About Us
Wellthera Co., Ltd. was founded in 2018 to translate academic innovation into real-world medical solutions, addressing unmet medical needs in drug delivery.
Originating from research conducted at the Laboratory of Drug and Gene Delivery Research, Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Teikyo University, Wellthera is built on pioneering work led by Professor Emeritus Kazuo Maruyama, Professor Ryo Suzuki, and Lecturer Daiki Omata.
Professor Maruyama currently serves as Professor in Theranostics Laboratory, Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Teikyo University.
With BUS-DDS (Bubble Ultrasound-mediated Drug Delivery System) as its core technology, Wellthera is developing non-invasive, localized drug delivery solutions for tissues that remain difficult to treat with conventional approaches.
The Laboratory of Drug and Gene Delivery Reserch https://www.teikyo-dds.com/
Theranostics Laboratory https://teikyo-dds-lab1.jimdoweb.com/
Board Members
Founder / Representative Director / President
Professor Emeritus, Teikyo University
Kazuo Maruyama
A leading researcher in drug delivery systems (DDS) with decades of experience in pharmaceutical research. Former Professor at the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Teikyo University, and Visiting Professor at the Graduate School of Osaka University. Founded Wellthera Co., Ltd. in 2018 and assumed the role of Representative Director, driving research, development, and practical implementation in the DDS and theranostics fields. Currently serves as Specially Appointed Professor at the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Teikyo University, leading medical technology development through academia–industry collaboration.
Mizushima Award, Japan Society of Drug Delivery System (2008)
Outstanding Research Award, International Symposium on Recent Advances in Drug Delivery Systems (2009)
Representative Director / CEO
Makoto Shimasaki
Worked in non-clinical research and development at Nippon Boehringer Ingelheim Co., Ltd. and Boehringer Ingelheim Pharma GmbH & Co. KG in Germany. Later served as a venture capitalist in the life sciences sector at Mitsubishi UFJ Capital Co., Ltd., with responsibility for investment and business development support. Currently serves as Program Officer for the academia-launched medical startup support program at the Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development (AMED), and is involved as an evaluation committee member and expert panel member for multiple projects. Also acts as a Venture Partner at Ehrlich Partners Inc., supporting the incubation and commercialization of medical startups.
M.Sc. in Pharmaceutical Sciences, Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Osaka University
Director
Tsubame Nishikai
Specializes in regenerative medicine and bioscience. Conducted research as a postdoctoral fellow at Nihon University, Juntendo University, and Tokyo Medical and Dental University. Subsequently worked at Metcela Inc., where involved in clinical development, quality assurance, and quality control, contributing to medical technology development and quality system establishment. Has broad experience spanning from basic research to practical application, and has received academic and paper awards.
Ph.D. in Biological Resource Sciences, Nihon University Graduate School
Director
Michael Paumen
A globally connected business professional with over 20 years of track record in commercialization and market introductions in diagnostics and life sciences. Served as Vice President of Genomic Services at Konica Minolta Precision Medicine, CEO of Clearbridge BioMedics Pte Ltd (now Biolidics Ltd.), and Senior Director at Life Technologies (now Thermo Fisher Scientific), driving commercialization of next-generation sequencing (NGS) technologies. Has extensive international experience in molecular diagnostics development, clinical research collaboration, and global business development, particularly in Japan and the Asia-Pacific region.
Ph.D. in Genetics and Molecular Biology