Research by Associate Professor Seiji Nakagame, Department of Applied Bioscience, has been selected for the “comprehensive startup support program by Bio-oriented technology Research Advancement Institution, BRAIN”.
The research subject by Associate Professor Seiji Nakagame, Department of Applied Bioscience, has been selected as a new proposal for the comprehensive startup support program* of National Agriculture and Food Research Organization, Bio-oriented technology research advancement institution, BRAIN.
Implementing The Research Into Real Society
This time, Associate Professor Nakagame applied to this program, phase 0, in order to implement the research into society to produce terephthalic acid, raw material for PET bottles, by microorganism utilizing unused biomass resources such as forest residues and inedible parts of agricultural crops as materials. The research content and future potential of the project were highly rated accepted.
Biomass Resources
The implementation of this research into society enables terephthalic acid to be produced with bio-technology using biomass resources rather than with production by chemical process using fossil materials as we do now. The effective use of biomass resources is expected to bring about revitalization to rural areas and to reduce carbon dioxide emissions, which is a cause for global warming, during production of terephthalic acid. As a result, the implementation of this research into society will create significant social benefits.
Please look forward to the future research of Associate Professor Nakagame.
Comprehensive Startup Program
This program supports the creation of service entities, research for new technology and operationalization that contribute to the creation of new businesses in the agriculture, forestry, fisheries, and food sectors, as well as the development and commercialization of new technologies. The program supports the creation of business seeds through emergent research (Phase 0) and the operationalization of developed technologies (Phases 1 to 3) in a step-by-step manner, with Phase 0 targeting research aimed at creating technology seeds that will lead to disruptive innovation at the startup conception stage.（(Excerpted and modified from the FY2021 application guidelines for this program)）
Reference: Home Page for Comprehensive Startup Support Program
https://www.naro.go.jp/laboratory/brain/startup/news/2021/144897.html