[Saikinsou Co., Ltd.] Launched the Preparation Office for the establishment of the “Intestinal Environment Healthcare Association” with the aim of improving test quality and industry reliability by formulating guidelines for intestinal environment testing.
*View in browser* *Saikinsou Co., Ltd.*
Press release: June 5, 2024
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Preparation office for establishment of the “Intestinal Environment Healthcare Association” established with the aim of improving test quality and industry reliability by formulating guidelines for intestinal environment testing
*Cykinso and Metagen will establish an industry association in 2024 with the aim of formulating and standardizing self-regulatory guidelines regarding test quality maintenance and result notification* Saikinso Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Shibuya-ku, Tokyo, Representative Director: Yu Sawai, hereinafter referred to as Saikinso), together with Metagen Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Tsuruoka City, Yamagata Prefecture, Representative Director and CEO: Shinji Fukuda,
hereinafter referred to as Metagen), We aim to establish an industry organization, the Intestinal Environment Healthcare Association, with the aim of developing the environmental testing industry and improving its reliability, and to formulate self-regulatory guidelines. We are pleased to announce that as of today, we have launched an industry association establishment preparation office, and activities aimed at establishing the association will begin in earnest within 2024. * Background of the initiative *
In recent years, lifestyles that incorporate intestinal activity have become popular, and consumers are becoming increasingly interested in the relationship between the intestinal environment and physical and mental health. Academic evidence on the intestinal environment is increasing, and short-chain fatty acids produced by intestinal bacteria using dietary fiber etc.*1
The health effects of metabolites such as these are also attracting attention, and the market related to intestinal activity, such as foods with functional claims, is expanding. As the existence of intestinal bacteria has become familiar to many consumers, intestinal flora*2 is one way to evaluate your own intestinal environment and get hints for improving your lifestyle habits.
The need for testing is also increasing.
On the other hand, there are no standards regarding test flow or quality for intestinal flora testing, and the current situation is that testing is left to the self-help efforts of each testing company. It has also been pointed out that general consumers find it difficult to understand and interpret the results of intestinal environment tests in general, including bacterial flora tests. Furthermore, since there are multiple testing methods, even if the same sample is tested, the results may not match depending on the testing method, so great care and careful explanations are required to deliver correct information that consumers can understand. I think it will be necessary.
Additionally, there is a growing need for consumers to receive advice on improving their lifestyle habits based on the results of intestinal environment tests, but since each individual’s intestinal environment is different, one-size-fits-all advice may not be enough. , advice that is stratified according to each individual’s intestinal environment is required.
Therefore, Cykinso and Metagen believe that it is necessary for the industry to create certain guidelines and rules from the perspective of accuracy control of intestinal environment testing and general consumer protection. We believe that by developing industry standards, we can contribute to the development of the industry as a whole by improving the reliability of the industry and creating a foundation that allows new businesses to enter the industry with peace of mind. Furthermore, since the same points have been made overseas, in the future we are looking to create global standards from Japanese testing companies through the development of international standards and expand them internationally *3
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*1
Short-chain fatty acids: Organic acids such as butyric acid, acetic acid, and propionic acid produced by intestinal bacteria. In addition to being absorbed from the colon mucosal tissue and used as an energy source, it is known to exert various physiological effects, such as maintaining human immune homeostasis.
*2 Intestinal flora: A collection of bacteria living in the human intestine. There are hundreds to thousands of species of intestinal bacteria, which are closely related to human health and disease. *3: Diane E. Hoffmann et al., The DTC microbiome testing industry needs more regulation, Science. 2024 Mar 15;383(6688):1176-1179.
* Activities and prospects of the “Intestinal Environment Healthcare Association” *
* ■Activity purpose*
Cykinso and Metagen will enable all Japanese citizens to know their own intestinal environment by undergoing regular tests with peace of mind, and by naturally choosing foods and lifestyle habits that suit them, everyone can stay healthy. We aim to build a society, solve the structural problems of Japan, a developed country with many issues, and maximize the happiness of each and every citizen. for that,* With slogans such as “universal intestinal environment testing”* and “a stratified society for all citizens”*, we will work to formulate self-regulatory guidelines so that everyone can undergo testing with peace of mind.
* ■Three pillars of activity*
* 1. Formulation of self-regulatory guidelines for intestinal environment testing *
By formulating guidelines related to a series of testing flows, such as maintaining test quality, specimen handling, testing methods, results notification methods, advertising display, and personal information protection, we aim to protect consumers and develop the industry, and to protect the future. We also aim to develop
international standards.
