https://bio.nikkeibp.co.jp/atcl/news/p1/23/09/06/11054/ In 2024, MEXT will fund a project (“Development and sharing of generative AI models for scientific research”) at RIKEN to develop generative AI that forms hypotheses through dialogue with researchers. The project  aims to train RIKEN’s experimental data and published data to generate hypotheses, experimental plans, etc., to help researchers brush up their hypotheses […]

https://bio.nikkeibp.co.jp/atcl/news/p1/23/09/05/11051/ Takara Bio has announced that it has established a technology to rapidly produce chimeric antigen receptor T cells (CAR-T cells). By shortening the culture period to two days, it is possible to produce CAR-T cells with higher cytotoxic activity than usual, and the company plans to utilize this in its CDMO business. The company’s CDMO […]

https://bio.nikkeibp.co.jp/atcl/column/16/021500017/090500297/ https://bio-phenolics.com/?page_id=68 BioPhenolics is a startup from the University of Tsukuba that is conducting research and development of technology to produce aromatic hydrocarbon chemicals with benzene rings using improved microorganisms (“smart cells”). Currently, BioPhenolics has a pipeline of more than 10 chemical products that it is independently researching and developing, and when combined with the […]

https://www.nedo.go.jp/news/press/AA5_101685.html Fermentation production of food materials requires the wisdom, know-how, and so-called “craftsmanship” of experts to ensure stable production, such as setting optimal culture conditions. On the other hand, it takes a very long time to inherit and acquire the “craftsmanship” of such skilled workers, the aging of skilled workers, and the outflow of technology […]

https://bio.nikkeibp.co.jp/atcl/news/p1/23/08/29/11028/ https://carbgem.com/en/ The startup CarbGem uses AI and other technologies to test for infectious disease. The company now has developed a compact automated Gram staining device called PoCGS-iE. In addition to research institutions, the company will also sell the product to food companies, livestock farms, and other companies with a need to confirm bacterial species. […]

https://bio.nikkeibp.co.jp/atcl/news/p1/23/08/31/11042/ According to a joint poster presentation at the 5th Cellular Agriculture Conference by Professor Noriya Matsuzaki and his team from Osaka University, Toppan Printing, Shimadzu Corporation and Itoham, the taste of cultured meat still needs some improvement. Prof. Matsuzaki and his colleagues have developed technology to produce cultured meat using a 3D printer. Muscle […]

https://bio.nikkeibp.co.jp/atcl/news/p1/23/08/18/11005/ According to Nikkei Biotech, Astellas Pharma Inc. held a media tour at the Tsukuba Biotechnology Research Center on August 7, 2023. During the tour, robot Mahoro was shown to the media operating a culture plate. Mahoro is a dual-armed robot developed by the Robotic Biology Institute (Koto, Tokyo; Kenji Matsuguma, President) and the National […]

https://fermelanta.com https://bio.nikkeibp.co.jp/atcl/column/16/021500017/080100292/ Firmelanta is a startup from Ishikawa Prefectural University that uses E. coli bacteria to create biotech products. The company is currently constructing various recombinant E. coli strains for the production of pharmaceutical and cosmetic ingredients. In addition to its own production of pharmaceutical and cosmetic ingredients using the strains it has developed, the […]

https://www.nedo.go.jp/news/press/AA5_101678. As part of the Green Innovation Fund Project, NEDO will launch the “Decarbonization of Thermal Processes in the Manufacturing Sector” project (total budget: 30.41 billion yen) with the aim of achieving “carbon neutrality by 2050. The project will work on the establishment of combustion technologies required for carbon-neutral industrial furnaces, and technologies for reducing […]

https://bio.nikkeibp.co.jp/atcl/news/p1/23/07/30/10951/ https://carbgem.com/en/ CarbGem and its parent company, NexGen have filed for manufacturing and marketing approval for AI software that estimates the bacterial species of bacterial infections and supports diagnosis and selection of therapeutic agents. The AI software analyzes Gram-stained images of urine tests to estimate the species of bacteria. the AI software is linked to […]

