Frontier Research Program on MolecularDestruction and Reconstruction ofTooth and BoneMasaki Noda,M.D.,Ph.D.Program LeaderProfessorDepartment of Molecular PharmacologyMedical Research InstituteTokyo Medical and Dental University

　　 Our COE program for the frontier research on tooth and bone has two major directions.Oneis,of course,to promote advanced research in the field of hard tissue diseases.As the agedpopulation has been soaring in Japan as well as other developed countries in this modern world,musculoskeletal system‐ related diseases have been becoming to be a major problem due to thecritical impairment in QOL and enormous medical cost.Weakness of the muscle,loss of bonemass and loss of tooth significantly reduce human resources in our society.Furthermore,quiterapid increase in aged population has caused increase in patients with cancers,especially thosemetastasized to bone.The common issue of these diseases is the destruction of the hard tissue.　　　 This COE team has been organized to tackle such problems by coordinated efforts of multi‐disciplinary groups of investigators including bone biologists,molecular biologists,developmentalbiologists,genome scientists,biochemists,restorative dentists,periodontologists,maxillofacialsurgeons,rheumatologists,nano‐ science specialists and orthopedic surgeons.Collaborativeinvestigation by the team members will lead to the identification of molecular cascades of eventsoperating during the destruction of tooth and bone.We will utilized the information obtainedbased on the studies of such molecular mechanisms to reconstruct and to finally resume thefunction of bone and tooth.Our research will have a special emphasis on genome medicine andnano‐ science in the field of tooth and bonediseases.　　　 Second point of our program is to raise young excellent researchers in the field of bone andteeth studies.Our COE program has launched a core research team, which consists of world- topclass young investigators.These talented young scientists have established state-of-the-artresearch in the bone field. They will conduct their studies and teach selected sets of students as chaperon research professors. Importantly, most of these young scientists have been recruited from the institutes outside of our university.The brain storm discussion and collaboration among these scientists will give a great opportunityto obtain novel insights into the medical and dental problems.The interaction will be established through the weekly meeting of the COE members.We will expand the network of international investigators in this field,which we have already generated with the leading scientists in theworld. Such web of brains would be the key for this young team seeking for the discovery ofmolecules and mechanisms operating underlying the physiology and pathology of tooth and bonediseases.　　　　 Our COE program also includes special projects to concentrate ourselves on our training andeducation of the excellent students in our graduate school. This is designed to give the topselected students to have an opportunity to further open up their future through the intimateinterrelationship between them and with the core team of young scientists recruited asmentioned above.We call these selected students as Super Students since they are selected based

COE Program ProfileMasaki Noda,M.D.,Ph.D.

COE Program ProfileMasaki Noda,M.D.,Ph.D.

on the competition through the rating of their presentation and discussion in front of the COEteam members. We will identify and support the budding of the ability of the young researcherswho exhibit high possibility to grow.We will help develop their scientific carrier paths to bloomas independent investigators by training through in our nest of the COE program.To furthersupport early independency,we have designed special teaching discussion series and lecture series for the super students. Teaching discussion series will be conducted by multiple advisory professors during the presentataion of the research plan by each of the super student. Interanation teaching discussion series will be conducted by world-top class researchers invited every month to give opportunities to have individual discussion with each of the super students. In addition, we will start a new award system for the initiation of independencyof these young researchers and students.A limited number of training grants will be obtained on acompetitive base by the young core team scientists and super students.Through the process ofselection of grant proposals,we will train these young scientists and super students how toconstruct their thought to tackle the problems based on the current observations andexperimental data. We will communicate closely with super students through various training activities inour COE program to let them reach the goal of being excellent scientists who are capable ofgiving novel,insightful and unique thoughts. Development of tight and respectful relationshipbetween mentors and mentees through the research activities in our COE program is necessaryto establish a solid base of true research environment. As exemplified by the Gideon A. Rodan mentorship award constitued by the ASBMR, such relationship is reagared as an imporatant key for bone science. Our COE training program should be a place to raise both students and mentors. 　　　 On the initiation of this COE program,we should make every effort to create a novel and trulyinnovative graduate school education system in our university to be the best of all to provide thesociety a future generation of brilliant young physician scientists and researchers to fight for thehuman health problems.

Tokyo Medical and Dental University

Center of Excellence Program forFrontier Research on Molecular Destructionand Reconstruction of Tooth and Bone

Nano ScienceCenter Core

Genome ScienceCenter Core

Molecular Reconstruction of Bone and Tooth

Super Students

Core Professors（ 17 Departments ）

COE Research Professors（ 9 Chaperon Professors ）

Molecular Mechanism of Destruction

Bone &Tooth Medicine

TagamiÅFÅ@OpeÅ@Dent2003

SudaÅFÅ@JÅ@Endo2001

IshikawaClinExpImm2002

ShiinomiyaÅFJCI2000

Omura:AJOMS2003

NodaÅFPNAS 2002, JEM 2001

MiyasakaÅFNatureM1999

Clinical(8 Profs)

Research•Molecular mechanism of destruction and formation of toothand bone …Genome-based analyses

•Development of nano-science-based approach for the treatmentof tooth and bone diseases

ShibuyaÅFNature2002 Nature Cell Biol 2003

Morita:JCP2002Yanagishita:JBC2002

Basic (9 Profs)

AkiyoshiÅFÅ@Blood2002

OgawaÅFNature M1997HagiwaraÅFNatureBT2000

InazawaÅFCancRes2002

MunetaÅFArthrosc2000

KasugaiÅFEndo2001MikiÅFÅ@JBC2002

CancerRA

Research Professor ( Chaperon Professor)

New Core Research Center &Chaperon Professors

Tokyo Medical andDental University Research Professor

( Chaperon Professor)

Research Professor ( Chaperon Professor)

Research Professor ( Chaperon Professor)

Research Core

Brain Storm Discussions and Interactive Research

International TeachingDiscussion for Super Students