On January 19, the School of Pharmaceutical Sciences and the Graduate School of Medicine, Dentistry, and Pharmaceutical Sciences (Pharmaceutical Sciences) at Okayama University renewed the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for collaborative research with the ICMR-National Institute of Cholera and Enteric Diseases (ICMR-NICED: Indian Council of Medical Research, Department of Health Research, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare), represented by Dr. Shanta Dutta, Director of ICMR-NICED, and Dr. NASU Yasutomo, President of Okayama University.

The current MOU was originally signed in March 2014 and was automatically renewed in 2019 for another 5 years. The recent renewal extends the collaboration for the next five years. Okayama University has the Collaborative Research Center for Infectious Diseases in India (Kolkata, India), established in September 2007, with two researchers and one administrative staff stationed there. The research center and ICMR-NICED hold annual research seminars, including a joint seminar held online on December 4 this year, facilitating academic exchanges for promoting international collaborative research.

Okayama University aims to establish a university-wide center that encompasses research at the Collaborative Research Center for Infectious Diseases in India. During the discussions, Director Dr. Dutta expressed the intention to collaborate on research activities at the university-wide center, further strengthening the collaborative research and partnership between ICMR-NICED and Okayama University.

Links:
Collaborative Research Center of Okayama University for Infectious Diseases in India
ICMR-NICED Website