https://www.nedo.go.jp/news/press/AA5_101674.html Under NEDO’s “Technology Research and Development Project for Discovery and Commercialization of New Energy and Other Seeds”, MIRAI-LABO Co., Ltd. has developed the “Solar Mobiway,” a solar power generation panel that can be laid on the road surface, and EV Repurpose, which reuses batteries discharged from used electric vehicles (EVs). The Autonomous Intelligent Road […]

https://bio.nikkeibp.co.jp/atcl/column/16/052000031/072700119/ Morinaga Milk Industry has confirmed that early administration of Bifidobacterium bifidum to healthy full-term infants promotes the formation of bifidobacteria-dominant flora. In addition, beneficial physiological functions were also observed, such as a decrease in the frequency of defecation and an increase in the secretion of acetic acid and secretory immunoglobulin A (sIgA) in the […]

https://bio.nikkeibp.co.jp/atcl/news/p1/23/07/18/10912/ On July 18, 2023, Chugai Pharmaceutical held a media tour of its new research base, Chugai Life Science Park Yokohama. The new research base was completed on October 15, 2022, and began full-scale operations in April 2023. The center plans to advance drug discovery research based on laboratory automation and AI drug discovery. During […]

https://bio.nikkeibp.co.jp/atcl/news/p1/23/06/29/10868/ The general-purpose humanoid robot “Mahoro” is one of the most well-known of all experimental automation devices. Mahoro has a long history of development and was first announced in its current form in 2012. Since then, it has been gradually introduced to companies and research institutes. Mahoro excels at delicate work, and it can also […]

https://bio.nikkeibp.co.jp/atcl/news/p1/23/07/08/10893/ JGC Holdings (HD), which focuses on engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) of plants, and Bacchus BioInnovation (Kobe, President Mikio Tanji), a Kobe University startup, announced that they will collaborate in the biofoundry business, which produces useful substances using microbes and other materials. Bacchus, of which Professor Akihiko Kondo of Kobe University’s Graduate School serves […]

https://bio.nikkeibp.co.jp/atcl/news/p1/23/07/05/10883/ Hyperion FoodTech (Nara City, President Kazuhiro Takekita), a company involved in the research and development of new food materials such as cultured meat, announced the establishment of pluripotent stem cells (ES cells) from fertilized embryos from domestic cattle. Bovine ES cells will be differentiated into bovine skeletal muscle cells, which will be used to […]

https://bio.nikkeibp.co.jp/atcl/news/p1/23/07/05/10885/ Biodegradable mulch film has been commercially available for about 20 years. Hiroko Kitamoto and her team from theNational Institute of Agro-Environmental Sciences had discovered that Pseudozyma Antarctica which is ubiquitous on plant surfaces, break down biodegradable plastics by a secreted esterase PaE . This degrading enzyme, PaE, was known to degrade polybutylene succinate adipate […]

https://bio.nikkeibp.co.jp/atcl/news/p1/23/06/21/10838/ Shimadzu Corporation begins test marketing of its “Intestinal Bacteria Co-Culture Device,” which can co-culture intestinal bacteria and intestinal epithelial cells. In recent years, the development of pharmaceuticals and foods that utilize intestinal bacteria has been gaining momentum. Research on intestinal bacteria requires reproduction of the intestinal environment consisting of intestinal microflora and intestinal epithelium, […]

https://www.nedo.go.jp/news/prehttps://fermelanta.com/ss/AA5_101655.html https://fermelanta.com There are many rare and useful components in substances extracted from plants and microorganisms, but the production of substances in nature is unstable in supply and costly. In particular, agricultural production methods are a major barrier to industrial production due to the time-consuming cultivation of the plants, as well as the limited cultivation […]

https://www.nedo.go.jp/news/press/AA5_101659.html NEDO supports five R&D themes for the “Study and Evaluation of Evaluation Methods for Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) of Cellulose Nanofiber Materials” to accelerate the social implementation of cellulose nanofibers (CNF), and has begun full-scale implementation. The project aims to accelerate CNF-related businesses by visualizing the results of comparisons of CNF’s features, such as […]

