Companies

Alps Alpine’s microfluidic devices are made from high-performance engineering resins cyclo-olefin polymer (COP) and cyclo-olefin copolymer (COC).
COP/COC is one of the ideal materials for microfluidic devices. Bonding, however, posed difficulties given the hydrophobic nature of the molded surface and industry players struggled to overcome them. Alps Alpine’s answer was to develop its very own original bonding method.

Bonding of up to seven COC or COP plates is possible at any one time using this technique, the main feature being the realization of high bonding strength and pressure resistance without using an adhesive. If an adhesive or double-sided tape were used and even just a tiny portion of its constituents separated and found its way into a specimen, toxicity and other factors would make an accurate measurement unobtainable.

Micron-level precision is maintained using advanced mold technology while outstanding bonding strength and integration at the casing failure level is enabled with the ability to withstand 10MPa internal pressure ensuring plates do not come unstuck from the bonding surface. The devices therefore function properly as completely closed devices that do not come unstuck, break or leak when carrying specimens like blood, upholding reliability in testing and analysis.

Since its foundation in 1970, Asahi Rubber Inc. has continuously proposed products based on our advanced technologies on “color / light control technology”, “surface modification and micro-processing technology” and “material denaturalization technology”.

In addition to an industrial rubber product business, we are confident of a high track record in the medical and life science fields.

In the MPS field, we have developed new technologies to solve customer issues, such as “molecular bonding technology” that integrates rubber and different materials and “super hydrophilic treatment technology” that allows silicone rubber to be affiliated to the human body environment.

We will help you solve your problems by making most of our skills and technologies such as devices that have elasticity and rigidity by laminating metals, resins, ceramics and rubber, and flexible silicone rubber that does not repel blood and test fluids that is free from cytotoxic.

BD Consulting Inc. is a company that supports the commercialization of innovations in the life science field and contributes to the resolution of issues faced by client companies.
We are currently learning “MP4MPS” together with you so that we can support you with our experience in research and development of cell culture system components and medical components, and product development.
We are looking for advisors. If you are a former manufacturer of healthcare or medical products, or a researcher who has been engaged in research at a public or private research institution, and would like to work independently using your skills, or if you would like to challenge venture or new business development, or if you would like to work utilizing your skills after retirement and are interested, please contact us. In addition, we obtained a license for employment placement business last year. We will start recruiting human resources for health care and medical products in earnest. Please contact us if you are interested in this area as well.

FUJIFILM Corporation has made a full-scale entry into the drug discovery support CRO business to accelerate business growth in the life science field. The company has established a new CRO Business Development Office to formulate and promote overall strategies for this business, providing services such as the search for new drug seeds and evaluation of efficacy and safety. It supports drug discovery research for pharmaceutical companies and other clients.

The same promotion office formulates overall strategies for the drug discovery support CRO business. The Bioscience & Engineering Research Institute, which conducts research and development of biotechnology, FUJIFILM Toyama Chemical Corporation, which has advanced manufacturing infrastructure and knowledge of drug discovery, and FUJIFILM Wako Pure Chemicals Corporation, which has a strong domestic sales network cultivated through its reagent business and other activities, will be combined with the Group’s resources to provide drug discovery support services in Japan.

Specifically, we are developing a drug discovery support CRO business in Japan by combining human iPS cell-derived differentiated cells developed and manufactured by FUJIFILM Cellular Dynamics, Inc, a leading iPS cell company, and artificial intelligence (AI) technology accumulated through a wide range of product development. It provides services for evaluating the efficacy and safety of drug candidates and analyzing their mechanism of action by combining the differentiated cells derived from human iPS cells. Taking advantage of the ability to reproduce the effects of a drug on a human organism and conduct highly accurate evaluation and analysis, the service meets the needs of customers who want to reduce animal experiments using mice and other animals. We also offer sample preparation for gene therapeutic drugs and contract analyses of the molecular structure of the therapeutic drugs. We also provide drug discovery consulting services based on our expertise in pharmaceutical research and development, which we have cultivated mainly in the fields of cancer and infectious diseases.

Fujifilm currently provides contract drug development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) services for small molecule drugs and biopharmaceuticals in the life science field, one of its key business domains. In the future, the company plans to fully develop its drug discovery support CRO services and establish a total support system covering drug discovery research, production process development, investigational drug manufacturing, and commercial production.

We established our company in Morioka City, Iwate Prefecture in 2003. By utilizing the precision mold technology of Iwate University, we have developed a gear reducer using ultra-compact plastic gears with a diameter of 1 mm and a tooth size of approximately 0.1 mm, which we manufacture and sell as micro actuators with diameters of 4 to 8 mm. We also apply this technology to the development and manufacture of various precision instruments, medical devices such as electronic syringes for dental anesthesia, and life science devices such as the world’s smallest and lightest electronic pipette “pipetty”, which we sell both domestically and internationally.
In addition to this actuator, we have also commercialized a compact automatic cell culture medium exchange system by developing a micropump. This product has been utilized by medical and biotechnological research institutes, experiments in microgravity environments in space, and MPS researchers and developers to provide high-quality cell culture.

