Knowledgeable experts support
the practical application of medicines,
medical devices,
and regenerative medicinal products.
What is MEDISO
MEDISO provides support for business ventures, academia,
and individuals intending to put into practical use medicines,
medical devices, and regenerative medicinal products.
Click here for further details.
About the Medical Innovation Support Office
The medical innovation support office matches medical venture companies and academic institutions facing challenges in the practical application of medical products and devices for specialists* who provide detailed consultation and support for solving problems at each stage from research and development to practical use, as well as insurance coverage at clinical sites, while looking ahead to the overall comprehensive advances and dissemination into the global market.
* Specialists in each field provide support for the response to laws and regulations, marketing, business planning, fund rasing, management strategy, intellectual property management, and international development, etc.
This website is operated by Mitsubishi Research Institute, Inc., as a trustee under instructions from the Economic Affairs Division, Health Policy Bureau, and Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare as a part of the total support for the medical ventures program sponsored by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare.
Support targets
Ventures, academic institutions, and individuals aiming to put into practical use the medicines, medical devices, regenerative medicinal products, and novel drug-discovery technologies or medical materials subject to the Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices Law.
Details of support
MEDISO provides support for the practical application of medicines, medical devices, regenerative medicinal products, and other products subject to the Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices Law.
That support includes business planning, financing, advice on laws and regulations, and other assistance as required.
- ●Support method:We provide support via online meeting or e-mail.
- ●Support source:Support is provided in cooperation with experts in R&D, consultants in pharmaceutical affairs, and experts from related organizations including the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare.
- ●Remarks:Consultation and support services are free of charge.
In case the link does not work, please contact us at the email address below
mediso@ml.mri.co.jp
Specialists Introduction
We will introduce registered specialists
(updated as necessary).
Taku Seriu
Seriu Medical Consulting Ltd. CEO
APCER Life Sciences. Senior Advisor to the Board
The Institute of Drug Development Career Promotion. Representative Director
Main specialty areas
- medicines
- regenerative medicine products
Specialized support fields
- Regulatory compliance
- Business planning
- Business operation systems
- Etc
A physician and Doctor of Medical Science, he began his career as an internist before leading clinical leukemia research at the Universities of Ulm and Heidelberg in Germany. After returning to Japan, he took on leadership roles including Head of Clinical Development at Nihon Schering, Executive Officer at Bristol-Myers Squibb, and Executive Vice President and Board Member at Otsuka Pharmaceutical, where he oversaw drug development, medical affairs, regulatory affairs, pharmacovigilance, and quality assurance.
He has led the development, approval, and post-marketing activities of more than 50 therapeutics and diagnostics across oncology, neuroscience, cardiovascular and renal diseases, infectious diseases, and rare diseases, contributing to global launches and appropriate-use initiatives.
He currently serves as President of Seriu Medical Consulting and Senior Advisor at APCER Life Sciences, supporting R&D strategy, safety and risk management, organizational development, and new business planning. He also advises startups on development strategy, TPP creation, and fundraising pitch preparation, and has a strong track record in post-acquisition organizational integration, aligning cultures, talent, and processes.
He teaches pharmaceutical medicine at several universities and is an editor and contributing author of Introduction to Pharmaceutical Medicine, the first textbook of its kind published in Japan. He continues to practice clinical medicine and remains committed to supporting those driving pharmaceutical innovation in Japan, guided by the principle: “Learn Together, Grow Together.”

Akihiko Okuno
SK Intellectual Property Law Firm (SKIP) Managing Partner
SCM BioMedica Co., Ltd. Co-Founder
Main specialty areas
- medicines
- medical devices
- regenerative medicine products
Specialized support fields
- Specialized support fields
Master's degree in Cell Structure Research, Department of Applied Bioengineering, Graduate School of Agriculture and Life Sciences, University of Tokyo, Japanese Patent Attorney, Information Security Administrator, and JPAA Intellectual Property Management Consultant certification. As a FoundX supporter of the University of Tokyo, He supports the intellectual property strategies of many IT and bio-related startups. He specializes in supporting the planning of intellectual property strategies in a variety of fields including biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, and medical devices. In addition, together with Dr. Yoshimasa Tanaka of Nagasaki University (a genius researcher who developed Opdivo with annual sales of over 1 trillion yen together with Dr. Tasuku Honjo, winner of the Nobel Prize in Medicine and Physiology), he established SCM Biomedica Co., Ltd. He co-founded the company and is currently trying to manage his own drug discovery startup.

