ABOUT JKiC

JSR-Keio University Medical and Chemical Innovation Center (JKiC)

JSR was founded in 1957 to manufacture and distribute synthetic rubber to the Japanese tire industry, continuously exploring and entering new spaces in line with the company’s mission of utilizing “Materials Innovation.” The company has recently shifted its focus to the life sciences, aiming to contribute more than ever to society, people, and the environment by bringing innovation to our industry.

In 1917, Dr. Shibasaburo Kitasato was appointed as the first dean of the Keio University School of Medicine. Over its storied history, the school has continued to be a leader of medicine in Japan by combining cutting-edge research with highly advanced medical care. Keio continues to pursue the ideal that basic medical research and clinical medicine go hand in hand with the pursuit of medical science as we face medical challenges today.

JSR and Keio University, with their different backgrounds, now join forces for unprecedented chemistry to drive disruptive innovation. With these lofty goals in mind, Keio University and JSR Group opened the joint research facility JSR-Keio University Medical and Chemical Innovation Center (JKiC) in October 2017. Right here in a research building at Keio University Hospital, teams of doctors and researchers from Keio and JSR are committed to the development of new diagnostic and therapeutic technologies based on entirely new concepts.