Astellas Pharma Inc., and Mitsui Fudosan Co., Ltd., will establish a TME imaging and interactive research for innovation (TMEiLab) that is scheduled to open in Oct. 2023.

The two companies will collaborate to maximize the benefits of the Kashiwa-no-ha area, which is located close to leading Japanese cutting-edge medical facilities and academia, including National Cancer Center Japan, with the aim of gaining new insights about the tumor microenvironment, a challenge in refractory cancer, and generating innovations based on the knowledge gained.

At TME iLab, the company aims to generate innovation through discussion between internal and external researchers, including Akihiro Ohashi, a division head of Collaboration Research and Development at Exploratory Oncology Research & Clinical Trial Center (EPOC), National Cancer Center, who is engaged in research as a Principal Investigator (PI) at Astellas under the cross-appointment system.

Cutting-edge spatial information analyzers and machine learning technologies, such as the spatial molecular imager “CosMx SMI”, the system for spatial omics analysis “Xenium” and the multifluorescent tissue profiler “Orion”, of the US companies NanoString, 10x Genomics and RareCyte respectively, will be made available to researchers at the facility.

Mitsui Fudosan will provide the “Mitsui Link Lab Open Innovation Support Program*2” to create a mechanism to attract many researchers to TME iLab and provide research and business support and communication/networking support.

In a statement, the company said that in order to continue to discover innovative drugs, including anticancer drugs, it is essential to bring together cutting-edge science in multiple fields and combine it in research and development. Using these cutting-edge facilities, the company aims to promote “defining characteristics of the tumor microenvironment in clinical specimens,” “selecting biomarkers for effective therapies from clinical data,” and “identification of candidate target molecules that will become new therapeutic targets.”

“We are pleased to reach an agreement with Mitsui Fudosan. In our new hub of open innovation, we are seeking a wide range of partners with innovative expertise and technologies in tumor microenvironment research,” said Yoshitsugu Shitaka, chief scientific officer, Astellas. “By combining Astellas’ capabilities in drug discovery with the knowledge of partners, including academia and venture companies, we expect to accelerate anticancer drug research and create innovative drugs. Through these activities, we will also contribute to further growth of the ecosystem in Kashiwa-no-ha Smart City.”

“We sincerely welcome Astellas to establish a hub in Kashiwa-no-ha. In the Kashiwa-no-ha area, a smart city is being built through public-private-academic collaboration, and in the life science area, an ecosystem that generates innovation is being created through the formation of communities to support both cross-collaboration between academia and industry on medical and healthcare-related initiatives and the social implementation of research and development seeds,” said Kazunori Yamashita, executive managing officer, general manager, Mitsui Fudosan. “In the life science area as well, the creation of an ecosystem that fosters innovation is progressing. We, too, will contribute to the development of TME iLab and industrial growth, including the creation of innovative drugs, by working to create a place for promoting innovation and building a community.”