Useful resources are not only found in plants, but are also abundant in the microorganisms living on land and in water. For example, the various microorganisms that inhabit the soil of the mudflats of Ariake Sea or in the sponges (under the sea) are believed to hold many of the seeds for new drug discoveries. Through this program, laboratories will actively collaborate with each other. Having different researchers do screenings and assessments from their own viewpoints will accelerate the progress of research. These finally lead to the discovery of a variety of seeds for therapeutic agents from natural resources (plants, microorganisms, marine organisms) and contribute to the health of everyone on earth.
We expand the library of natural compounds by focusing on marine organisms that could include numerous new and uniquely structured agents, with the aim of eventually discovering innovative medical products and accelerating fundamental scientific research.
Especially notable is that Kumamoto Prefecture is home to the Ariake Sea, which has Japan's most expansive mudflats, and it is now becoming known that the large differences in sediment environment cause large changes in microbial flora. We hope to find seed compounds of Kumamoto origin from the microorganisms that inhabit the varied environments in the mudflats of the Ariake Sea or in deep ocean.
Collecting samples at the mudflat of Ariake Sea |