https://www.nedo.go.jp/news/press/AA5_101666.html As part of NEDO’s “Development of Fuel Ammonia Utilization and Production Technology”, AGC Corporation, Taiyo Nippon Sanso Corporation, AIST, and Tohoku University have recently succeeded in the world’s first demonstration test of glass production using ammonia as fuel in an actual production reactor. In this demonstration, tests were conducted using a burner developed by […]

https://bio.nikkeibp.co.jp/atcl/column/16/021500017/062100285/ The company is working on the development of a “microneedle insulin patch,” an artificial pancreas made of acrylamide gel containing phenylboronic acid (phenylboronic acid gel), as a new option for diabetes treatment. The microneedle insulin patch is a patch made by forming phenylboronic acid gel into a microneedle shape and filling it with insulin. […]

https://bio.nikkeibp.co.jp/atcl/news/p1/23/06/27/10855/ Qualipse, a developer of iPS cell-derived cardiomyocyte sheets, was founded in March 2017 based on the research findings of Yoshiki Sawa, a specially-appointed professor at Osaka University Graduate School of Medicine, and his colleagues. The company is developing iPS cell-derived cardiomyocyte sheets derived from other iPS cells provided from the iPS cell stock of […]

https://bio.nikkeibp.co.jp/atcl/news/p1/23/06/27/10852/ Regional Fish and NTT announced the establishment of a joint venture company to produce and sell improved seafood on a commercial scale and to start operations on July 1, 2023. Regional Fish markets edible portion-enhanced red sea bream and high-growth tiger pufferfish as genome-edited foods, and has been collaborating with NTT on the breeding […]

https://www.nedo.go.jp/news/press/AA5_101665.html NEDO has begun development and demonstration of applications and libraries that can address issues that are difficult to solve with conventional technologies, utilizing “Quantum-AI Hybrid Technology” that combines quantum technology and artificial intelligence (AI) in the “Cyber-Physical Development Project for Quantum-AI Hybrid Technology. The focus is on “Materials Development,” “Manufacturing,” and “Logistics/Transportation”. The project […]

https://www.eng.nipponsteel.com/news/2023/20230602.html The Next Generation Green CO2 Fuel Technology Research Association is a research association formed by ENEOS, Suzuki, Subaru, Daihatsu, Toyota Motor, Toyota Tsusho, and Mazda, and has been developing bioethanol for some time. The facility is expected to be fully operational in 2024. Kao will supply saccharification enzymes used in the production of bioethanol […]

https://www.nedo.go.jp/news/press/AA5_101656.html The City University of Kitakyushu and HiBD Research Institute have jointly developed a technology for the commercialization of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) using the patented HiJET technology that conforms to “Annex 2” of ASTM D7566, the international standard for Sustainable Aviation Fuel. This technology uses animal and vegetable fats and oils such as waste […]

https://bio.nikkeibp.co.jp/atcl/news/p1/23/06/06/10774/ https://www.nedo.go.jp/news/press/AA5_101654.html On June 2, 2023, Green Earth Institute inaugurated the Biofoundry Research Institute, part of the New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO) Biofoundry Project, at the Mitsui Chemicals Mobara Branch Plant in Mobara City, Chiba Prefecture. NEDO’s biopharmaceutical foundry project aims to establish and demonstrate the technologies necessary to build biomanufacturing using […]

https://www.nedo.go.jp/news/press/AA5_101651.html NEDO has started the world’s first ammonia fuel mixing test using an actual marine 4-stroke engine with an 80% ammonia fuel mixing ratio, which is planned to be installed on an actual vessel. IHI Power Systems is in charge of the development. The actual engine and its peripheral equipment will undergo operational tests to […]

https://bio.nikkeibp.co.jp/atcl/news/p1/23/05/15/10688/ Singapore-based Umami Meats, a developer of cultured fish meat, has developed cultured fish fillets using a 3D printer in collaboration with Israel-based Steakholder Foods. The two companies held a tasting event in Israel on the same day, and while efforts to develop cultured beef using 3D printers are underway in Japan, the development of […]