About NANO MRNA
NANO MRNA is evoluving a cycle of mRNA medicine IP generation-licensing as a platform company that connects drug discovery seeds with medical and drug development needs.
CEO Message
Happy New Year
I hope the New Year finds all of you in good health and happiness.
Last year, we pivoted to the new business model of mRNA drug discovery, and changed our company name accordingly, adopting NANO MRNA Co., Ltd.
On the R&D front, we are pursuing the partnering and enhancement of R&D talent that will drive mRNA drug discovery. Meanwhile our drug discovery activities have successfully launched and been in full operation, and in addition to our alliance with Kao, our newly established mRNA IPG Unit is already producing and starting projects based on new ideas. In 2024 as our IP generation model enters its second year, we will ensure that intellectual property (IP) rights are secured in connection with those efforts, while leveraging collaborations and other activities as multiplier to enhance new seeds. With the IP creation cycle leading to the ongoing creation of IPs going forward, we will step up to a new level, aiming to become a first-tier company in terms of mRNA drug creation capabilities.
Regarding the RUNX1 mRNA, we are making progress in consultations with regulatory authorities towards the start of investigator-initiated clinical trials, and in this process have rapidly gained a wealth of expertise that will benefit the future research and development of mRNA drugs. The investigator-initiated clinical trial of TUG1 ASO is also about to begin. TUG1 ASO has potential as a new therapeutics for intractable cancer, and we believe that this clinical trial steady progress will also make steady progress. We will pursue out-licensing activities in parallel with these efforts.
We truly appreciate your continued support for our activities.
Last but not least, I sincerely wish you all have a wonderful New Year.
Sincerely yours,
Shiro Akinaga,
President & CEO
Jan. 1, 2024
Corporate Profile
| Corporate Nam | NANO MRNA Co.,Ltd. |
|---|---|
| Location |
Tokyo Office (Head office)Atago Green Hills MORI Tower 26F Lab (iCONM laboratory)Innovation Center of NanoMedicine(iCONM) 3-25-14 Tonomachi, |
| Establishment | June 14, 1996 |
| President and CEO | Shiro Akinaga |
| Capital | 119 million yen (As of March 31, 2023) |
| Number of employees & management | 28 (As of March 31, 2023) |
| Scopes of Business | R&D and production of pharmaceuticals using micellar nanoparticles technology. |
Management
Shiro Akinaga, Ph.D.
President and CEO
| Apr. 1981 | Joined Kyowa Hakko Kogyo Co., Ltd. (currently Kyowa Kirin Co., Ltd.) |
|---|---|
| Apr. 1994 | Senior Researcher at pharmaceutical research center of Kyowa Hakko |
| 2001年04月 | Therapeutic Area Manager of oncology group at Drug Discovery Research Division of Kyowa Hakko |
| Apr. 2006 | Served as Director of International Development Department and Director of Clinical Development I Department, R&D Division of Kyowa Hakko |
| Oct. 2008 | Director, Clinical Development I Department, Development Division of Kyowa Hakko Kirin Co., Ltd. (currently Kyowa Kirin Co., Ltd.) |
| Mar. 2011 | Executive Officer (International Development) of Kyowa Hakko Kirin |
| Mar. 2013 | Fellow of Kyowa Hakko Kirin |
| Mar. 2017 | Director and CSO of AccuRna, Inc. |
| Nov. 2018 | Chairman of the board, CEO of AccuRna, Inc. |
| Jun. 2020 | Director of the Company |
| Sep. 2020 | Managing Director of R&D Division & CSO of the Company |
| Sep. 2022 | Representative Director and President of PrimRNA, Inc. (current) |
| Dec. 2022 | President and CEO, Managing Director of R&D Division & CSO of the Company |
| Oct. 2023 | President and CEO (current) |
Atsushi Matsumura
Board of Director
| Apr. 1986 | Joined Nomura Securities, Co., Ltd |
|---|---|
| Jan. 2008 | Representative Director of Quiet Partners Inc. |
| Sep. 2010 | President of Whiz Partners Inc. |
| Mar. 2012 | Director of the Company |
| Mar. 2017 | Director of ALBERT Inc. |
| Dec. 2019 | Chairman of the board of AXEL MARK INC. |
| Apr. 2020 | Chairman of the board of Axcelead, Inc. (current) |
| May 2020 | President and CEO of Whiz Partners Inc. (current) |
| Mar. 2021 | Director of AXEL MARK INC. (current) |
| Jun. 2021 | Director of the Company | Jan. 2023 | Chairman and Director of the Company (current) |
Koji Fujimoto
Managing Director of Corporate Division
| Apr. 1996 | Joined Nissan Construction Co., Ltd. (currently Rinkai Nissan Construction Co., Ltd.) |
|---|---|
| Nov. 2002 | Joined the Company |
| Jul. 2005 | Manager of General Affairs and HR Section, Administration Department of the Company |
| May 2015 | Deputy Director of Administration Department of the Company |
| Apr. 2017 | Director of General Affairs and HR Department of the Company |
| Dec. 2019 | Managing Director of Corporate Division |
| Jun. 2020 | Managing Director of Corporate Department of the Company (current) |
Teruo Okano, Ph.D.
