Reserch Themes

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1.Development of Novel Antibacterial Therapeutics

In general, a pharmaceutical industry use mammals such as mice as testing animals to evaluate a therapeutic effect for compounds selected through multi-stage tests in vitro. For that reason, a development of antimicrobic costs and the efficiency is low. We have invented an innovative technology to explore effective compounds in bacterial infection such as Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and Pseudomonas aeruginosa using a therapeutic effect index drived from silkworm larvae infection model. The new method selects compounds that show a therapeutic effect by silkworm larvae infection model from actinomycetes and fungi culture supernatant produces substances that inhibit a pathogen proliferation. We screen compounds pocessing a novel structure with mouse infection model showing a sufficient therapeutic effect at last. We have already succeeded in identifying antibiotics shows a therapeutic effect in mouse infection model. In future, we sell novel compounds with silkworm model to pharmaceutical firms.

2.Development of Antiviral Drugs

In the system of silkworm larvae death by baculovirus infection, Ganciclovir and Foscarnet that are medical treatment medicine for herpes virus and Cytomegalovirus infection show a therapeutic effect. With this system, we develop an evaluation of the effect in new antiviral drugs for humans. We have already succeeded to produce purified substances using as an indicator of therapeutic agents in baculovirus-infected silkworm larvae system from cinnamon. The structure determination by NMR, this compound was found to be a substance that no antiviral activity was reported. This substance was also found to inhibit the ability of HSV-1 plaque formation. And furthermore, we have found a sample that demonstrates a therapeutic effect in baculovirus-infected silkworm larvae model from fraction of ethanol extract from the culture of the bacteria that have been isolated from soil. Currently, we are attempting to purify the active ingredient to determine the structure.

3.Development of a Method for the Prevention and Treatment of Hay Fever

In alkaline aqueous solution, cedar pollen causes morphological changes after an outer shell is removed. The cedar pollen doesn't have an ability to shedder. Based on the new idea, we have been working on developing new methods of preventing pollen shedding. We are also working on hay fever prevention and drug development based on the idea.

4.Development of Natural Food

We have established a system to analyze and extract the active ingredients from Chinese medicine and health food such as turmeric and its system to measure an efficacy. Using this system, we are trying to develop new natural foods.

5.Development of Method to Test Toxicity and Pathogenicity of Food

The effective amount (ED50) of antibiotics in humans and silkworms match and a lethal dose (LD50) of poison per body weight also match. In general, detection of the toxic food, physico-chemical methods depending on the type of poison are used, however the coventional method cannot used for detection of all poisons since unknown poins still exist. Therefore, we are aiming to develop and commercialize methods to detect pathogenic bacteria and poisons from Agricultural products, food and environment using silkworms as experimental animals.

Funded Research using Silkworms as Experimental Animals

1.Evaluation of Innate Immune Activation

①Evaluation of innate immune activation
This system makes use of muscle contraction of silkworm larvae as an indicator and assesses whether the test compound causes an activation of the innate immune or not.
②Evaluation of the effect of suppressing innate immune
This system makes use of muscle contraction of silkworm larvae as an indicator for innate immune activation and evaluates an inhibitory effect of the test compound.

2.Test of Disease Treatment Effect

In pharmaceutical industry, antimicrobial agent development makes use of marmmals such as mice as experimental animals for evaluation of therapeutic effect to compounds that are selected through a multi-stage test in vitro. Therefore, cost and efficiency problems exist. We evaluate therapeutic effects though silkworm infection model.

3.Silkworm Disease Model Development and Funded Research

We have been developing various disease models such as bacteria, fungi and viruses infection models.