Feb 13, 2025
Astellas has concluded a cross-appointment agreement with Chiba University (President: Koutaro Yokote) to welcome Professor Takeshi Murata, who leads the university’s Membrane Protein Research Center (website in Japanese), to serve as a Principal Investigator (PI) at Astellas.
Under the terms of the agreement, Astellas will develop a novel membrane protein-targeted drug discovery platform that combines cryo-electron microscopy structural analysis with in-house AI-powered drug design solutions. This initiative aims to tackle the challenges of drug discovery targeting membrane proteins, including the low stability of membrane proteins, which makes them difficult to handle. During the cross-appointment period, Professor Murata will engage in this project at Astellas in addition to his professorship at Chiba University, fully utilizing his expertise in this area.
Membrane proteins account for approximately 30% of all proteins encoded in the genome and play critical roles in cellular functions such as signal transduction and bioenergy production. Approximately 60% of commercially available drugs target membrane proteins, highlighting their importance as therapeutic targets in drug discovery.
Professor Murata is the third PI to join Astellas while continuing his role as an academic faculty member. We look forward to all our PIs contributing to our VISION of turning innovative science into VALUE for patients.