Third Grant

I am reporting on my participation in the Keystone Symposia on the Microbiome, held in Montreal. At this conference, I gave a poster presentation on the theme "Exploration of Novel Metabolites Derived from Gut Bacteria with Anti-obesity Effects." Specifically, I presented that: (1) we successfully created mice with strong resistance to obesity by combining an α-glucosidase inhibitor with specific antibiotics; (2) using these mice, we conducted gut microbiota analysis via 16S rDNA sequencing and metabolome analysis via CE-TOFMS, identifying gut bacterial species and metabolites that showed a negative correlation with obesity and worsening glucose tolerance; and (3) these bacterial species and metabolites were found to have anti-obesity effects. During the presentation, while I felt the difficulty of discussing in English, many bacteriology researchers from overseas and professionals from companies showed interest, and I received a great deal of valuable feedback from various perspectives. In addition to my own presentation, I was also able to directly see and hear the unique ideas and research methods of other research teams, and I was inspired by the high level of students of my generation studying abroad. Through this conference, not only did my perspective broaden significantly, but the issues I should focus on in the future also became clear. Moving forward, I intend to make the most of what I learned at this conference and devote myself to enriching my current research.

This conference presentation was made possible by a research encouragement grant from Sato Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. I would like to express my deepest gratitude.

(Natsumi Seki, 3rd Year, Doctoral Programs, Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences)

I gave an oral and poster presentation at the 4th Winter Seminar of the Japanese Society for Osteoimmunology titled "Elucidation of the Mechanism by which Butyrate Derived from Gut Bacteria Suppresses the Onset of Collagen-Induced Rheumatoid Arthritis." Specifically, I reported our findings that: (1) butyrate improves the symptoms of collagen-induced arthritis; (2) butyrate increases follicular regulatory T cells (Tfr) in gut-associated lymphoid tissue, thereby suppressing the germinal center reaction; (3) as a result, butyrate suppresses the production of autoantibodies; and (4) butyrate promotes the differentiation of Tfr cells by enhancing histone acetylation in the promoter regions of the Tfr cell functional genes Bcl-6 and Cxcr5, thereby increasing their gene expression. After the presentation, through interaction and in-depth discussions with researchers in the fields of bone metabolism and immunology, I received new feedback on my current research. By attending research presentations from many laboratories conducting cutting-edge research, both basic and clinical, I was able to learn the latest research methods in immunology. In addition, there was an educational lecture by a prominent researcher on the key points of writing a paper, which was an extremely valuable experience for my future paper writing. Participating in this conference was a very important opportunity to further develop my research and grow as a researcher. Finally, I would like to take this opportunity to express my sincere gratitude to Sato Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. for their support, which enabled me to present at the conference and learn a great deal.

(Aiko Egawa, 2nd Year, Master's Program, Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences)

On the third day (March 16) of the 92nd Annual Meeting of the Japanese Pharmacological Society, I gave an oral presentation in the "Immunology, Inflammation, and Allergy 2" session titled "Macrophage-selective inhibitory effect of Kikyo-to, a Japanese traditional kampo medicine, on the viability of mouse macrophage RAW264.7 cells."

We have been conducting research on the anti-inflammatory effects of Kikyo-to, a type of Kampo medicine. In the process, we found that a decoction of Kikyo-to selectively, concentration-dependently, and time-dependently reduces the viability of the macrophage-derived cell line RAW264.7 without affecting the viability of multiple non-macrophage-derived cell lines. We also confirmed that a similar effect can be obtained with an extract granule formulation, which is convenient for clinical use. Furthermore, we found that licorice, one of its constituent crude drugs, may contribute to this effect. These are new findings that have not been previously reported, and it is expected that in the future, Kikyo-to could potentially be applied to the treatment of intestinal GVHD, a disease caused by an excessive immune response of macrophages. I reported that we will conduct further studies, including animal experiments, in the future. During the Q&A session, as the presentation was in the "Immunology, Inflammation, and Allergy 2" oral session, I received questions about immunology (macrophages) and the effects of Kampo medicine, which is composed of multiple crude drugs. Both types of questions were extremely important for advancing this research, and I would like to incorporate these points into my future studies.

As this was my first time participating in a conference, I feel that I had a very valuable experience before graduation, not only by presenting my own work but also by seeing and hearing other researchers' presentations, from which I learned about presentation styles as well as gaining knowledge. I intend to apply the experience gained at this conference to my future research.

Finally, I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to Sato Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. for subsidizing my expenses to attend this conference.

