September 1, 2026
J-Pharma Co., Ltd.
J-Pharma Co., Ltd. (Head Office: Minato-ku, Tokyo; President and CEO: Masuhiro Yoshitake; hereinafter “J-Pharma” or the “Company”) today announced that it has transitioned to an executive officer system to further strengthen its management and business execution structure in line with the growth of its business and the advancement of its development pipeline.
As part of this transition, Shinya Hirata has been appointed Executive Officer of J-Pharma, effective September 1, 2026.
Under the new structure, J-Pharma will further clarify the roles and responsibilities of management and each business function, while promoting agile business execution by personnel with extensive experience and expertise in their respective fields. Through these initiatives, the Company aims to maximize the value of its development pipeline and achieve sustainable growth.
Background and Purpose of the Transition to the Executive Officer System
J-Pharma is advancing the research and development of innovative drugs in areas of high unmet medical need, leveraging its proprietary research platform targeting SLC transporters.
J-Pharma’s development pipeline continues to advance, with nanvuranlat (development code: JPH203), a LAT1 inhibitor for biliary tract cancer, now in a global Phase III clinical trial and JPH034, a brain-penetrant LAT1 inhibitor, in a Phase I clinical trial in the United States.
As the Company’s business and development programs progress, increasingly specialized expertise is required across research and drug discovery, intellectual property, clinical development, regulatory affairs, CMC and quality assurance, business development, and finance and capital strategy.
To steadily advance global development, regulatory submissions, commercialization, and strategic partnerships while maximizing the value of each development program, J-Pharma believes it is increasingly important to establish a management structure that enables close collaboration among these functions and facilitates rapid decision-making and execution.
Accordingly, J-Pharma has transitioned to a structure that clearly defines the roles and responsibilities of executive members with extensive experience in their respective fields, while the Board of Directors retains responsibility for determining management policies and other important matters and providing oversight. This structure enables agile business execution that draws on each member’s expertise.
Through the new structure, the Company will further strengthen coordination between management and business execution and build an organizational foundation capable of seamlessly advancing its programs from research and development through regulatory approval, commercialization, strategic partnerships, and global expansion.
Executive Officers Responsible for Management and Business Execution
Yasuhide Uejima, Executive Officer (CMC)
Uejima was engaged in a broad range of pharmaceutical R&D activities at Teijin Limited and Teijin Pharma Limited, including drug discovery, nonclinical studies, CMC development, clinical trials, global project management, and licensing. He subsequently joined BrightPath Biotherapeutics Co., Ltd., where he was responsible for nonclinical development, CMC, and quality assurance for programs including cancer peptide vaccines, before joining J-Pharma in 2019.
Drawing on extensive experience across diverse stages of pharmaceutical development, from drug discovery through global clinical development, Uejima leads the Company’s CMC activities and works to strengthen the development infrastructure supporting regulatory submissions and commercialization.
Kazuo Sekiguchi, Executive Officer (Clinical Development & Regulatory Affairs)
Sekiguchi served at Otsuka Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. as head of a research institute and in other leadership roles spanning strategic alliances, oligonucleotide therapeutics projects, global projects, and new drug development. He subsequently worked on the development of oligonucleotide therapeutics at Luxna Biotech Co., Ltd. before joining J-Pharma in 2023.
With extensive experience spanning drug discovery through global clinical development and expertise across multiple disease areas and modalities, Sekiguchi leads the Company’s clinical development and regulatory strategy.
Takeru Ehara, Executive Officer (R&D)
Ehara was engaged in research and development focused on small-molecule drug discovery at Novartis Pharma K.K. and Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research in the United States. He subsequently joined PeptiDream Inc., where he built medicinal chemistry capabilities and advanced peptide drug discovery, before joining J-Pharma in 2025.
Drawing on broad drug discovery experience spanning small molecules, macrocyclic peptides, and peptide conjugates, as well as experience leading research collaborations with partners in Japan and overseas, Ehara drives the Company’s new drug discovery, pipeline expansion, and intellectual property strategy.
Newly Appointed Executive Officer (Clinical Development & Regulatory Affairs): Shinya Hirata
Hirata began his career in drug discovery and pharmacology research, including at Kaken Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. He later transitioned into medical affairs, serving in medical science liaison roles at Otsuka Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited, and Celgene Corporation, with a focus on ophthalmology and immune and inflammatory diseases.
Through managing medical teams, building relationships with medical experts, and advancing investigator-initiated clinical research, Hirata developed broad medical affairs expertise spanning both research and clinical practice.
He subsequently served as Executive Officer and Head of R&D at SanBio Company Limited, where he led research and development, regulatory submissions in Japan, and global clinical development of regenerative medicine products. He joined J-Pharma on September 1, 2026.
J-Pharma will leverage Hirata’s extensive knowledge and experience in drug discovery and pharmacology research, medical affairs, clinical development, and domestic and global regulatory affairs. This will further strengthen the Company’s ability to advance nanvuranlat and other development programs seamlessly from clinical development through regulatory submission and preparation for commercialization.
Going Forward
Under the new executive structure, J-Pharma will further enhance the speed and quality of business execution by enabling its management, finance and capital strategy, business development, drug discovery, CMC and quality assurance, clinical development, medical, and regulatory functions to fully leverage their respective expertise while working in close collaboration.
In particular, the Company will advance the global development and future regulatory submission and commercialization of nanvuranlat, as well as the clinical development of JPH034 and the creation of new pipeline programs. J-Pharma will also pursue strategic partnerships with companies and research institutions in Japan and overseas, with the aim of sustainably enhancing corporate value.
About J-Pharma Co., Ltd.
J-Pharma Co., Ltd. aims to pursue new possibilities for SLC transporters and contribute to the hope and health of people worldwide through the development of innovative new drugs that address unmet medical needs. Under this mission, the Company has focused on LAT1 (L-type amino acid transporter 1), one of the SLC transporters discovered by the Company’s founder, and is advancing the development of LAT1 inhibitors to address the needs of patients with cancer and autoimmune diseases, where existing drugs are insufficient.
For more information, please visit:https://www.j-pharma.com/en/
Inquiries:
J-Pharma Co., Ltd.
Planning Department
TEL: +81-3-6432-4270
https://www.j-pharma.com/en/contact