TL;DR — Sarcopenia was only classified as a disease in 2016, and one of its key mechanisms is a slow-burning chronic inflammation that has been smoldering inside the body for decades. Japanese startup HumanLifeCord cultures the youngest mesenchymal stromal cells from newborn umbilical cords into a therapeutic product, where one cord yields hundreds to thousands of doses, and aims to bring it to market within four years, extinguishing that fire at the source to extend healthspan.

As people age, the body starts to give way. Most people chalk up the aches, the weakness, the difficulty walking to getting old, and then they accept it. But what if that decline is actually a fire, one that has been smoldering inside for decades, never fully put out?

That is how Masamichi Harada, president of Tokyo-based startup HumanLifeCord (HLC, Chuo-ku, Tokyo), reframes aging in an interview with JST Science Portal, published by the Japan Science and Technology Agency. The disease he is going after is sarcopenia. His material is the umbilical cord: roughly 50 centimeters of tissue typically discarded as medical waste after birth. What follows is compiled and translated from that interview, tracing the science behind the technology and the commercialization roadmap the company has laid out for the next four years.

Is sarcopenia aging, or is it a disease?

It is a disease. One that was only formally recognized and classified as requiring treatment in 2016.

The broad, age-related decline of body and mind is known medically as frailty. Sarcopenia is more specific: a condition defined by loss of muscle mass and muscle strength that makes walking and getting up from a chair increasingly difficult. In 2016, the United States formally assigned it a code in the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-10-CM M62.84), giving it a precise definition and establishing it as something diagnosable and treatable. In Japan, where the population is aging faster than almost anywhere else, preventing sarcopenia from eroding quality of life has become urgent. Clinically, it is assessed primarily through grip strength and muscle mass measurements.

So where does it come from? Harada’s answer is inflammation. The human body has a natural capacity to repair itself when injured or ill, but that capacity weakens with age, giving rise to a state called inflammaging: a chronic, low-grade inflammation that persists indefinitely. Think of it as a fire that never fully goes out. Over time, it breaks down muscle tissue, damages blood vessels, accelerates aging, and raises the risk of diabetes and dementia as organ function declines. Conversely, if that chronic inflammation can be brought under control, there is reason to think healthspan can be extended alongside it.

Why umbilical cords?

Because the cells inside them are the youngest the human body produces.

HLC’s approach is to use cells extracted from umbilical cords to suppress inflammation and promote tissue regeneration, building a new class of therapies for age-related diseases. The cells in question are mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs). They can repair and support the regeneration of tissue damaged by inflammation, and they have intrinsic capacity to calm inflammation and modulate immune response. The MSCs found in the umbilical cord, which connects mother to newborn, are exceptionally young cells.

By comparison, cells harvested from bone marrow and similar sources decline in proliferative and regenerative capacity as donors age. Cord-derived MSCs proliferate rapidly and carry no donor-age penalty, which means consistent, reliable quality. Harada’s premise is straightforward: culture these repair-active cells into a pharmaceutical-grade product, and you have a mechanism for restoring function to a body that has been weakened.

The mechanistic insight is what turns this premise into a genuine technical asset. Cells in the body communicate with one another through proteins called cytokines, which carry signals to suppress inflammation and direct repair. MSCs are major producers of these proteins, functioning as coordinators in that process. In January 2026, HLC identified the mechanism by which specific cytokines inhibit muscle atrophy and secured a related patent in Japan; a corresponding utility patent covering efficacy and indication is pending in the United States. Their research demonstrated that cord-derived cells can suppress factors that promote muscle breakdown while activating the cells involved in muscle formation. In a field where no one has previously treated sarcopenia with cell therapy, that constitutes a defensible competitive position.

Key figures

  • Yield per cord: hundreds to thousands of doses (serum-free, standardized process)
  • Cord length: approximately 50 cm; previously discarded as medical waste in most cases
  • Cryogenic storage: liquid nitrogen at -196°C
  • Disease classification: 2016 (ICD-10-CM M62.84)
  • Key patent: January 2026, mechanism by which specific cytokines inhibit muscle atrophy

How does one umbilical cord become thousands of doses?

The answer lies in a fully serum-free, standardized manufacturing process developed in collaboration with the University of Tokyo.

HLC worked with the Institute of Medical Science at the University of Tokyo (IMSUT) to develop a production system that uses no human or animal-derived serum at any stage. This completely serum-free culture protocol, combined with standardized procedures, is capable of producing hundreds to thousands of uniform doses from a single cord. A cord that has completed its biological function, roughly 50 cm in length, would ordinarily be treated as medical waste. IMSUT’s Cord Blood and Cord Bank obtains maternal consent, then carefully recovers each cord, washes it thoroughly, and sections the tissue into small pieces.

