Kōichi Tanaka, winner of the 2002 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, has been awarded an honorary doctorate from theUM
On July 9, 2026, Philippe Augé, President of the University of Montpellier, conferred the title of Doctor honoris causa from theUM upon Japanese researcher Kōichi Tanaka, winner of the 2002 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, during a ceremony held at the School of Dentistry in the presence of, among others, Mr. Hiroshi Kitagawa, Consul General of Japan in Marseille.
This honorary award recognizes an exceptional scientific career dedicated to innovation and advances in global health. Kōichi Tanaka is recognized worldwide for his major contributions to the development of MALDI (Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption/Ionization) technology, a groundbreaking advancement that has revolutionized the analysis of biological macromolecules and opened up new avenues in biomedical research, particularly in the field of biomarkers for Alzheimer’s disease.
An engineer and researcher at the Japanese company Shimadzu Corporation, Kōichi Tanaka embodies an approach to research that bridges fundamental science, technological innovation, and medical applications. His work continues to this day to have a major impact on the development of analytical tools used in laboratories around the world.
Through this award, the University of Montpellier, the School of Dentistry, and the Montpellier Clinical Proteomics Platform pay tribute to an exceptional scientist whose discoveries have had a profound impact on analytical chemistry, biology, and medicine, while strengthening the scientific and academic ties that bind the University of Montpellier and Japan.