(Kengo Seki, 6th Year, Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Pharmacy)

I gave a poster presentation at the 92nd Annual Meeting of the Japanese Pharmacological Society. The title of my presentation was "Generation of a Monoclonal Antibody against HEG1, a Novel Marker for Malignant Mesothelioma." At the Kanagawa Cancer Center, our collaborative research partner, the monoclonal antibody SKM9-2, which specifically binds to mesothelioma, was established, and its antigen, HEG1, was identified. It is also known that SKM9-2 binds to a region of HEG1 containing a sialylated glycan. It was therefore predicted that this sialylated glycan modification exists only in mesothelioma. However, at the mRNA level, HEG1 expression has been confirmed in normal tissues such as the heart and testes. Therefore, the objective of this study was to generate an anti-HEG1 antibody that binds independently of glycans in order to confirm HEG1 expression in normal tissues.

Experiencing my first poster presentation was a good opportunity to review my own research. This conference brings together researchers from a very wide range of fields. Therefore, I tried to create a poster that was both easy for people from other fields to understand and academically appealing. In fact, people who saw my poster and became interested in my topic came to listen to my presentation. Through discussions with them, I realized both the enjoyment and the difficulty of presenting. On the other hand, I was also able to broaden my perspective by listening to presentations in fields with which I am not very familiar. Although I only participated for two days, it was a very intensive time. I intend to put even more effort into my future research activities.

I would like to express my sincere gratitude to Sato Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. for their support in attending this conference.

(Takahiro Kato, 1st Year, Master's Program, Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences)

At the 139th Annual Meeting of the Pharmaceutical Society of Japan, I gave an oral presentation titled "Risk Assessment of Stevens-Johnson Syndrome (SJS) and Toxic Epidermal Necrolysis (TEN) Induced by Antiepileptic Drugs." SJS/TEN are severe adverse drug reactions, primarily caused by medications, that result in damage to the skin and mucous membranes. Antiepileptic drugs are often reported as suspected causes of SJS/TEN, but due to the low incidence, no studies estimating the risk for each drug had been conducted in Japan. In recent years, large-scale medical information databases (DBs) have been increasingly used to estimate the risk of rare adverse reactions. However, since SJS/TEN are easily misdiagnosed, using disease codes to identify cases when conducting DB studies can introduce bias into the results. Therefore, in this study, we first collaborated with the Department of Dermatology, School of Medicine, to develop an algorithm to validly identify SJS/TEN from electronic health record data. We then used this algorithm to conduct an analytical epidemiological study and quantitatively estimate the risk of SJS/TEN onset associated with the use of various antiepileptic drugs.

At this conference, I had the opportunity to attend a presentation on a DB study using a case-crossover design, which I plan to use in a new study, and it was very inspiring. I will continue to strive to disseminate information that contributes to the proper use of drugs through conference presentations and papers.

Finally, I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to Sato Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. for subsidizing my expenses to attend this conference.

(Toshiki Fukasawa, 2nd Year, Master's Program, Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences)

I am reporting on my poster presentation at the 92nd Annual Meeting of the Japanese Pharmacological Society, held in Osaka.

I presented on the topic "Mice with Selective Ablation of Slow Motor Neurons during Early Development Exhibit Progressive Muscle Atrophy and Action Tremor." The content was that by inducing motor neuron subtype-specific cell death in mice, these mice develop various symptoms. My presentation focused on muscle atrophy and changes in muscle fiber type among these symptoms.

During the poster session, many people proactively came to hear about my research, which allowed me to reaffirm the importance of my work and discover new possibilities through the various opinions I received. I was approached by people from companies, which gave me a sense of the application of my basic research to the medical community, an experience I could not have had within my laboratory. Some people even said they wanted more detailed data, which further increased my motivation for research.

The content of the symposia I attended was also excellent, providing great inspiration that sparked my research motivation and was very informative. At the symposia organized by companies, I was able to learn about the latest information on drug development, and it was a very meaningful time.

Finally, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to Sato Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. for their support in attending such a wonderful conference. I would like to apply the experience gained at the conference to my future research.

(Tenkei Koyama, 4th Year, Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Faculty of Pharmacy)

At the 139th Annual Meeting of the Pharmaceutical Society of Japan, held at Makuhari Messe and Hotel New Otani Makuhari, I gave a poster presentation titled "Survey of Influenza Epidemic Trends Based on School Closure Information in Nagoya City." There is limited data scientifically demonstrating the effect of temporary school closures on influenza. While studies exist in Japan that have investigated the relationship between influenza outbreaks within schools and temporary closures, there are no studies that have examined the relationship between community-wide influenza epidemics and school closures. Therefore, this study targeted Nagoya City, Aichi Prefecture, and investigated the relationship by compiling the weekly number of sentinel influenza reports and the number of temporary closures implemented in public elementary and junior high schools by ward for the 2015/2016 influenza season.

