Do Stronger Patents Induce More Innovation? Evidence from the 1988 Japanese Patent Law Reforms

Does an expansion of patent scope induce more innovative effort by firms? This article provides evidence on this question by examining firm responses to the Japanese patent reforms of 1988. Interviews with practitioners suggest the reforms significantly expanded the scope of patent rights in Japan, but that the average response in terms of additional R&D effort and innovative output was quite modest. Interviews also suggest that firm organizational structure is an important determinant of the level of response. Econometric analysis using Japanese and U.S. patent data on 307 Japanese firms confirms that the magnitude of the response is quite small.

Japanese Research Consortia: A Microeconometric Analysis of Industrial Policy

The existence of strong spillover' effects of private R&D increases the potential social contribution of R&D but may depress the private incentives to undertake it. R&D consortia offer a potentially effective means of internalizing this externality, and a number of prominent economists have argued for public support of such consortia (e.g., Romer, 1993). Governments in Europe and North America have adopted policies to promote the formation of such consortia, motivated less by economic theory than by the perception that the Japanese government has used such policies to great effect (Tyson, 1992). Despite the existence of a large theoretical literature analyzing the potential benefits and costs of R&D consortia, there has been little corresponding empirical work on their efficacy. In this paper, we undertake the first large-sample econometric study of Japanese government-sponsored research consortia which uses firm-level data on research inputs and outputs to measure the impact of participation on the ex-post research productivity of the firm. We are able to find evidence that frequent participation in these consortia has a positive impact on research expenditure and research productivity. These results hold after controlling for the potential endogeneity of the intensity of participation in consortia to participating firms' research productivity. Furthermore, we find evidence that part of this impact arises from the increased knowledge spillovers that take place within these consortia. Not only are

When Do Research Consortia Work Well and Why? Evidence from Japanese Panel Data

We examine the impact of a large number of Japanese government-sponsored research consortia on the research productivity of participating firms by measuring their patenting in the targeted technologies before, during, and after participation. Consistent with the theoretical predictions of Katz (1986) and others, we find consortium outcomes are positively associated with the level of potential R&D spillovers within the consortium and (weakly) negatively associated with the degree of product market competition among consortium members. Furthermore, our evidence suggests that consortia are most effective when they focus on basic research.

Strategic research partnerships: Empirical evidence from Asia

This paper evaluates the role Strategic Research Partnerships (SRPs) play in Asia. Specific Asian institutional settings influence the roles of SRPs. Japan is regarded as a forerunner in the practice of SRPs. In Japan, lack of spillover channels, limited opportunities for mergers and acquisitions, weak university research and pressure for internal diversification motivate firms to form SRPs. In Korea, SRPs are regarded as a means to promote large-scale research projects. In Taiwan, SRPs are formed to facilitate technological diffusion. Empirical findings on SRPs, focusing on government-sponsored R&D consortia in Japan, are summarized. Issues regarding SRP formation, their effect on R&D spending of participating firms, and productivity, are examined. Reference is made to alternative forms of measurement of SRPs and their potential application to Asian countries is assessed. Enhancing the capacity of policy-makers to assess the extent and contribution of SRPs is considered to be a priority

Knowledge sharing in cooperative research and development

This article examines the effects of knowledge sharing or endogenous spillovers among R&D consortia participants on R&D competition when R&D enhances a firm's absorptive capacity. A game-theoretic model illustrates how different compositions of R&D consortia affect spillovers and R&D spending of participants. When a firm participates in a consortium whose members are from diverse industries, the model suggests that this participation increases spillover rates among participants and intensifies firms' R&D efforts to learn from other members in the consortium. An econometric analysis based on the panel data of 267 Japanese firms over 13 years shows evidence of this learning effect

DOCK2 is involved in the host genetics and biology of severe COVID-19

「コロナ制圧タスクフォース」COVID-19疾患感受性遺伝子DOCK2の重症化機序を解明 --アジア最大のバイオレポジトリーでCOVID-19の治療標的を発見--. 京都大学プレスリリース. 2022-08-10.Identifying the host genetic factors underlying severe COVID-19 is an emerging challenge. Here we conducted a genome-wide association study (GWAS) involving 2, 393 cases of COVID-19 in a cohort of Japanese individuals collected during the initial waves of the pandemic, with 3, 289 unaffected controls. We identified a variant on chromosome 5 at 5q35 (rs60200309-A), close to the dedicator of cytokinesis 2 gene (DOCK2), which was associated with severe COVID-19 in patients less than 65 years of age. This risk allele was prevalent in East Asian individuals but rare in Europeans, highlighting the value of genome-wide association studies in non-European populations. RNA-sequencing analysis of 473 bulk peripheral blood samples identified decreased expression of DOCK2 associated with the risk allele in these younger patients. DOCK2 expression was suppressed in patients with severe cases of COVID-19. Single-cell RNA-sequencing analysis (n = 61 individuals) identified cell-type-specific downregulation of DOCK2 and a COVID-19-specific decreasing effect of the risk allele on DOCK2 expression in non-classical monocytes. Immunohistochemistry of lung specimens from patients with severe COVID-19 pneumonia showed suppressed DOCK2 expression. Moreover, inhibition of DOCK2 function with CPYPP increased the severity of pneumonia in a Syrian hamster model of SARS-CoV-2 infection, characterized by weight loss, lung oedema, enhanced viral loads, impaired macrophage recruitment and dysregulated type I interferon responses. We conclude that DOCK2 has an important role in the host immune response to SARS-CoV-2 infection and the development of severe COVID-19, and could be further explored as a potential biomarker and/or therapeutic target