°®¶¹´«Ã½

°®¶¹´«Ã½. (Headquarters: Tokyo, CEO: Haruo Naito, “Eisai”) announced today that Wellness Open Living Labs. LLC (Headquarters: Osaka, CEO: Takao Kodama, “WOLL”), co-founded by Eisai, and Osaka City University (President: Tetsuo Arakawa) have concluded a basic collaboration agreement aimed at solving health science-related problems, such as dementia, and extending healthy life expectancy. Based on this agreement, WOLL and Osaka City University will collect and analyze health data, cultivate human resources, such as researchers involved in solving health problems, advance the development of the latest cutting-edge technology and academic research related to health problems, such as the dementia issue in Japan, and verify and commercialize solutions.

WOLL is a limited liability company, funded by 15 entities which support its objectives. Eisai, Osaka City University Alumni Association Chairman & former University President Takao Kodama, and NTT DATA KANSAI Corporation (Headquarters: Osaka, President and Chief Executive Officer: Yoshiharu Kouno) have been appointed as functional managers. Meanwhile, Osaka City University, under its slogan of “a glocal hub of wisdom and wellness, full of smiles”, works to strengthen industry-academia-government collaboration and regional contribution activities in the field of health sciences, and based on a “basic collaboration agreement relating to extending healthy life expectancy” concluded with Osaka City in February, performs a “think-tank” function for the purpose of extending healthy life expectancy in Osaka City.

Leveraging the experience gained in developing / marketing in the field of dementia treatments, Eisai has obtained the cooperation of various stakeholders, including local governments, healthcare professionals and care workers, and is working to create communities where people with dementia live with peace of mind. WOLL is the first limited liability company co-established by Eisai for the purpose of developing and providing solutions, and aims to externalize medical and care problems rooted in communities, and to investigate / develop / verify solutions in order to fulfill true needs.

Eisai will continue to provide various solutions, as it seeks to make contributions to addressing the diverse needs of, as well as increasing the benefits provided to, patients and their families.

WOLL is limited liability company, with Osaka City University Alumni Association Chairman & former University President Takao Kodama serving as representative partner. Dr. Kodama, Eisai, and the NTT DATA KANSAI Corporation have been appointed as functional managers. In addition, ASICS Corporation, E-DESIGN Co., LTD., ONO PHARMACEUTICAL CO., LTD., CURRENT DYNAMICS Inc., SignalTalk Inc., Shinwa Syoji Co., Ltd., Daicel Corporation, Takazono Corporation, TSUKAKI CO., LTD., NIPRO CORPORATION, HANWA Co., Ltd., and Mandom Corporation, a total of 12 companies, support the goals of WOLL and have also contributed funding.
WOLL was founded in order to solve health problems, such as dementia, and extend healthy life expectancy by pioneering new fields of research, developing and providing products and services, promoting health and regional / industry revitalization based on data utilization, and contributing to cultivation of human resources. Furthermore, by solving problems in the field of health sciences through the creation of knowledge, development, verification, and consultations, WOLL seeks to fulfill its corporate philosophy of collaboration between universities, companies, local governments, and citizens to co-create products, services, and administrative policies.

Osaka City University, which celebrated the 130th anniversary of its founding in 2010, was Japan's first municipal university. A public university currently boasting one of highest numbers of students / faculties in Japan, it is also the only comprehensive university in Osaka City. Upon the opening of its predecessor organization, the Osaka University of Commerce, the mayor of Osaka at the time, Hajime Seki, declared that, “The new university should not be an imitation of the national universities; it should serve the needs of the citizens; conduct original research on the culture, economy, and society of the city of Osaka and communicate the results to the people of the city.” His vision is still honored to this day.
In 2008, Professor Emeritus Yoichiro Nambu, who founded the Theoretical Physics Study Group in Osaka City University's Department of Science and Engineering, was awarded a Nobel Prize for physics. In 2012, Professor Shinya Yamanaka, who studied at Osaka City University's Faculty of Medicine, was awarded a Nobel Prize for physics/medicine for his research on iPS cells. Both men impacted the world with their contributions.
Upon Tetsuo Arakawa assuming the office of university president, Osaka City University took up the slogan of “a glocal hub of wisdom and wellness, full of smiles”, and is working to become a focal point for a wide range of knowledge, possible through its eight faculties and ten graduate courses, and to be a driving force for creating a strong Osaka.