At this conference, I received feedback from many people regardless of their specialty and was able to have meaningful discussions. At the same time, there were many moments when I realized my own lack of presentation skills, and I keenly felt the need to improve in the future. In addition, there were many other studies investigating influenza epidemics besides my own, and I had a very fulfilling time during the conference.

Finally, thank you for selecting me for the Sato Pharmaceutical Research Encouragement Award. Participating in this conference has been an invaluable experience.

I would like to take this opportunity to express my sincere gratitude to Sato Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.

(Takuma Suemune, 4th Year, Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Faculty of Pharmacy)

I would like to express my sincere gratitude for being selected for the Sato Pharmaceutical Research Encouragement Award. The research encouragement grant was used in its entirety to cover the participation costs for the 139th Annual Meeting of the Pharmaceutical Society of Japan.

I participated in the conference as a poster presenter for my research theme, "Evaluation of the Effects of Polypharmacy, Anticholinergic Drugs, and Sedative Drugs on Physical, Cognitive, and Mental Functions in Community-Dwelling Elderly: The Kawasaki Wellbeing Project."

Although I often struggled with my explanations, it was a very important opportunity to communicate my results to others. Discussions with questioners allowed me to deepen my own thinking and gain new insights. Furthermore, by listening to other research results, I deepened my understanding of the current state of research on the elderly, which is my field of study, and I strongly felt that I want to apply this to my future research. I will strive to make the most of the knowledge I gained at this conference in the future.

Finally, I would like to take this opportunity to express my deep gratitude for the kindness of everyone at Sato Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.

(Asahi Tanaka, 6th Year, Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Pharmacy)

I participated in the 139th Annual Meeting of the Pharmaceutical Society of Japan, held at Makuhari Messe in Chiba Prefecture, and gave a poster presentation titled "Survey on the Actual Use of Poultices Before and After the 2016 Revision of Medical Service Fees." I investigated how the establishment of prescription limits for poultices due to the revision of medical service fees affected actual prescribing trends for poultices, and I presented the results. On the day of the presentation, many attendees viewed my poster, and I received many questions. The professions of those who asked questions were also diverse, including people working in pharmacies, pharmaceutical companies, hospital pharmacists, and those involved in distribution.

I also had the opportunity to speak with pharmacists working on the front lines in pharmacies and hospitals, and they mentioned that they did not feel there had been a major change on the ground before and after the revision. In this study, we conducted our analysis using the claims database of a nationwide pharmacy chain, and even if no change was felt on the ground, the numbers showed a result, which made me feel that it was worthwhile to conduct this research.

I felt that many questions were about why prescriptions far exceeding the 70-sheet limit were still being confirmed after the revision, despite the prescription limits, and about the impact of the revision on prescribing trends.

Finally, I would like to take this opportunity to express my deep gratitude for being selected for the 3rd Sato Pharmaceutical Research Encouragement Award.

(Shiori Furuhata, 6th Year, Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Pharmacy)

I would like to express my sincere gratitude for being selected for the 3rd Sato Pharmaceutical Research Encouragement Award. The research encouragement grant was used to cover the participation costs for the 139th Annual Meeting of the Pharmaceutical Society of Japan.

I participated in the conference as a poster presenter on the theme "Survey on the Actual Use of Potentially Inappropriate Prescriptions in the Elderly." It is necessary to extend healthy life expectancy so that the elderly can maintain a good physical and mental state and preserve their quality of life. However, problems such as decreased medication compliance and increased sensitivity to drugs arise from polypharmacy and declines in physical and cognitive functions. To address these issues, we conducted a survey on the actual use of drugs in the elderly using a large-scale database to promote appropriate prescribing.

At the conference, various experts and students showed interest in this research, and I was able to receive many questions and engage in discussions. Through these interactions, I had the opportunity to gain insights from perspectives I could not have reached on my own and to exchange opinions on the future of better healthcare based on the results of data research, which was a great learning experience. I intend to strive to apply the knowledge and experience gained through this conference to my future endeavors.

Finally, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to Sato Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. for giving me the opportunity to participate in this conference.

(Yongjing Yi, 6th Year, Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Pharmacy)