In the ranking of the world's "TOP 30 INSTITUTIONS IN IMMUNOLOGY", Osaka University was ranked No. 1.

Data for the ranking were based on the "Essential Science Indicators" database of Thomson Reuters (Jan. 2000 - Dec. 2010), and ranked by citation impact (citations per paper).

Prof. Shizuo Akira (Director of IFReC) greatly contributed to Osaka University's ranking. Of the 61 highly cited articles from the immunology faculty at Osaka University, 56 were by Prof. Akira's group. Prof. Shimon Sakaguchi, who joined IFReC from 2011, had previously contributed significantly to Kyoto University obtaining the 3rd ranking.
The research areas of specialization of Profs Akira and Sakaguchi are innate immunity and regulatory T cells, respectively.

TOP 30 INSTITUTIONS IN IMMUNOLOGY, 2000-2010 (THOMSON REUTERS)