November 24, 2022
On Wednesday, November 16, the 2022 Shinzo Koizumi Memorial Lecture, a lecture by Mr. Daikichi Fukushima titled "What I Learned from Prostaglandins," was held in the Medium Auditorium on the B1 floor of Building 1 at the Shiba-Kyoritsu Campus.
After earning his Doctor of Science from the University of Tsukuba and working as a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Chicago, Mr. Fukushima was engaged in drug discovery research and management at Ono Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. He also served for many years as the chairman of the Ono Medical Research Foundation.
In his lecture, while looking back on the history of one company's research and development surrounding the bioactive lipid prostaglandin, he spoke about the importance of the process of generating new hypotheses and value from the deepening and integration of experience. He also discussed the importance of collaboration with academia and open innovation within the research process that leads from scientific and technological innovation to discovery and drug creation. Citing specific examples such as lipid mediator drug discovery and cancer immune checkpoint drug discovery, he gave a talk filled with a realistic, on-the-ground perspective on the creation of new value. Amid opinions that Japanese companies excel at incremental improvements but are hesitant to take on new themes that could lead to innovation, this lecture attempted to pass on a legacy to the next generation and propose a future vision for drug discovery innovation by simplifying and abstracting memorable cases from his experience in the pharmaceutical industry. The talk was profound and highly insightful, not only for those in the pharmaceutical field but also for a wide range of other fields.
All participants listened intently, and the event became a lively lecture including a Q&A session.
About the Shinzo Koizumi Memorial Lecture:
Photo: Akisue Takematsu