Boston, Massachusetts (PressExposure) January 13, 2010 -- Kowa Company, Ltd. of Nagoya, Japan (Kowa) and Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH) announced today the opening of The Center for Interdisciplinary Cardiovascular Sciences (CICS). This center is one where scientists from a Japanese-based drug company and a Harvard-affiliated hospital will work side by side to promote discovery and advancement in cardiovascular research. Dedication and opening ceremonies took place December 23, 2009, at CICS in the Center for Life Science, 3 Blackfan Street in the Longwood Medical Area of Boston.
Kowa and BWH established a collaboration research agreement in July 2009 that enables the two institutions to focus on projects such as cardiometabolic diseases including atherosclerosis metabolic syndrome, and diabetes. Center activities will include basic research on the genesis of such diseases as well as translational research oriented toward the identification of new drug candidates. "We are pleased that Kowa established this center, one founded with a respect for the tenets of our academic mission", said Barbara Bierer, M.D., Senior Vice-President of Research at Brigham and Women's Hospital. "With direction from our guiding principles, this center will encourage collaboration among researchers across the globe to challenge science and advance medicine, as we try to improve the lives of people around the world."
The Center is directed by Masanori Aikawa, M.D., Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Medicine at BWH and Harvard Medical School. "As a US-based vascular biologist trained in Japan, I wish to contribute to promoting scientific exchanges between these two countries. This international collaboration represents an exciting opportunity to promote a better understanding of the mechanisms of cardiovascular disorders that affect millions of people around the world." He continued, "Working together we can help speed the discovery of new disease targets and therapeutic strategies." Dr. Aikawa, is a faculty member of the BWH Cardiovascular Division, Department of Medicine under the direction of Peter Libby, M.D., Ph.D., an internationally known leader in the fields of atherosclerosis and cardiovascular diseases.
The 24,000-plus square foot research facility is located on the 17th floor of the Center for Life Science Boston. This space has been leased from the BioMed Realty Trust, Inc. by Kowa's US affiliate, La Esperanza Delaware Corp. This fully-equipped laboratory and office facility is centrally located in the Longwood Medical Area in the heart of Boston's medical and research community.
Mr. Yoshihiro Miwa, President and CEO of Kowa, said "We hope that the research collaboration with BWH, one of the most world-renowned medical research institutions, will strengthen our company's contributions to global health, particularly in the treatment of cardiovascular diseases and expect that the opening of CICS will make it possible for us to work more closely with advanced medical academic networks."