Pioneering the Future of the Gut Microbiome: Hiroto Tamura's Challenge and Lessons from the Shido Program | TIMEWELL

A look at Hiroto Tamura — a Shido Program alumnus driving an innovative microbiome business. He left a major corporation to plunge into the startup world and is betting on the potential of the gut microbiome. An interview full of insights indispensable for new business developers and entrepreneurs.

Health and Challenge: Why He Chose to Join Metagen Therapeutics A Bridge to the Future: Lessons from the Shido Program and Silicon Valley Outlook Ahead and Gratitude to the CHANGER Community

Hiroto Tamura

Chief Operating Officer, Metagen Therapeutics Inc. (MGTx)

Building a gut microbiome bank, driving social implementation of fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT), advancing microbiome drug discovery. *Microbiome: the bacterial community living in and on the human body.

Master's degree in Information Science and Technology, University of Tokyo Graduate School; Master of Technology Management (professional degree), Tokyo Institute of Technology. Experienced in R&D, planning and management, and business development at a major precision instrument manufacturer. Joined MGTx in January 2022.

Health and Challenge: Why He Chose to Join Metagen Therapeutics

— What was your reason for deciding to move from a major corporation to a startup?

The reason I moved from Nikon to Metagen Therapeutics was a health issue of my own and the fact that through the process of dealing with it, I came to understand the importance of gut bacteria. A few years ago I became ill, and through the treatment process I became deeply interested in gut microbiome research. In particular, I arrived at the thought that the cause of my own poor health might have been an imbalance in the gut microbiome — and I came to feel strongly that I wanted to contribute something in this field.

▼ Diagram: Fecal Microbiota Transplantation

Through that process, I began looking at the possibilities of fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) and microbiome drug discovery, and decided to pursue a career in this new field. Metagen Therapeutics was precisely the company doing cutting-edge R&D in this area, and it aligned perfectly with my interests.

I also had the opportunity, through the CHANGE program, to encounter the dynamic environment of startups and the passion of the people working there. These experiences backed my decision to leave a large company and work at a startup. While my experience at Nikon was enormously valuable, what I truly wanted to pursue was contributing directly to people's health through microbiome research.

In short, joining Metagen Therapeutics is a new challenge for me. Gut microbiome research and its applications are a still-developing field, with many unknowns. But I believe in the enormous potential this field holds, and I strongly hope to contribute to the future of medicine through this challenge.

— Do you feel passion and enjoyment in your current work?

Yes — I'm having a wonderful time. That enjoyment comes from the passion I have for the field I'm pursuing. Working in the unknown territory of microbiome research, and knowing that the research could have a major impact on people's health in the future, makes every day extremely rewarding.

The dynamism of working at a startup is also a major attraction for me. While my experience at a large company was valuable, the flexibility and speed of a startup, and above all the ability to feel the results of the business directly, are fresh and stimulating for me. There are many challenges in the process of working as a team toward a single goal together, but the sense of accomplishment when we overcome them is immeasurable.

Concretely, I feel deep meaning in opening new possibilities for medicine through gut microbiome research and its applications. Especially in the fields of FMT and microbiome drug discovery, there are still many things not yet elucidated. When I think about what kinds of treatments and new drugs this research will ultimately lead to, I feel a strong sense of mission.

Furthermore, because I personally experienced the importance of microbiome research through my own body, I know firsthand how much progress in this field can improve people's lives. That's why being able to work in this field gives me great meaning.

In the end, my enjoyment comes from the possibility of exploring unknown territory, and through new discoveries, contributing to society. And the act of learning, growing, and achieving goals together with the team in that process is itself the greatest pleasure for me.

▼ Business Concept of Metagen Therapeutics Inc.

— What was the most moving experience you have had so far?

The most moving moment in running this business was when I witnessed firsthand the reality facing patients with serious diseases in clinical settings. Seeing doctors and researchers devoting their full effort to treatment tailored to each patient, I felt both the wonder of medicine's power and, simultaneously, the magnitude of the challenges we still need to overcome.

From this experience, I once again realized how much hope our research and business can give to people, and how much it can actually improve their quality of life. In particular, I recalled the feelings of helplessness and frustration I felt when I suffered from my own poor health. But because I had that experience, I can understand patients' situations deeply, and I can feel even more strongly the importance of providing treatments that are truly meaningful to them.

The suffering of patients I witnessed in clinical settings, and the sight of healthcare providers standing up to it, have become a major motivation for me in advancing the business. We strongly hope that our business succeeds and microbiome research leads to the development of new treatments, freeing many patients from suffering and enabling them to live healthy and happy lives. These experiences are the most moving moments for me in running this business, and they have become a great driving force for me to continue advancing toward this goal.

A Bridge to the Future: Lessons from the Shido Program and Silicon Valley

— How was the 2025 Shido Program and the entrepreneurial Silicon Valley dispatch program "Shido Next Innovator 2023"?

This year I was able to participate in the Shido Program and also obtained the opportunity to go to Silicon Valley. This experience was extremely valuable for me. In particular, participating in the Shido Program allowed me to deepen my understanding of the theme I am pursuing and gain new perspectives. In Silicon Valley, I was able to interact with companies and researchers at the global cutting edge, and learn about the latest trends in gut microbiome research and the possibilities of microbiome drug discovery.

