Itch (or pruritus) is defined as an unpleasant sensation with the urge to scratch, which is believed to be a biological self-defense reaction to external assault or a physiological warning of abnormality inside the body. Moreover, continuous itch stimuli could modify the itch sensation, leading to treatment resistance and chronicity. Itch resistance to antihistamines, which are traditional antipruritic medicines, is an example of intractable itch.
Intractable itch causes sleep disturbance and psychological stress (depression, anxiety, and even suicidal feelings), which lead to poor performance in school or at work and reduce the quality of life (QOL). Such reduction of QOL diminishes motivation to pursue an industrious life and social activities, affecting socioeconomic activity.
In Europe and the USA, based on this background, several itch research centers were established and began to focus on revealing the mechanism of intractable itch, aiming for its prevention and treatment.
The Institute for Environmental and Gender-Specific Medicine, Juntendo University Graduate School of Medicine (the founding director; CEO Hideoki Ogawa, M.D., Ph.D.), was founded in 2002, supported by a grant of High-Tech Research Center Project for Private Universities: matching fund subsidy from the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) of Japan.
Currently, Prof. Kenji Takamori (M.D., Ph.D.), a director of Institute for Environmental and Gender Specific Medicine in Juntendo University, has been working on the themes, 1) elucidation of pathogenic mechanisms of allergic diseases, autoimmune diseases and cancer, in which environmental and genetic factors are intricately intertwined, and 2) improvement of QOL in patients with those diseases.
Since 2013, Prof. Takamori and collaborators have been focusing on intractable itch helped by Strategic Research Foundation Grant-aided Project for Private Universities from MEXT (Grant number S1311011). So far, we have discovered some neural cells or mediators involved in the pathogenic process of diseases with intractable itch, which should be targets for therapeutic strategies.
To promote continued research in this field beyond the above-mentioned support, we established Juntendo Itch Research Center (JIRC) on the 1st of August, 2019, which is a center associated with Juntendo University Graduate School of Medicine, Institute for Environmental and Gender-Specific Medicine.
In this research center, building on the basis of our previous findings, we are aiming to elucidate the molecular and cellular basis of intractable itch and develop medical care including an evaluation system, while supporting young researchers and graduate students in both basic science and clinical fields. This project expects to establish a framework of translational research to develop new treatments for intractable itch, improving QOL and socioeconomic activity.
Itch (or pruritus) is an unpleasant sensation that evokes the desire to scratch. Itch is believed to signal danger from various environmental factors or physiological abnormalities. Clinically, intractable itch is a burdensome symptom, frequently accompanying a variety of inflammatory skin conditions and systemic diseases, that decreases QOL.
In some cases, the impact on QOL by severe itch is worse than that by pain. In addition, decline in QOL leads to socioeconomic loss due to reduced productivity.
Development of antipruritic treatments requires an understanding of the fundamental mechanisms of itch. Success in these pursuits will bring “restoration of QOL” and “recovery of socioeconomic loss”.
Juntendo Itch Research Center (JIRC)
Director | Kenji Takamori, M.D., Ph.D. ( Director/Specially Appointed Professor, Institute for Environmental and Gender-Specific Medicine ) |
Vice Director/Core leader ( Neuroscience group ) |
Mitsutoshi Tominaga, Ph.D. ( Associate Professor, Institute for Environmental and Gender-Specific Medicine ) |
Core leader ( Dermatological science group ) |
Yayoi Kamata, Ph.D. ( Associate Professor, Institute for Environmental and Gender-Specific Medicine ) |
Core leader ( Immunological science group ) |
Catharina Sagita Moniaga, M.D., Ph.D. ( Cooperative researcher, Institute for Environmental and Gender-Specific Medicine ) |
Secretariat | Institute for Environmental and Gender-Specific Medicine |
Eriko Komiya, Ph.D. | Assistant Professor, Institute for Environmental and Gender-Specific Medicine ( Keywords: Neuroscience, psoriasis, alloknesis ) |
Sumika Toyama, Ph.D. | Assistant Professor, Institute for Environmental and Gender-Specific Medicine ( Keywords: Immunology, eosinophils, iPS cells ) |
