Rate My Professor Kentaro Takayama

Kentaro Takayama serves as Associate Professor in the Laboratory of Environmental Biochemistry within the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences at Kyoto Pharmaceutical University since January 2020. He obtained his Bachelor’s degree in Pharmacy from Kyoto Pharmaceutical University in 2006, followed by a Master’s degree in Life Pharmaceutical Sciences from Kyoto University Graduate School in 2008, and a PhD in Pharmacy from the same institution in 2011. His career includes positions as Junior Associate Professor and Assistant Professor in the Department of Medicinal Chemistry at Tokyo University of Pharmacy and Life Sciences from 2017 to 2019 and 2012 to 2017, respectively, Research Fellow at the National Cerebral and Cardiovascular Center Research Institute from 2011 to 2012, and JSPS Research Fellow from 2008 to 2011.

Takayama’s research specializes in pharmaceutical chemistry and drug development, with key interests in peptide-based therapeutics, neuromedin U receptor modulators, myostatin inhibitors, inflammation, stress responses, taste sensitivity alterations, and crush syndrome mechanisms. The laboratory explores the gut-brain axis in psychiatric disorders like depression, taste disorders from anti-cancer drugs and diabetes, and peptide drugs for intractable diseases. Notable publications include “Discovery of a Pentapeptide Antagonist to Human Neuromedin U Receptor 1” (ACS Medicinal Chemistry Letters, 2024), “Suppressive Effects of Neuromedin U Receptor 2-Selective Peptide Agonists on Appetite and Prolactin Secretion in Mice” (ACS Medicinal Chemistry Letters, 2024), “Multiple site inflammation and acute kidney injury in crush syndrome” (Frontiers in Pharmacology, 2024), and “Doxorubicin-induced sweet taste sensitivity reduction and compensatory receptor expression in mice” (Chemical Senses, 2025). He has earned prestigious awards such as the Encouragement Award from The Pharmaceutical Society of Japan (2021), the Mizushima Shoji Memorial Research Award (2019), and the Japanese Peptide Society Encouragement Award (2018). Takayama holds leadership roles including Director of The Japanese Peptide Society since 2024, member of the Kyoto Health Longevity and Predisease Improvement Promotion Conference since 2022, and Representative of The Pharmaceutical Society of Japan from 2023 to 2025.