School of Medicine
Research Activities
JMU was established primarily for the purpose of developing general practitioners to engage in community medicine. JMU promotes continuous reform to become a more attractive and efficient organization that contributes to the advancement of medical care. While upgrading the level of medical services at Jichi Medical University Hospital, we also endeavor to invigorate research activities at the base of the university, and establish a system that facilitates exchange among human resources, especially young researchers. We believe that JMU is able to attract excellent faculty members and medical students by promoting research activities with more global perspectives based on our experience in the 21st Century COE Program leveraging cooperation with our alumni all across Japan, thereby further enhancing the value of existence of JMU.
In addition to our Doctoral Program, the Master’s Program was established in the Graduate School of Medicine in 2003, as an educational and research platform that guides students with diverse specialized backgrounds to medicine. In 2006, JMU started a graduate program for working professionals, so that young physicians working in the region would be able to receive graduate-level education without leaving the community. In 2010, those working for JMU became eligible to enroll in the graduate program for working professionals, and a new system was introduced for full-time faculty members at graduate schools of basic medicine. JNU has also been actively collaborating with other research institutions and graduate schools. The Center for Molecular Medicine, which promotes translational research aimed at clinical applications, has become a research core at JMU, with support from the High- tech Research Center (HRC) Project, followed by the Private University Strategic Research Infrastructure Formation Support Project, and the Private University Research Branding Project, under the auspices of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT). This research organization has a flexible system to efficiently promote research that meets the demands of the times, and has also introduced a fixed term employment system. For international exchange, an international symposium has been held every year, except in 2020 and 2021, when the symposium was suspended to prevent the spread of COVID-19. The Center for Development of Advanced Medical Technology is certified as a Joint Usage/ Research Center by MEXT. The Center for Experimental Medicine was renovated in 2018.
Clinical research has become more important than ever before. To promote proper clinical research, the Support Center for Clinical Investigation was established in 2013 under the direct control of the University President. The Data Science Center was established in 2017 for the management and analysis of large-scale data. The Center for Gene Therapy Research and the Open Innovation Center for large joint research were established in 2018. The Center for Gene Therapy Research has served as a base for regenerative medicine, cell therapy, and gene therapy of the Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development (AMED) since 2023. JMU also operates a certification system for university-based ventures with an aim to return the cutting-edge medical technologies developed at the university to society.
As a unique institution from a global perspective, JMU aims to take a further leap in research activities.