Board of Director
| Jan. 1994 | Professor at Institute of Biomedical Engineering, Tokyo Women’s Medical University Affiliate Professor at Department of Pharmaceutics and Pharmaceutical Chemistry, University of Utah (U.S.) (current) |
|---|---|
| Jun. 1996 | Director of the Company (current) |
| Apr. 2001 | Director and Professor at Institute of Advanced Biomedical Engineering and Science, Tokyo Women’s Medical University |
| May 2001 | Director of CellSeed Inc. |
| Apr. 2014 | Professor Emeritus (current) and Professor by Special Appointment at Tokyo Women’s Medical University |
| Sep. 2016 | Director of Cell Sheet Tissue Engineering Center, Department of Pharmaceutics and Pharmaceutical Chemistry, University of Utah (U.S.) (current) |
| Apr. 2020 | Director of Institute of Advanced BioMedical Engineering and Science, Tokyo Women’s Medical University |
| Apr. 2022 | Consultant by Special Appointment at the Institute of Advanced Biomedical Engineering and Science, Tokyo Women’s Medical University (current) |
Kazunori Kataoka, Ph.D.
Board of Director
| Apr. 1979 | Served as assistant, lecturer and Assistant Professor at Institute of Biomedical Engineering, Tokyo Women’s Medical University |
|---|---|
| Apr. 1989 | Served as Assistant Professor and Professor at Faculty of Industrial Science and Technology, Tokyo University of Science |
| Apr. 1998 | Professor at School of Engineering, the University of Tokyo |
| Jul. 2004 | Professor at Graduate School of Medicine, the University of Tokyo (concurrent) |
| Jul. 2015 | Director General of Innovation Center of NanoMedicine (current) |
| Apr. 2016 | Professor by Special Appointment at the University of Tokyo |
| Jun. 2016 | Professor Emeritus of the University of Tokyo (current) |
| Jul. 2016 | Vice-Director General at Kawasaki Institute of Industry Promotion (current) |
| Jun. 2020 | Director of Nissan Chemical Corporation (current) Director of the Company (current) |
Satoru Iino
Board of Director
| Apr. 1989 | Joined Hitachi, Ltd. |
|---|---|
| Mar. 2020 | Joined CSK Venture Capital Co., Ltd. |
| Feb. 2004 | Director of CSK Venture Capital |
| Sep. 2010 | Executive Officer of Whiz Partners Inc. |
| Mar. 2012 | Director of the Company |
| Apr. 2013 | Managing Director of Investment Management Department of Whiz Partners Inc. |
| Jun. 2013 | Director of Advanced Media, Inc. |
| Mar. 2015 | Managing Director and CIO of Fund Business of Whiz Partners Inc. |
| Mar. 2017 | Director of ALBERT Inc. |
| Dec. 2019 | Director of AXEL MARK INC. Director of CRI Middleware Co., Ltd. (current) |
| Apr. 2020 | Director of the board of Axcelead, Inc. (current) |
| Feb. 2021 | President and Co-CEO of ARCALIS, Inc. |
| Jun. 2021 | Director of the Company (current) Director, COO and Co-CIO of Whiz Partners Inc. (current) |
| Jul. 2022 | Chairman of IPGaia, Inc. (current) |
| Apr. 2023 | Chairman of AXEL MARK INC. (current) |
| May 2023 | Chairman of ARCALIS, Inc. (current) |
Yuki Hasegawa
Board of Director
| Jan. 2007 | Researcher at RIKEN Genome Sciences Research Complex |
|---|---|
| Apr. 2008 | Postdoctoral Fellow at RIKEN Omics Science Center |
| Apr. 2010 | Research Scientist at RIKEN Omics Science Center |
