Founding spirit

The Department of Computational Biology and Medical Sciences (CBMS) was established in 2015 through the merger of the former Department of Computational Biology and the Department of Medical Genome Sciences. Recent advances in DNA sequencing technology provide an opportunity for life sciences to utilize vast data sets. To derive meaningful insights from this data, it is essential to employ information science driven by computer science. Capturing life as a system, it was natural for life science and information science to fuse.

Meanwhile, medical science, which forms the foundation of medical practice, has undergone significant changes. Medical practitioners are now prioritizing Evidence-Based Medicine (EBM), which not only means using clinical findings and clinical trial data as evidence for treatments but also understanding diseases from the perspective of human biology. "Precision medicine" is pursued, where treatments are based on an individual's pathophysiology, accompanied by its elucidation.

To achieve this, the introduction of new basic life sciences based on DNA sequencing technology, as well as translational research into clinical medicine, is required. With the ongoing fusion of life sciences and information science, an information science perspective capable of handling big data is imperative in medical science. Results derived from information science are, in a sense, mathematical inferences, and the conclusions drawn from them must be molecularly and clinically proven. This perspective embodies the founding spirit of our department, which is "academic fusion."

In our department, experts in information science, molecular biology, genomics, and medical science aim to establish a new integrated science called Computational Biology and Medical Sciences by leveraging their respective expertise while collaborating. Additionally, we focus on nurturing individuals who possess a dual perspective that cannot be learned in research institutions solely specialized in information science or molecular biology. Particularly, there is a significant shortage of professionals specializing in bioinformatics, and we aim to produce new talents in this field.