About AMED

AMED (The Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development) is the funding agency for Japanese medical research, analogous to the NIH in the USA and the MRC in the UK. Established in April 2015, AMED reports directly to the Prime Minister and four cabinet ministers. Prior to the establishment of AMED, researchers needed to apply for funding from different government ministries, depending on the stage of their research. The advent of AMED streamlined the process of applying for grants by providing a single point of contact from initial research to clinical outcomes that benefit society.

See AMED’s main site

Read about projects that AMED has funded here

Creating connections and promoting outcomes

In addition to funding medical research, AMED plays two other important roles: promoting the practical application of research outcomes and linking organizations, institutions and researchers.

One way it promotes collaborations with other institutions is through participation in various consortia and global alliances. Another way is via its three overseas offices, which are in Singapore, Washington DC and London. AMED has also signed memoranda of cooperation with its counterparts in six countries: the US, the UK, Australia, Singapore, Lithuania and Spain. These collaborations allow AMED to gather information from around the globe and contribute to joint international medical research and development. Its international partnerships also provide a key platform for sharing Japan’s research results with the world. In addition, the agency regularly organizes symposia and workshops in partnership with other countries, such as the Japan–UK Neuroscience Symposium 2019 and the Asia-Pacific Scientific Workshop 2019.

AMED actively promotes the outcomes of the research it funds. Examples include websites such as www.nanbyo-research.jp and www.binds.jp. The Initiative on Rare and Undiagnosed Diseases (IRUD) is a Japan-wide initiative to use genome information to diagnose patients with rare or undiagnosed diseases by establishing a network of participating hospitals. In addition, AMED holds press conferences to publicize important new findings.

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