| Apr. 2013 | Deputy Team Leader at RIKEN Center for Life Science Technologies |
| Sep. 2014 | Researcher at Asahi Kasei Corp. |
| Jul. 2016 | Associate Director of Whiz Partners Inc. |
| Apr. 2019 | Director of Whiz Partners Inc. |
| May 2021 | Head of Healthcare Investment at Whiz Partners Inc. (current) |
| Jun. 2021 | Director of the Company (current) |
| Oct. 2021 | Director of IPGaia, Inc. (current) |
Tetsuhito Matsuyama
Auditors
| Apr. 1986 | Joined Mitsubishi Corporation |
|---|---|
| Sep. 2002 | President of Nanotech Partners Inc. |
| May 2003 | Served as Director, COO and CFO, and President & CEO of Medical ProteoScope Co., Ltd. |
| Oct. 2007 | Executive Officer of CSK Institute for Sustainability, Ltd. |
| May 2010 | Served as, among others, General Manager of Business Development Division, Executive Officer and COO of Overseas Business Group of Lawson Inc. |
| Nov. 2012 | Served as, among others, consultant and Director of Nitto Boseki Co., Ltd. and Senior Managing Director of Nittobo Medical Co., Ltd. |
| Dec. 2014 | Advisor to the Company |
| Jun. 2015 | Director, CFO and Head of CEO Office of the Company |
| Jun. 2018 | Director of Entrust Inc. (current) |
| Nov. 2019 | President & CEO of the Company |
| Jan. 2023 | Vice Chairman and Director of the Company (current) |
| Jun. 2023 | Auditors to the Company (current) |
Takashi Matsuo
Outside Auditors
| Apr. 1984 | Joined YAMAZEN CORPORATION |
|---|---|
| Apr. 1998 | General Manager of Corporate Planning Department of AUTOBACS SEVEN Co., Ltd. |
| Jun. 2002 | Director and Executive Officer in charge of Corporate Planning, Finance & Accounting, PR and IR and General Manager of Corporate Planning Management Office of AUTOBACS SEVEN Co., Ltd. |
| Jun. 2004 | Director and Officer in charge of Corporate Strategy Promotion and General Manager of Corporate Planning Management Office of AUTOBACS SEVEN Co., Ltd. |
| Apr. 2006 | Director and CSO and Head of Corporate Strategy Promotion of AUTOBACS SEVEN Co., Ltd. |
| May 2007 | Director and CSO, Head of Corporate Strategy Promotion and Co-COO and Head of Overseas Business Strategy Promotion of AUTOBACS SEVEN Co., Ltd. |
| Apr. 2010 | Representative Director and President of TAIYO Co., Ltd. |
| Apr. 2013 | Representative Director and President of AUTOBACS Nankai Ltd. |
| Apr. 2014 | Representative Director and President of AUTOBACS Fukuoka Ltd. |
| Apr. 2021 | Councilor of AUTOBACS Minami-Nihon Sales, Ltd. (current) |
| Jun. 2023 | Auditors to the Company (current) |
Seiichiro Wada
Outside Auditors
| Apr. 1986 | Joined Nomura Securities Co., Ltd. |
|---|---|
| Jul. 2008 | Head of Real Estates Investment Business Department of Nomura Securities Co., Ltd. |
| Apr. 2013 | Head of Overseas Sales Department of Nomura Real Estate Asset Management Co., Ltd. |
| Oct. 2014 | Managing Director of Nomura Real Estate Asset Management Co., Ltd. |
| Apr. 2015 | Executive Managing Director of Nomura Real Estate Asset Management Co., Ltd. |
| Apr. 2017 | Audit and supervisory board member of Nomura Real Estate Asset Management Co., Ltd. (current) |
| Jun. 2023 | Auditors to the Company (current) |