TRIP Headquarters RIKEN Program for Drug Discovery and Medical Technology Platforms (DMP)
Director: Yoichi Kurebayashi (D.V.M., Ph.D.)

Drug discovery is a process that takes place when two elements—target molecules that can control specific disease conditions, and modalities that can control target molecules— come together. When it is shown that an agent made using target molecules and modalities improves the symptoms of a disease or even leads to a cure, it acquires value as a drug.
The mission of the RIKEN Program for Drug Discovery and Medical Technology Platforms (DMP) is to uncover research ideas for creating drugs using target molecules and modalities based on basic research conducted at individual research centers within RIKEN and other research institutes, including universities, and to create drug candidates such as small molecule compounds, antibody therapies, cell-based drugs and regenerative medicine through collaboration among the drug discovery platform units established at individual research centers. In addition, we promote research on drug discovery and medical technology with the aim to acquire intellectual property and support drug discovery and medical technology projects for translational research at the non-clinical and clinical stages. Our ultimate goal is to transfer these projects to companies and medical institutions at an appropriate stage.
Fields of focus
- 1.Modalities for drug discovery
- 2.Small molecule drugs
- 3.Monoclonal antibody drugs and vaccines
- 4.Cell-based drugs and regenerative medicine
- 5.New technology for drug discovery and medical technology platforms
Drug Discovery Platform Units at RIKEN research centers
- Drug Discovery Computational Chemistry Platform Unit (IMS)
- Teruki Honma (Ph.D.)
- Drug Discovery Structural Biology Platform Unit (IMS)
- Mikako Shirouzu (Ph.D.)
- Drug Discovery Chemistry Platform Unit (CSRS)
- Hiroo Koyama (Ph.D.)
- Drug Discovery Molecular Simulation Platform Unit (BDR)
- Makoto Taiji (D.Sc.)
- Drug Discovery Seeds Development Unit (CSRS)
- Minoru Yoshida (D.Agr.)
- aAVC Drug Translational Unit (IMS)
- Shin-ichiro Fujii (M.D., Ph.D)
- AI-driven Drug Discovery Collaborative Unit (R-CCS)
- Yasushi Okuno (Ph.D.)
- Neuroscience Drug Discovery Unit (CBS)
- Hiroyuki Kamiguchi (M.D., Ph.D.)
- Drug Discovery Genetically Modified Animal Platform Unit (BRC)
- Takanori Amano (Ph.D.)
Related Links
Lab Members
Principal investigator
- Yoichi Kurebayashi
- Director
Core members
- Shin-ichiro Fujii
- Deputy Director
- Tomonobu Koizumi
- Deputy Director
- Rikako Yamauchi
- Office Director
- Teruki Honma
- Manager
- Nobuya Matsuoka
- Manager
- Kenichi Ozaki
- Manager
- Tomoe Sugibayashi
- Manager
- Shigeo Fujita
- Research Administrator