Dr. Michiaki Takahashi –
Since its invention, Takahashi’s vaccine has been administered to millions of children around the world as an effective measure to prevent severe cases of contagious viral disease & its spread.
He received his medical degree from Osaka University in 1954. Before his work on the chickenpox vaccine, he collaborated on mumps and rubella vaccines. He later served on the board of directors of the Research Foundation for Microbial Diseases of Osaka University.
After studying measles and polio viruses, Dr. Takahashi accepted a research fellowship in 1963 at Baylor College in the United States.
The experience of watching his eldest son, Teruyuki, suffer from chickenpox while studying in the U.S. led him to begin the development of a chickenpox vaccine in 1971. The research was extremely difficult but was completed in 1973. In 1984, the vaccine was certified by the WHO as the most suitable chickenpox vaccine, and in 1986, the Japanese Ministry of Health and Welfare approved it for practical use in countries around the world – Source
After returning to Japan in 1965, Dr. Takahashi began culturing live but weakened chickenpox viruses in animal and human tissue. In five years, the vaccine was ready for clinical trials. In 1974, Dr. Takahashi had developed the first vaccine targeting the varicella virus that causes chickenpox. It was subsequently subjected to rigorous research with immunosuppressed patients and was proven to be extremely effective.
Takahashi’s vaccine was then used in over 80 countries. In 1994, he was appointed the director of Osaka University’s Microbial Disease Study Group—a position he held until his retirement. Thanks to his innovations, millions of cases of chickenpox are prevented each year.
Today’s Doodle has been illustrated by Tokyo, Japan-based guest artist Tatsuro Kiuchi.