| Kenichiro Itami | |
| Birth Date: | 4 April 1971 |
| Birth Place: | Pennsylvania, United States |
| Citizenship: | Japan |
| Nationality: | Japanese |
| Fields: | Chemistry Organic chemistry Synthetic chemistry Nanocarbon chemistry Molecular catalytic chemistry |
| Workplaces: | Kyoto University Nagoya University |
| Alma Mater: | Chemistry, Kyoto University, Japan |
| Thesis Title: | Transition Metal Catalyzed Cycloaddition of Vinylallenes |
| Thesis Url: | http://hdl.handle.net/2433/182325 |
| Doctoral Advisor: | Yoshihiko Ito |
| Known For: | Synthesis of Carbon Nanobelt |
is a Japanese chemist. He is a professor at Nagoya University in the Department of Chemistry, Graduate School of Science, director of Institute of Transformative Bio-Molecules (WPI-ITbM), Nagoya University and the Research Director of the Itami Molecular Nanocarbon Project (JST-ERATO). He received his Ph.D in Engineering from the Department of Synthetic Chemistry and Biological Chemistry from Kyoto University. Itami was held responsible, and the Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST) and the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS), which determine the allocation of government research funds, have stopped granting research funds as a penalty until the end of March 2025[1] from the university. Despite this, RIKEN, which is funded mainly by research fees from the government, hired Itami and obtained about 50 million yen in research funding. He pioneered a loophole that allowed him to obtain research funding by belonging to a national research corporation even if his research funding from the government was suspended due to research misconduct.[2]
Ken’ichiro Itami was born in Pennsylvania, United States.[3] After receiving his Ph.D under the supervision of Yoshihiki Ito, he was appointed as an assistant professor in Jun-ichi Yoshida’s lab in Kyoto University. Later in 2005, he was promoted to associate professor in Ryōji Noyori's laboratory in Nagoya University, where he later started his own laboratory in 2008. His research interests include the development of new strategies and methodologies in catalytic molecular synthesis through C–H transformation, rapid synthesis of new bioactive molecules, pharmaceutically relevant molecules and natural products, synthesis and properties of optoelectronic materials and controlled bottom-up synthesis of nanocarbons.[4] In 2017 and 2018, he was selected as a Highly Cited Researcher by Clarivate Analytics.[5]
Academic career
The Itami group retracted a study on graphene nanoribbons after being unable to reproduce a graduate-student researcher's results.[6] As a result of problems associated with several research papers, in 2022 Itami was banned for three years from receiving research support from the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science.[7] [8] As of 2023, the research misconduct has led to three of Itami's research publications being retracted and one other paper receiving an expression of concern.[9] Itami requested retraction of the papers in question once he realized he could not reproduce the results.
Itami was held responsible, and the Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST) and the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS), which determine the allocation of government research funds, have stopped granting research funds as a penalty until the end of March 2025[10] from the university. Despite this, RIKEN, which is funded mainly by research fees from the government, hired Itami and obtained about 50 million yen in research funding. He pioneered a loophole that allowed him to obtain research funding by belonging to a national research corporation even if his research funding from the government was suspended due to research misconduct.[11]
Focusing on connecting molecules to create value,[12] the Itami Group focuses on the development of new catalyst and new reactions for rapid syntheses of functional molecules including small molecules for plant biology and chronobiology, pharmaceuticals, p-conjugated organic materials, and molecular nanocarbons. In 2017, they succeeded in synthesizing the first ‘nanocarbon belt.’[13]