Kotaro Honda, Ph.D. | Adjunct Assistant Professor, Institute for Environmental and Gender-Specific Medicine ( Keywords: Neuroscience, electrophysiology ) |
Qiaofeng Zhao, M.D., Ph.D. | Postdoctoral Fellow, Institute for Environmental and Gender-Specific Medicine ( Keywords: Dermatology, stress, Aging ) |
Tomohiro Tobita, Ph.D. | Postdoctoral Fellow, Institute for Environmental and Gender-Specific Medicine ( Keywords: Genetic engineering, genome editing, Sensitization ) |
Go Kojima, M.D. | Graduate student (Doctor’s course), Institute for Environment and Gender-Specific Medicine ( Keywords: Dermatology ) |
Yui Toyosawa, M.D. | Graduate student (Doctor’s course), Institute for Environment and Gender-Specific Medicine ( Keywords: Dermatology ) |
Masafumi Yokota | Graduate student (Doctor’s course), Institute for Environment and Gender-Specific Medicine ( Keywords: Dermatology ) |
Masaru Uto, M.D. | Graduate student (Doctor’s course), Institute for Environment and Gender-Specific Medicine ( Keywords: Dermatology ) |
Yuki Tanaka, M.D. | Graduate student (Doctor’s course), Institute for
Environment and Gender-Specific Medicine ( Keywords: Dermatology ) |
Zuo Ying, M.D. | Graduate student (Doctor’s course), Institute for
Environment and Gender-Specific Medicine ( Keywords: Dermatology, Stress ) |
Utako Kimura, M.D., Ph.D. | Adjunct Assistant Professor, Department of Dermatology, Juntendo University Hospital ( Keywords: Dermatology, laser therapy ) |
Shiho Iwamoto, M.D. | Adjunct Assistant Professor, Department of Gastroenterology, Juntendo University Hospital ( Keywords: Gastroenterology, inflammatory bowel disease ) |
Yuko Kurosaki, M.D. | Assistant Professor, Department of Dermatology, Juntendo University Urayasu Hospital ( Keywords: Dermatology, atopic dermatitis, phototherapy ) |
Munehiro Tsurumachi, M.D. | Adjunct Assistant Professor, Department of Dermatology, Juntendo University Hospital
( Keywords: Dermatology, atopic dermatitis, aged skin ) |
Rui Katoh, M.D. | Assistant Professor, Department of Dermatology, Juntendo University Urayasu Hospital
( Keywords: Dermatology, molecular target drug ) |
Mayu Kawamura, M.D. | Assistant Professor, Department of Dermatology, Juntendo University Urayasu Hospital
( Keywords: Dermatology, chronic itch ) |
Ryoma Kishi, M.D. | Assistant Professor, Department of Dermatology, Juntendo University Urayasu Hospital
( Keywords: Dermatology, atopic dermatitis, biologics ) |
Atsuko Kamo, Ph.D. | Associate Professor, Juntendo University School of Health Care and Nursing ( Keywords: Dermatology, Nursing, dry skin ) |
Takehiko Yokomizo, M.D., Ph.D. | Prof. Dept. of Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry |
Takashi Sakurai, M.D., Ph.D. | Prof. Dept. of Cellular and Molecular Pharmacology |
Chikao Morimoto, M.D., Ph.D. | Specially Appointed Prof. Dept. of Therapy Development and Innovation for Immune disorders and Cancers |
Nobuyuki Ebihara, M.D., Ph.D. | Prof. Department of Ophthalmology Vice Director, Institute for Environmental and Gender-Specific Medicine |
Yasushi Suga, M.D., Ph.D. | Prof. Dept. of Dermatology and Allergology |
Koichiro Ichimura, M.D., Ph.D. | Prof. Department of Anatomy and Life Structure |
Hiroo Wada, M.D., Ph.D. | Prof. Department of Public Health |
Francois Niyonsaba, M.D., Ph.D. | Prof. Juntendo University Faculty of International Liberal Arts Prof. Atopy Research Center |
Toshiro Takai, Ph.D. | Associate Prof. Atopy Research Center |
Ryusuke Kakigi, M.D., Ph.D. | Prof. Dept. of Sensory-Motor Integration, National Institute for Physiological Sciences |
Makoto Tsuda, Ph.D. | Prof. Dept. of Life Innovation, Grad. Sch. of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Kyushu University |
Makoto Tominaga, M.D., Ph.D. | Prof. Div. of Cell Signaling, National Institute for Physiological Sciences |
Hiroshi Matsuda, D.V.M., Ph.D. | Prof. Div. of Animal Life Science, Inst. of Agriculture, Tokyo Univ. of Agriculture and Technology |
Yoshio Hirabayashi, Ph.D. | Senior Team Leader. Lab. for Molecular Membrane Neuroscience, RIKEN Brain Science Institute |
Kenji Izuhara, M.D., Ph.D. | Prof. Div. of Medical Biochemistry, Dept. of Biomolecular Sciences, Saga Medical School |
Yasuyuki Igarashi, Ph.D. | Emeritus Prof. Dept. of Biomembrane and Biofunctional Chemistry, Grad. Sch. of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Hokkaido University |
Yoshinoiri Fukui, M.D., Ph.D. | Prof. Dept. of Immunobiology and Neuroscience Medical Institute of Bioregulation, Kyushu University |
Yozo Ishiuji, M.D., Ph.D. | Department of Dermatology, The Jikei University School of Medicine |
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