About Mitsui Chemicals (Tokyo: 4183, ISIN: JP3888300005)

Mitsui Chemicals’ roots can be traced back to 1912 when it began producing raw material for chemical fertilizers from coal gas byproducts, the first company in Japan to do so. This undertaking significantly contributed to increasing agricultural productivity, a major social issue at the time. Later, the company evolved its technology from coal chemicals to gas chemicals, and in 1958 it built Japan’s first petrochemical complex and so provided impetus to Japan’s industry. Today, the company boasts many world-class products with sales standing at over 1,800 billion yen and with over 160 companies in 30 countries. Its business portfolio includes Life＆Healthcare　Solutions, Mobility Solutions, ICT Solutions, Basic & Green Materials .
Mitsui Chemicals will continue to contribute to solving social challenges with its state-of-the-art technology and by “Creating New Customer Value through Innovation”.
More information can be found at https://www.mitsuichem.com

Founded in 1907 as a leather company, Nippi is one of the world’s leading manufacturers of collagen casings. Nippi established Biological and Chemical Products Division to accelerate the growth of its business in the life science sector. The science and engineering of ECM component proteins is one of the Division’s main business activities. We offer products and customized services based on the extracellular matrix technology and know-how we have developed over the years for collagens, gelatin, and laminins. We work closely with companies, universities, and research institutions to apply technology to products and science to help R&D professionals solve problems and make scientific, industrial, and medical advances. We will focus on developing products related to 3D cell culture and MPS. We will focus on developing products related to 3D cell culture and MPS. We aim to develop technologies to reduce animal experiments by developing 3D cell culture systems that reproduce the effects of pharmaceuticals and chemical substances on humans in vitro and evaluate them with a high degree of accuracy.

Physios Biotech Inc. is a start-up company founded in 2023 to develop a novel MPS for customers, commercialize MPS, and provide drug evaluation services using MPS. We are engaged in the development of MPS that enable to predict human physiology and recapitulate human diseases.

One of founders, Prof. R. Yokokawa with Kyoto University, has established renal MPS containing highly functional proximal tubule cells from human iPS cells. This MPS makes it possible to evaluate renal drug transport, which was difficult to assess using conventional cultured cells. His group has also worked on evaluating novel therapeutics for rare cancers, reproducing the cancer microenvironment, and co-culturing with three-dimensional tissues using perfusable vascular networks in MPS. Based on these core technologies, we aim to contribute to reducing the usage of experimental animals, shortening of drug development times, and improving the safety assessment of compounds.

Yokogawa Electric contributes to social development by providing cutting-edge products and solutions based on measurement, control, and information technologies to customers supporting various industries and social infrastructure.

We are committed to the future of the Earth, and we work together with our customers to solve a variety of economic, social, and environmental challenges in order to realize a sustainable society.

Since its foundation in 1950, more than 70 years ago, Zeon has consistently provided many of the world’s top-class products by applying our innovative technologies, which demonstrate the power of chemistry as their source.

In 1959, Zeon became the first company in Japan to mass produce synthetic rubbers. We developed a series of products after that, including synthetic rubbers, synthetic latexes, and thermoplastic elastomers, and we applied our adhesion technology toward commercializing a number of products as well. Furthermore, we took the lead in developing our overseas business with a global perspective and focus on Asia, including the manufacturing and processing of synthetic rubbers for fuel-efficient tires and special synthetic rubbers, as well as key automotive security parts. Today, our business encompasses more than fifty Group companies in Japan and overseas.

Business development then accelerated in new fields, demonstrating the challenges we have taken on in developing our proprietary technologies. The products of our Specialty Materials Business, another pillar of Zeon, encompassing specialty plastics, optical films, electronic materials, and materials for lithium-ion batteries, have become indispensable for supporting our modern lifestyles.
Amid the present business environment, subject to dramatic change, we will strive to ensure safe plant operations and deliver reliable quality to customers while remaining committed to protecting the global environment.

（Name）Zeon Corporation
（Established）April, 1950
（Business Descriptions）
Elastomer Business: synthetic rubbers; synthetic latexes and chemicals
Specialty Materials Business: specialty plastics and optical materials; information materials; energy materials; specialty chemicals; polymerized toners and medical products
Others: CNT（single-walled carbon nanotubes）RIM (reaction injection molding) formulation liquid and products, paints, etc.

MPS (microphysiological systems) have been attracting attention in recent years as novel in vitro evaluation systems with high biomimetic properties. In Europe and the United States, research and development began around 2010, and many MPS suppliers have already provided various types of cells and devices, and pharmaceutical companies have incorporated MPS into their drug research and development.

In Japan, following the AMED-MPS project (FY 2017-2021), the AMED-MPS2 project has been working toward social implementation of MPS from Japan since FY 2022. In addition, the MPS-RS project is in charge of bridging the gap from social implementation to administrative use.

In order to further develop research and development related to MPS and to truly achieve social implementation and administrative use, we believe it is necessary to gather a wide range of opinions from industry, academia, and government, and reflect them in the development of MPS. Therefore, we have established the Japan MPS Initiative as an activity body widely participated by industry, academia, and government to widely accept needs for evaluation systems using MPS, to implement them in society, and to use them for administrative purposes.