tokyo

The University of Tokyo and 12 Japanese companies have started a joint initiative to sequence and analyse full-length human complementary DNA (cDNA) to discover patentable genes that will contribute to the understanding of diseases.

The project is intended to develop new technologies in drug development, bioinformatics and gene therapy. It will receive ¥2.5 billion (US$208 million) in this fiscal year, which began on 1 April.

Researchers from the university's Institute of Medical Sciences will provide the companies with cDNAs from various tissues, including cancerous tissues from liver, lung and stomach, and those linked to neurological and immunological diseases.

The companies will carry out DNA base sequencing and analysis of proteins, with an aim of discovering patentable genes for medical use and research. They plan to sequence 7,500 cDNA clones by next March.

The project involves companies such as Hitachi, Daiichi Pharmaceuticals, Kyowa Hakko and Otsuka Pharmaceutical Co., and is funded by the New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization, which is affiliated to the Ministry of International Trade and Industry.

The move is in line with government efforts to commercialize biotechnology research. In January, five government bodies launched a 10-year programme to expand 25-fold Japan‘s biotechnology market (see Nature 397, 554; 1999).

The programme is expected to create a market worth ¥25 trillion and to help create up to 80,000 jobs by 2010.