Hiroyuki Hasegawa
Director of Life Science, Mitsubishi UFJ Capital Co., Ltd.
Main specialty areas
- medicines
- medical devices
- regenerative medicine products
Specialized support fields
- Regulatory compliance
- Marketing
- Business planning
- Funding
- Business operation systems
He graduated with a master’s degree from the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Hokkaido University. In 1994, he joined Daiichi Seiyaku Company (current Daiichi Sankyo Company, Limited) and was in charge of the areas of infectious diseases and cancers in the Department of Post-marketing Surveillance. In 2004, he joined UFJ Capital Co., Ltd. (current Mitsubishi UFJ Capital Co., Ltd.), where he served as an analyst and capitalist. From 2013, he made an attempt to use open innovation for the Development of Emerging Technologies (OiDE) Fund for the purpose of nurturing outcomes from academia-launched research to become the fundamental technology for drug discovery in collaboration with Daiichi Sankyo Company Limited(liquidated in 2023).Since the first fund in 2017, we have been promoting investment activities using a total of 50 billion yen, including the "Mitsubishi UFJ Life Science Fund No. 4" (20 billion yen).Currently, he holds the position of outside director at Kamuipharma, GAIA Biomedicine, and Luxonus Co. Ltd., as well as serving as a fellow for collaboration between industry and academia at Kyoto University Medical Science and Business Liaison Organization.

Eiichi Yamaguchi
Eiichi Yamaguchi, Ph.D. President A1 Partners
Main specialty areas
- medicines
- medical devices
- regenerative medicine products
Specialized support fields
- Marketing
- Business planning
- Funding
- Business operation systems
Ph.D from Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences Kyushu University. Currently engaged in management and business development consulting for pharmaceutical companies, biotech ventures, and consulting firms. Over 20 years expertise of business development at Shionogi Co., Ltd., a major pharmaceutical company as well as bioventure companies. Senior Director, Business Development & Corporate Planning Dept., Shionogi. A lot of global business experience such as the first Managing Director, Shionogi Singapore, Vice President, Shionogi Qualicaps, Inc., North Carolina, and Shionogi New York. Board of Director & President & COO, a bioventure company. The first chairman, Japan Pharma Alliance Association. The Vice Chairman, Public Private Alliance Conference associated with Infectious diseases led by Dr. Shigeru Omi. Also engaged in Director, International Committee, JPMA. Last but not least, selected as Mentor for Blockbuster Tokyo 2021

Kenichi Yamahara
Professor at the Laboratory of Molecular and Cellular Therapy, Institute for Advanced Medical Sciences, Hyogo Medical University
Representative Director of CTEX Co., Ltd.
Main specialty areas
- medical devices
- regenerative medicine products
Specialized support fields
- Regulatory compliance
- Marketing
- Business planning
- Business operation systems
- Specialized support fields
From the time of a former position at the National Cerebral and Cardiovascular Center, he planned and implemented the formulation of the amnion-derived mesenchymal stem cells and investigator-initiated clinical trials for acute grafts versus host disease/Crohn's disease under the support by Health and Labour Sciences Research Grants/AMED. He often had PMDA consultations on the products of regenerative medicine and acquired knowledge of laws and regulations. Taking advantage of the experience, he founded a venture, Japan Biomedical Co., Ltd., which manufactures the domestic bovine serum NeoSERA® for the products of regenerative medicine by satisfying the standards for biological materials in January 2017. Furthermore, in order to aggressively develop investigator-initiated clinical trials of cell therapy making use of university hospital infrastructures, he founded a venture, CTEX Co., Ltd., from Hyogo Medical University in February 2018. Recently, he participated as a medical expert in the company developing the regenerative medical product and is a principal investigator for investigator-initiated clinical trials for the development of cell therapy in the medical device category (adopted by AMED). Currently, he is working on the practice of cell therapy development initiated at the university hospital while concurrently serving in the basic and clinical departments of Hyogo Medical University.

Introduction of measures implemented by public institutions
We will describe the measures from public institutions for pharmaceutical companies,
medical device companies, companies manufacturing regenerative medicinal products, and venture companies.
- The Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare/
- Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices Agency (PMDA)/
- Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development (AMED)/
- Cabinet Office/
- Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry/
- Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications/
- Small and Medium Enterprise Agency/
- Organization for Small & Medium Enterprises and Regional Innovation, Japan/
- Union of Kansai Governments/
- New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO)/
- Life Science Innovation Network Japan, Inc. (LINK-J)/
- Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST)/
- Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO)/
- INCJ, Ltd./
- Osaka Prefecture/
- Tokyo Metropolis/
- Kanagawa Prefecture/
- National Institutes of Biomedical Innovation, Health and Nutrition (NIBIOHN)
A comprehensive portal site for Medical Innovation Support Office (MEDISO).
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