Education

• Kyoto University, Faculty of Medicine: Doctor of Medicine (M.D.)
• Kyoto University, Graduate School of Medicine: Doctor of Medical Science (Ph.D.)

Professional Experience

• 2010-2012: Kyoto University, Department of Rheumatology and Clinical Immunology, Senior Clinical Fellow
• 2012-2013: Osaka Red Cross Hospital, Department of Rheumatology, Medical Staff
• 2013-2014: Leiden University Medical Center (the Netherlands), Department of Rheumatology, Researcher
• 2014-2021: Kyoto University, Department of Rheumatology and Clinical Immunology, Assistant Professor
• 2021~: Division of Clinical Immunology and Cancer Immunotherapy, Center for Cancer Immunotherapy and Immunobiology (CCII), Associate Professor

Research Focus

The discovery of PD-1, one of the immune checkpoint molecules, caused a paradigm shift for cancer immunotherapy as immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs). Thus, ICIs have been conducted with the highest priority placed on improvement of prognosis. In this context, immune related Adverse Events (irAE) were recognized already from clinical trials, but they were regarded as not being a serious challenge, leading to clinical applications.

However, based on real-world evidence, patients undergoing treatment with ICIs exhibit diverse backgrounds that may include comorbidities (i.e. autoimmune disorders). As a result, there are several findings regarding the risk of developing irAE. Nonetheless, currently, there is still a lack of reliable biomarker to accurately predict the occurrence of irAEs.

We aim at developing precision medicine to prevent irAEs through a combination of clinical practice and immunological markers. Moreover, our goal is to establish management guidelines for irAEs while ensuring minimal tumor progression. As part of our fundamental investigations, we are actively working on developing more effective immunosuppressive therapies for irAEs using an irAE model mouse, surpassing the limitations of glucocorticoids.

In addition, we are placing significant emphasis on understanding the pathophysiology of rheumatic irAEs. From a clinical perspective, we are utilizing real-world databases to investigate the impact of autoimmune disorders on the safety of immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs).

Honors & Awards

• 2012: JCR-EULAR Young Rheumatologist Training Program, research fellowship grant

Membership in Academic Societies

• Board Certified Member of the Japanese Society of Internal Medicine
• Board Certified Rheumatologist of the Japanese College of Rheumatology

Selected Publications

Murakami, K., Watanabe, R., Fujisaki, T., Ito, H., Murata, K., Yamamoto, W., … Morinobu, A. (2023). Predictive value of baseline concomitant glucocorticoid for abatacept-mediated long-term inhibition of radiographic progression: insights from the KURAMA cohort. Immunological Medicine, 47(1), 45–51. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/25785826.2023.2265148

Masahiro Shirata, Isao Ito, Masao Tanaka, Koichi Murata, Kosaku Murakami, Hiroyuki Ikeda, Issei Oi, Nobuyoshi Harnao, Kensuke Nishioka, Yasuyuki Hayashi, Mini Nagano, Motomu Hashimoto, Hiromu Ito, Hideki Ueno, Akio Mornobu, Toyohiro Hirai. Impact of methotrexate on humoral and cellular immune responses to SARS-CoV-2 mRNA vaccine in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Clin Exp Med 23, 4707–4720 (2023). DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10238-023-01163-5

Ma S, Murakami K, Tanaka K, Hashimoto M, Tanaka M, Kitagori K, Akizuki S, Nakashima R, Yoshifuji H, Ohmura K, Morinobu A, Mimori T. Fatostatin ameliorates inflammation without affecting cell viability. FEBS Open Bio. 2022 Mar;12(3):594-604. DOI: 10.1002/2211-5463.13364.

Ma S, Murakami K, Saito R, Ito H, Murata K, Nishitani K, Hashimoto M, Tanaka M, Taniguchi M, Kitagori K, Akizuki S, Nakashima R, Yoshifuji H, Ohmura K, Morinobu A, Mimori T. Increased Ratio of CD14⁺⁺CD80⁺Cells/CD14⁺⁺CD163⁺ Cells in the Infrapatellar Fat Pad of End-Stage Arthropathy Patients. Front Immunol. 2021 Nov 26;12:774177. DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2021.774177.

Murakami I, Murakami K, Hashimoto M, Tanaka M, Ito H, Fujii T, Torii M, Ikeda K, Kuwabara A, Tanaka K, Yoshida A, Akizuki S, Nakashima R, Yoshifuji H, Ohmura K, Usui T, Morita S, Mimori T. Intake frequency of vegetables or seafoods negatively correlates with disease activity of rheumatoid arthritis. PLoS One. 2020 Feb 13;15(2):e0228852. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0228852.

Murakami K, Sekiguchi M, Hirata S, Fujii T, Matsui K, Morita S, Ohmura K, Kawahito Y, Nishimoto N, Mimori T, Sano H; ABROAD study investigators. Predictive factors for structural remission using abatacept: Results from the ABROAD study. Mod Rheumatol. 2019 May;29(3):406-412. DOI: 10.1080/14397595.2018.1482609.

Murakami K, Mimori T. Recent Advances in Research Regarding Autoantibodies in Connective Tissue Diseases and Related Disorders. Intern Med. 2019 Jan 1;58(1):5-14. DOI: 10.2169/internalmedicine.1423-18.

Murakami K, Mimori T. [Diagnosis and treatment of rheumatoid arthritis:toward the best practice. The Pathophysiology in Rheumatoid Arthritis.]. Clin Calcium. 2018;28(5):595-600. Japanese. PMID: 29731451.

Murakami K. [Potential of specialized pro-resolving lipid mediators against rheumatic diseases]. Nihon Rinsho Meneki Gakkai Kaishi. 2016;39(3):155-63. Japanese. DOI: 10.2177/jsci.39.155. 

Kitai Y, Murakami K, Yoshifuji H, Yukawa N, Kawabata D, Ohmura K, Fujii T, Mimori T. A case of Behçet’s disease developing after poststreptococcal acute glomerulonephritis. Mod Rheumatol. 2013 Nov;23(6):1221-5. DOI: 10.1007/s10165-012-0736-4.

Murakami K, Tanaka M, Usui T, Kawabata D, Shiomi A, Iguchi-Hashimoto M, Shimizu M, Yukawa N, Yoshifuji H, Nojima T, Ohmura K, Fujii T, Umehara H, Mimori T. Follistatin-related protein/follistatin-like 1 evokes an innate immune response via CD14 and toll-like receptor 4. FEBS Lett. 2012 Feb 17;586(4):319-24. DOI: 10.1016/j.febslet.2012.01.010.

Murakami K, Fujii T, Mimori T. [Rheumatoid arthritis: progress in diagnosis and treatment. Topics: II. Pathophysiology; 3. Autoantibodies in rheumatoid arthritis]. Nihon Naika Gakkai Zasshi. 2012 Oct 10;101(10):2844-50. Japanese. DOI: 10.2169/naika.101.2844.