Kirin and Immunosens Launch Joint Development of a Self-Testing Service That Uses Urinary IgA to Visualize a Person’s Immune Status

TOKYO & OSAKA, Japan–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Kirin Holdings Company, Limited (Kirin Holdings) and Immunosens Co., Ltd. (Immunosens) have begun the joint development of a unique “Self-Testing Service^*1” designed to visualize a person’s immune status.

Through the KIRIN HEALTH INNOVATION FUND, a corporate venture capital fund jointly established in February 2023 with Global Brain Corporation, one of Japan’s leading independent venture capital firms, Kirin Holdings invested in Immunosens^*2 and has been exploring the potential application of Immunosens’s proprietary POCT^*3 device as a health management tool to help customers maintain their health in the pre-disease stage.

Kirin Holdings has now entered into a commissioned research agreement with Immunosens. By combining Immunosens’s proprietary technologies with Kirin’s world‑first discovery^*4 of urinary markers linked to plasmacytoid dendritic cell (pDC) activity, the two companies aim to develop a simple yet highly accurate service that visualizes immune function.

The testing service announced in May 2025 is intended as a mail‑in test that enables individuals to monitor their immune status on a regular basis^*5. In contrast, the service being jointly developed with Immunosens is a POCT solution that allows individuals to easily check their immune status at home or in other settings whenever needed. By advancing the development of these two services in parallel, Kirin Holdings aims to provide immune‑status insights tailored to individual needs and help foster the habit of “immune care”^*6 among consumers.

Development Background and Purpose

In recent years, various infectious diseases, not limited to influenza and COVID-19, have been circulating throughout the year, further highlighting the importance of health management. Against this backdrop, attention is increasingly focused not only on infection control but also on “immune care,” which is essential for maintaining a strong foundation for health.

Kirin has advanced immune research based on its long-cultivated fermentation technology and has taken steps to help customers establish “immune care” habits. Through these efforts, we have confirmed that clearly visualizing an individual’s immune status raises awareness of “immune care” and encourages action.

Furthermore, we discovered that the level of pDC activity, an indicator of immune status, can be determined by measuring urinary IgA concentration. Building on this research, we have been developing a unique mail-in testing service to visualize immune status since 2025.

As the second phase of this initiative, we are now launching the development of a POCT service that enables real-time visualization of immune status.

About the Service

This service, based on Kirin’s more than 40 years of immunology research, enables the measurement of an individual’s immune status by determining urinary IgA concentration.

In this method, one antibody is immobilized on a planar printed electrode, while the other antibody is labeled with gold nanoparticles. When the sample is applied, the gold nanoparticle–labeled antibodies accumulate near the electrode in proportion to the concentration of the target biomarker. By applying a voltage to induce an electrochemical reaction in the accumulated gold nanoparticles and measuring the resulting current, the biomarker concentration can be quantified with high sensitivity using a simple and compact system.

By combining Kirin’s research findings on visualizing immune status through urinary IgA with Immunosens’s proprietary GLEIA technology, Kirin and Immunosens aim to develop a unique service that enables rapid and simple measurement of immune status.

Making immune status, one of the foundations of health, easy to visualize can help individuals better understand their own health conditions and lead to a more fulfilling daily life. The two companies expect that this development will play an important role in contributing to a society that supports healthy longevity.

Future Outlook

We plan to advance development and validation activities during 2026, with a phased rollout of the service expected to begin from 2027 onward.

About Kirin Holdings

Kirin Holdings Company, Limited is an international company that operates in the Food & Beverages domain (Food & Beverages businesses), Pharmaceuticals domain (Pharmaceuticals businesses), and Health Science domain (Health Science business), both in Japan and across the globe.

Kirin Holdings can trace its roots to Japan Brewery, which was established in 1885. Japan Brewery became Kirin Brewery in 1907. Since then, the company has expanded its business with fermentation and biotechnology as its core technologies, and entered the pharmaceutical business in the 1980s, all of which continue to be global growth centers. In 2007, Kirin Holdings was established as a pure holding company and is currently focusing on boosting its Health Science domain.

Under the Kirin Group Vision 2027 (KV 2027), a long-term management plan launched in 2019, the Kirin Group aims to become “A global leader in CSV*, creating value across our world of Food & Beverages to Pharmaceuticals”. Going forward, the Kirin Group will continue to leverage its strengths to create both social and economic value through its businesses, with the aim of achieving sustainable growth in corporate value.

* Creating Shared Value. Combined added value for consumers and society at large.

Contacts

Press Contact
Corporate Communication Department
Kirin Holdings Company, Limited
Nakano Central Park South, 4-10-2 Nakano, Nakano-ku, Tokyo
+81-3-6837-7028
www.kirinholdings.com/en/
kirin-cc@kirin.co.jp

Public Relations Office
Immunosens Co., Ltd.
Open Innovation Lab 30602
National Cerebral and Cardiovascular Center
6-1 Kishibe-Shinmachi, Suita, Osaka, Japan
+81-6-6389-5501

Immunosens | original immunoassay method GLEIA
Immunosens@Immunosens.com