companies and speakers selected for the first period>
Mr. Issei Omori, CEO of RevascularBio Inc.
https://revascularbio.com/
Vascular regeneration using endothelial stem cells

Mitsuhiko Yamada, Specially Appointed Professor, Developmental Pharmacology Research Group, Shinshu University School of Medicine
https://www.pediatheart.org/
Pediatric heart failure treatment (β-arrestin biased agonist (BBA))

Mr. Shofumi Morinaka, CEO of Regenephro Inc.
https://www.regenephro.co.jp/
iPS cell reprogramming technology, including iPS cell-derived nephron progenitor cells (iNPCs)

Ken Okamoto, Purino Science, Inc., University of Tokyo
Sarcopenia treatment drug (XOR inhibitor)

Honoka Kihaya, President and CEO, Tregem Biopharma Co., Ltd.
https://toregem.co.jp/
Tooth regeneration therapy (anti-USAG-1 antibody)

Masataka Yamamoto, COO, Mormil Co., Ltd.
https://www.molmir.co.jp/
Molecular dynamics evaluation technology, ALS drug discovery

Shinji Mima, Manager of the Research and Development Department, HOIST Co., Ltd.
https://hoist-jp.com/
Drug discovery support using anti-cancer drugs (HM-001, ALKBHXNUMX inhibitor) and PDC/PDX

Shingo Sakaekawa, Pharmacology Manager, Research and Development Department, Regcel Corporation
https://regcellbio.com/
Immune system control technology (Treg cells)

Masato Kishida, President and CEO of United Immunity Co., Ltd. (online presentation)
https://unitedimmunity.co.jp/
Immunotropic drug delivery systems (PNP, P-LNP)

Tadayuki Tanimura, Executive Vice President of Qualips Inc.
https://cuorips.co.jp/
iPS cell-derived cardiomyocyte sheet

Sethi Kunal, Chief Financial Officer, Lead Pharma Co., Ltd.
https://liidpharma.co.jp/
BROTHERS Nucleic Acid (side effects (hepatotoxicity, nephrotoxicity, neurotoxicity) can be avoided)

Kimio Nishimura, CEO of Antibody Medical Research Institute, Inc.
https://integrin.jp/?page_id=246
Antibody drug (ATI-235) that inhibits fibrosis formation in pulmonary fibrosis

Human Life Code Co., Ltd. Chief Scientific Officer, Shinji Yamada
https://humanlifecord.com/business/
Use of mesenchymal stromal cells extracted from umbilical cords as regenerative medicine products

Nobuhiro Kawai, Representative Director and COO of Atransen Pharma Co., Ltd. (online presentation)
https://www.atransen.com
Development of cancer therapy targeting amino acid transporters

Miwako Ishido, CEO of AutophagyGo Inc.
https://autophagygo.com/
Technology for measuring autophagy at an industrial level

Yuki Tsuchioka, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, The University of Tokyo
https://www.kistec.jp/r_and_d/yubo-p/sato/
Drug discovery business using optical switch technology

Shunichi Kashida, President and CEO of Xforest Therapeutics Inc.
https://www.xforestx.com/jp
A technological platform integrating a massively parallel biochemical analysis system for RNA structure and an in silico analysis pipeline

Hideaki Sato, President and CEO of Luxana Biotech Co., Ltd. (Video Streaming)
https://luxnabiotech.co.jp/
Development of nucleic acid medicines based on artificial nucleic acid technology

Yasuhisa Matsukawa, Head of Business Development, Veneno Technologies Inc.
https://veneno.jp/ja/jphome/
Creation of disulfide-rich peptide drugs

Naoto Kinashi, iCeMS Research Fellow, Kyoto University
Mammalian implantation promoter

Yuji Otsuki, CEO of FerroptoCure Co., Ltd.
https://ferroptocure.com
Ferroptosis-inducing anticancer drugs (xCT inhibitors, ALDH inhibitors)

Tomohiro Oiwa, CEO of Arktus Therapeutics Inc.
https://arktustx.com/
iPS-derived mesenchymal stem cell (iMSC) mass production technology, scaffold-free organization technology (cartilage)

Additionally, at the networking venue, participants actively interacted with panelists and pitchers, and it was observed that participants from diverse backgrounds were connecting with each other across fields and positions. This resulted in dialogue that could lead to new co-creation, making for a very meaningful time.

Professor Amari and Chairman Sawa in front of "Dream" and also toured the Yanai myiPS Production Facility