Assistant Affiliate Member, Research Institute
Houston Methodist
Dr. Sakamoto is a faculty member of The Methodist Hospital Research Institute in Houston, Texas, where he leads research efforts developing novel nano-therapeutic drug delivery systems and nano-based proteomics technologies. He is a co-inventor of the multi-stage nanoporous silicon nanovector delivery system technology that is currently being commercialized by Leonardo BioSystems. Dr. Sakamoto serves as an Interim Co-Chair of the Department of Nanomedicine at TMHRI. He also serves as the Chief Operating Officer of the Alliance for NanoHealth. The Alliance is a consortium of eight institutions of the Greater Houston Texas Region. The mission of the Alliance is to collectively bridge the disciplines to develop nanotechnology-based solutions to unresolved problems in medicine and to facilitate the clinical translation of these new technologies through commercialization. Dr. Sakamoto also serves as a consultant for the Arrowhead Research Corporation, assigned to the technology and business development of Leonardo Biosystems.
Prior to his services in Houston, Dr. Sakamoto completed his undergraduate degree in Material Science Engineering from the University of California at Berkeley under the mentorship of Dr. Mauro Ferrari. After graduating, he entered the medical device industry and was employed as coronary and peripheral stent manufacturing and process engineer at the Guidant Corporation in Santa Clara, California. During these years at Guidant, he played a significant role in the regulatory approval process of three medical devices and was responsible for the GMP production of coronary/peripheral stents for over a year. After Guidant, he rejoined Dr. Ferrari's research team and received his doctorate in Biomedical Engineering from The Ohio State University. Upon completion of his Ph.D., Dr. Sakamoto remained as a post-doctoral researcher in Dr. Ferrari's nanomedicine research group, while working as a business development consultant for several biotech start-ups. He has written several publications on nanomedicine including peer-reviewed journal articles and book chapters, and is an inventor on two pending U.S. patent applications.
Dr. Sakamoto leads the Nanochip Proteomics program in the Department of Nanomedicine. This technology analyzes proteomic signatures of the low molecular weight proteome and peptidome found in bodily fluids to monitor disease progression and patient response to therapy. He also develops novel nanovector therapeutics for cancer and other clinical applications.