During the Silicon Valley visit, I was able to visit companies specifically focused on gut microbiome and microbiome, and talk directly with local researchers and entrepreneurs. Through these interactions, I gained deep insights into how rapidly microbiome research is advancing, the challenges this field faces, and the possibilities for future development.

What remains particularly in my memory from the Silicon Valley experience is the complexity of the challenges microbiome research carries, and the passion of the researchers trying to overcome them. This field has many unknowns, and its research requires enormous amounts of time and resources — yet seeing researchers around the world continuing to challenge for the improvement of human health gave me great hope.

The Silicon Valley visit also gave me many suggestions about the direction Metagen Therapeutics should be aiming for. It was a good opportunity to feel the global trends firsthand and think about how to apply them to our own business and research.

Overall, participating in the Shido Program and the Silicon Valley experience have been extremely important steps in my career, and I am convinced they will have a major influence on future research activities and business development.

▼ Purpose of Metagen Therapeutics Inc.

— What reasons do you think will allow Japan to advance in microbiome research?

Japanese donors have very unique characteristics, which are a major strength for our research and business. Especially compared to the United States and other countries, Japan has several superior points.

The first major difference is the difference in dietary habits in Japan. Japanese food has traditionally included many ingredients high in dietary fiber, resulting in a unique gut microbiome different from that of Westerners. If this gut microbiome turns out to have high efficacy, Japanese gut microbiome could have value to the world.

Additionally, Japan has world-top-level capability in gut microbiome cultivation technology. This is a skill cultivated through long history, and the fact that living gut bacteria are approved as pharmaceuticals is an extremely rare situation globally. In fact, outside Japan, there are almost no approvals for pharmaceuticals using living gut bacteria like this. This is proof that Japan has led in research on gut bacteria and their applications over many years.

These points are Japan's unique strengths and very valuable resources for our research and business. By leveraging Japan's characteristics, we are aiming to develop microbiome-related treatments and products ahead of the rest of the world. By utilizing these unique strengths, we believe we can create new value in gut microbiome research and its applications and contribute to people's health.

Outlook Ahead and Gratitude to the CHANGER Community

— What goals and outlook do you have for the next three and five years?

Thinking about the future, my vision for three years and five years from now is very clear. First, in three years, I would like to bring our primary initiatives — gut microbiome research and its application technology — to social implementation widely, to the stage where we can provide them as concrete treatments and products. This includes establishing the safety and efficacy of FMT and achieving concrete progress in microbiome drug discovery as well. In particular, we aim to leverage Japan's unique regulations and systems to accelerate social implementation, including insurance coverage. Toward that end, we launched a donor recruitment system in April this year: https://www.j-kinso-bank.com/

In five years, I am aiming for a state where these technologies and treatments are widely recognized among the public and actually being used by many patients. Concretely, I hope that the treatments we have researched and developed will be actually applied to various diseases related to the gut microbiome, contributing to improvements in patients' quality of life. Regarding microbiome drug discovery as well, I expect new drugs to have been developed and put into practical use.

Furthermore, personally, my goal for ten years from now is for gut microbiome research to have progressed further and be playing an important role in personalized medicine. I am aiming for the development of treatments based on individual gut microbiome profiles, and the realization of more personalized health management. I also strongly hope that as research in this field advances further, it will lead to the development of new treatments for currently unknown diseases.

In this way, both short-term and long-term, our research and business goals are to create a new medical paradigm based on the gut microbiome, and through that, to contribute to people's health and happiness. To achieve these goals, we will continue to devote ourselves to daily research and development.

— A message to everyone at CHANGER

To everyone at CHANGER, I would first like to express my gratitude. What I feel right now is that CHANGER has had a major influence on my growth. I sincerely thank my fellow participants and those who came after.

Participating in CHANGE and receiving guidance, I have been deeply moved seeing everyone grow more and more. In particular, the activities of those active in patient communities and various fields are diverse and stimulating.

The path I chose — transitioning from a large company to a startup — is in a sense a typical path, but I want to convey to everyone that this is a very attractive option. For myself, before joining Metagen Therapeutics, I took time to nurture my interests and passion while exploring the direction. As a result, I was able to follow through smoothly.

I think everyone at CHANGER also has interests and passion they have been nurturing within themselves. Working at a large company is one choice, but plunging into a startup where you can realize your own mission will be an extremely valuable experience. Especially in fields like biotech where there are still few people, talent coming from CHANGER is extremely precious.

In that sense, I sincerely cheer everyone at CHANGER on to continue having a major impact in their respective fields going forward. I'm also looking at the possibility of collaboration between our business and large companies in the future. I look forward to creating new value together with all of you.

Once again, to everyone at CHANGER, thank you for your support so far and for your cooperation going forward. Let's continue to stimulate each other and keep growing together. Thank you very much.

Writer in charge: Anna Usui / Yumiko Homma

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Pioneering the Future of the Gut Microbiome: Hiroto Tamura's Challenge and Lessons from the Shido Program | TIMEWELL