* 2. Recommendations for the formulation and operation of appropriate rules regarding advice and action proposals based on test results* Based on the results of intestinal environment testing, we will formulate appropriate rules for providing advice and recommendations regarding diet and lifestyle habits, and make recommendations for implementation. As a vision, we aim to establish “personalized healthcare” that is stratified and individualized based on test results, including recommendations for foods and other products, and action suggestions.
* 3. Building evidence that contributes to industrialization to maximize the potential of the intestinal environment *
By promoting research aimed not only at disease prevention and treatment, but also on mental and physical health and their social and economic effects, we aim to create new possibilities for the intestinal environment, especially with the aim of contributing to society and industry. We will continue to explore this.
* ■Future outlook*
Cykinso and Metagen will establish the “Intestinal Environment Healthcare Association” in 2024, and aim to create various guidelines in 2025. In parallel, we will promote collaboration with intestinal environment testing and related product businesses and experts, and promote awareness of the importance of the intestinal environment. *Comment by representative*
*Saikinsou Co., Ltd. Representative Director and CEO Yu Sawai* In Japan, which is a developed country with many challenges, extending healthy life expectancy by maintaining and improving the health of the people is an important theme, and this requires improving lifestyle habits at the individual level. To encourage behavioral change, it is necessary to provide services that are optimized for the individual. Because we are proud to be the first in the industry to provide intestinal flora testing, we feel it is our mission to take the lead in improving the reliability of the industry. In order to realize our corporate philosophy of “Making people healthy through bacterial flora,” we aim to create a society where everyone can understand their own intestinal environment with peace of mind.
* Shinji Fukuda, Representative Director, President and CEO, Metagen Co., Ltd.* Until now, we have developed our business mainly in the intestinal environment research field, and have discovered various phenomena and evidence related to the intestinal environment from an academic perspective. On the other hand, as stated in the background of this initiative, the industry as a whole faces challenges in properly delivering academic evidence on the intestinal environment and information on the individual’s intestinal environment to consumers. We will engage in this activity with the aim of our company’s mission of “making healthcare that suits the intestinal environment commonplace.”
* Company Profile*
* ■Saikinsou Co., Ltd. Company Profile*
[Representative] Yu Sawai (Representative Director)
[Location] 2nd floor, Odaka Building, 1-36-1 Yoyogi, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo [Established] November 19, 2014
[Capital] 64,820,000 yen (total funding amount 2,340 million yen *including subsidies, etc.)
[Website] https://cykinso.co.jp/
[Business details]
With the corporate philosophy of “Making people healthy through microbiota,” we aim to elucidate the relationship between resident microbiota, including intestinal flora, and mental and physical health and disease risks, and provide optimal solutions for the daily lives of all people. By providing the following, we aim to create a society where everyone can become naturally healthy. As part of this effort, we developed Mykinso, an intestinal flora test that can be easily performed at home, based on the idea that understanding the state of the intestinal environment will lead to maintaining and improving health. Utilizing Japan’s large-scale bacterial flora database and advanced data science technology, we will diversify businesses based on bacterial flora data, such as expanding testing services, OEM development, system construction support, and promoting research and utilization of anonymously processed information. It is being expanded to.
* ■Metagen Co., Ltd. Company Profile*
[Representative] Shinji Fukuda (Representative Director, President and CEO) [Location] 246-2 Minakami, Kakuganji, Tsuruoka City, Yamagata Prefecture [Established] March 18, 2015
[Capital] 35 million yen
[Website] https://metagen.co.jp
[Business details]
Our mission is to “make health care that suits the intestinal environment commonplace,” and the entire group aims for “zero disease” through an approach based on the concept of intestinal design. A research and development support project that makes full use of the unique intestinal environment evaluation technology “Metabologenomics (R)” to comprehensively understand the functions of the intestinal environment, as well as databases based on this technology and intestinal environment research cultivated in academia. We conduct stratified healthcare projects that utilize the knowledge of experts, and provide comprehensive support for intestinal environment research and its social implementation, from test planning to interpretation and consideration of analysis data, and proposals for
commercialization. There is. We also operate the “Intestinal Design Co-Creation Project”, a corporate collaboration community that aims to spread the concept of Intestinal Design(R)︎ and co-create the “Intestinal Design Market”.
As of May 2024, 32 companies are participating. He also operates the owned media “onakademy,” which conveys correct knowledge about the intestinal environment to society and helps people find the axis of their own health care.
Contact point
For inquiries regarding the Establishment Preparation Office of the Intestinal Environment Healthcare Association, please contact us below.
・Email address: pr@cykinso.co.jp (Person in charge: Murakami) *About details about this release*
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