Dr Kouji Kimura, M.D., Ph.D.
Nagoya University Graduate School of Medicine, Japan

I was born in 1973 in Japan. I completed my graduation at School of Medicine, Nagoya University, in 1998. Thereafter, I pursued my doctoral studies under the supervision of Professor Shigetada Nakanishi at Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto University, Japan. I was awarded my Ph.D. degree in 2006. Since 2006, I was engaged in research at the Department of Bacteriology II (Director: Dr. Yoshichika Arakawa), National Institute of Infectious Diseases (NIID), Japan. Since 2011, I have been working in the Department of Bacteriology (Professor Yoshichika Arakawa) at Graduate School of Medicine, Nagoya University.

My current research interests include antibacterial drug resistance of human pathogenic bacterium, group B Streptococcus (GBS). We have characterized group B streptococci with reduced penicillin susceptibility (PRGBS) harboring amino acid substitutions in penicillin-binding protein (PBP) 2X first in the world. We have also reported the tendency of PRGBS for multidrug resistance, isolation rates of PRGBS in Japan, and isolation of group B streptococcus with reduced β-lactam susceptibility (GBS-RBS) harboring amino acid substitutions in the PBP2X from pregnant women.

I have received three young investigator awards, namely, Kuroya young investigator award from the Japanese Society for Bacteriology, 13th Young investigator award from the Japan Antibiotics Research Association, and 20th Yasushi Ueda memorial infection and chemotherapy young investigator award from the Japanese Society of Chemotherapy.

Website: http://profs.provost.nagoya-u.ac.jp/view/html/100005833_en.html