The 5th Short Course of the Japanese Society for the Study of Xenobiotics

Toshiya Moriwaki
（Discovery Research Center, Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited）
Chairperson of the 5th Short Course Executive Committee

The 5th Short Course is to be held in Tokyo University’s Tetsumon Hall prior to the 25th The Japanese Society for the Study of Xenobiotics Workshop (May 12 and 13, 2011).
The theme for the course has been established as ‘The Front Lines for Corporate Research on Induction and Metabolism using Cells’. As mentioned above, this is the 5th short course event, and it has been established as a venue in which corporate researchers, in particular, can hold discussions prior to the workshop. Efforts have been made to return to the basic stance of the initial workshop, with the theme and speakers being selected in consideration of the following initiatives:
1. Fill it with content that, topically, is related to the workshop;
2. Allow for virtually instantaneous acquisition of everything from basic knowledge to the latest information in a certain field of research; and
3. Focus on technical aspects that can be implemented with immediacy particularly by corporate researchers.
Generally, pharmacokinetics represents a discipline that studies how a living organism affects xenobiotics. Pharmacology and toxicology, on the other hand, are disciplines that study how xenobiotics have an effect on a living organism.  From this perspective, therefore, enzyme induction can be considered a form of toxicity. Similarly, research or study that analyzes metabolites contains a great deal of toxicological significance, i.e., in regard to reactive metabolites and metabolites specific to human beings. As such, the theme in this, our 5th short course, is linked to a key word in the workshop, being toxicity.
In order to allow for a general understanding of the theme at the outset of the course, there are plans in the works to have Dr. Yoshinari from Tohoku University provide a brief summary of the basics and latest research (including molecular mechanism) regarding the enzyme induction and metabolism that support corporate research.

Subsequently, the corporate researchers will provide those in attendance with practical topics. As such, four young researchers working on the corporate front lines have been selected as speakers representing the corporate sector. The speakers are expected to provide all with information only available via this event, including the newest technologies used in criteria establishing methods and culture methods, efforts in corporate research in the CYP/non-CYP enzymes and transporter fields, and the tricks of the trade in benchside experiment techniques.

As you can see, our 5th short course comprises a program that will allow for rapid coverage of everything from the basics to the state-of-the-art in both academia and corporate research, providing a menu that can be enjoyed by young and experienced researchers, alike. We have also scheduled a round-table discussion, the effective key attraction of our short courses, so would be delighted to have the normally felt concerns put forth to our speaking scientists to allow for a meaningful short course forged by both the speakers and participants.