Congratulatory Address

I would like to extend my sincere congratulations on the 125th anniversary of the founding of the Faculty of Medicine and Graduate School of Medicine.

Kyoto University has led research in both clinical and basic sciences in Japan.

In the clinical field, Dr. Ikutaro Hirai made the important discovery that the face powder used as cosmetics by geisha contained high levels of lead, which spread serious diseases.

What I am most proud of is the achievements of Dr. Noboru Ogasawara, who was an associate professor at the time, in the study of Hansen’s disease. Despite his vision that Hansen’s disease is a slowly progressing infection primarily driven by the body's immune response, and that extreme isolation policies were unnecessary, a forceful nationwide isolation policy was implemented at the time, resulting in various issues that we face today. Fortunately, after the War, former Ministry of Health and Welfare Director Fujio Otani, an alumnus of our university, recognized the error of this policy and worked towards its repeal, leading to the acknowledgment of the rights of Hansen’s disease patients today.

As an example of the fusion of clinical and basic medicine, Professor Kiyoshi Takatsuki established the disease concept of adult T-cell leukemia (ATL). Following this, Professor Yorio Hinuma discovered that its cause is a virus, and Professor Takashi Uchiyama identified the Tac antigen that is strongly expressed on the surface of affected cells. I later found that the true identity of this antigen is the IL-2 receptor alpha chain. These discoveries were all possible within this context.

In the basic medicine field, several significant discoveries have been made: Professor Akira Fujinami from the department of Pathology discovered the tumor virus known as “Fujinami sarcoma virus”, Professor Ko Hirasawa discovered the extrapyramidal neural circuit, while Professor Shosaku Numa from the Department of Medical Chemistry elucidated the structure and function of the acetylcholine receptor. His successor, Professor Shigetada Nakanishi discovered the structure and function of the glutamate receptor. Following this, Professor Shinya Yamanaka discovered the genes essential for cell reprogramming, leading to the establishment of induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cell. For this discovery, Professor Yamanaka was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 2012. Additionally, I received the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 2018 for my discovery of the enzyme activation-induced cytidine deaminase (AID), which catalyzes the recombination of antibody genes, and for the discovery of the PD-1 blockade that regulates the immune system and has significant applications in cancer immunotherapy.
Kyoto University’s Faculty of Medicine is the only medical school in Japan to have produced two Nobel Prize laureates.

I sincerely hope that Kyoto University's Faculty of Medicine will continue to cherish its rich history and traditions while further establishing itself as a leading research institution on the global stage.

Tasuku Honjo
Deputy Director-General and Distinguished Professor,
Kyoto University Institute for Advanced Research

Director,
Center for Cancer Immunotherapy and Immunobiology (CCII)
Kyoto University