The team led by Associate Professor Tokiko Nagamura at the hospital’s Cell Processing and Transfusion Service developed a method to extract cells from those tissue fragments more efficiently. The cells are cultured in fully serum-free medium at 37°C, matching core body temperature, with controlled humidity and CO₂ concentration. After proliferation, each batch undergoes multiple rounds of testing: confirming MSC identity, ruling out viral and bacterial contamination, and verifying functional immunomodulatory capacity. Only then are the cells placed into cryogenic storage at -196°C in liquid nitrogen. The proprietary cryopreservation solution that protects cells from damage at the moment of freezing is itself a patent held by Associate Professor Nagamura.

These cryopreserved stocks are called master cells. When needed, they are thawed and expanded through repeated culture, ultimately becoming the cord-derived MSC product designated HLC-001. Every step of this production chain takes place within the Cell Processing Center at the IMSUT hospital.

Why couldn’t Japan use umbilical cords before?

The barrier was regulatory, not scientific.

The utility of MSCs had long been recognized both in Japan and abroad. What held Japan back was a structural constraint: local government ordinances governing afterbirth classified the umbilical cord as waste material. Even for research purposes, hospitals had no legal pathway to use it. HLC spent years making the case to government agencies and medical institutions. In 2019, that effort produced a result: Tokyo revised its afterbirth ordinance, and Japan established for the first time a framework that formally recognized umbilical cords as a medical resource. HLC then built a network of partner obstetrics hospitals across the country to secure a reliable supply chain.

This step is easy to gloss over as administrative detail. It was not. A technology can be as mature as it likes; if its raw material is legally classified as garbage, it cannot enter formal medicine. Reclassifying the umbilical cord from waste to resource was, in effect, a prerequisite. The science only had somewhere to land after the rules changed.

Where does the clinical program stand? From leukemia to sarcopenia

The first indication they chose is one where the stakes are immediate.

HLC is currently running a Phase 3 clinical trial, the final stage before applying for national approval, targeting non-infectious pulmonary complications, a serious condition that can occur in leukemia patients. The strategy is deliberate: pursue approval in a life-threatening, difficult-to-treat rare disease first, establish a track record as a certified regenerative medicine product, then use that foundation to validate and expand the application to sarcopenia and other age-related conditions. In parallel, the company is working with Tokyo University of Science on MSC-based therapies for refractory autoimmune diseases that have not responded to existing drugs; early-stage research has produced results suggesting potential efficacy.

International expansion is proceeding alongside the domestic program. In Brazil, HLC conducted clinical research evaluating sarcopenia in elderly subjects, with results presented at an international conference in March 2026. The study analyzed metabolites in blood samples from elderly individuals with sarcopenic symptoms and identified candidate biomarkers capable of distinguishing sarcopenic status, potentially useful both for diagnosis and for measuring the effectiveness of cell therapy. Brazil was chosen because it is a rapidly aging emerging nation and a multiethnic society; data from that population provides insight into sarcopenia characteristics across diverse backgrounds. In the United States, HLC is partnering with the New York Blood Center, the largest independent nonprofit blood bank in the country, to transfer the manufacturing and quality management systems developed in Japan and advance international standardization of cell production. Cross-border regenerative medicine faces one persistent obstacle: each jurisdiction has its own pharmaceutical regulations and ethical standards, and the FDA and EMA each impose distinct requirements for quality, safety evaluation, and approval. There is no shortcut around adapting to each one.

Within four years, could it be as routine as an IV drip?

That is exactly the endpoint Harada describes.

Once HLC-001 receives approval as a regenerative medicine product, the company’s goal is public health insurance coverage, and through iterative improvement of large-scale manufacturing, to make cell therapy accessible, affordable, and trusted enough that elderly patients receive it at hospital the way they would a standard infusion. The supply chain supporting that vision has a clear division of labor: Rohto Pharmaceutical for commercial-scale manufacturing and stable production; Alfresa for pharmaceutical distribution and the logistics of reaching medical institutions nationwide; Mochida Pharmaceutical for clinical development and commercialization expertise, formalized through a joint development agreement. Research, manufacturing, and distribution form a single continuous chain.

The financing is keeping pace. HLC closed a roughly ¥2 billion funding round in December 2025 to accelerate commercial investment. The company is currently operating at a recurring loss, as expected for a development-stage company, but the Mochida agreement provides a pathway to share development costs and establish a route to profitability. Earlier, in September 2023, HLC obtained manufacturing and marketing authorization from the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare for regenerative medicine products, crossing the threshold from research into formal commercial-stage operations. Harada’s sequencing is clear: secure regulatory approval, launch HLC-001 within four years, then expand horizontally into sarcopenia. The patient population is growing across every country. Cell therapy is the option he is trying to add.

Making “getting old” something you can intervene in

Masamichi Harada was born in Nagoya in 1972. He studied agricultural science at Gifu University, conducted research in genetic engineering, and went on to work in clinical development and commercial functions at Nippon Kayaku, Amgen, and Celgene. He completed an MBA in New York in 2014, and in 2017 co-founded HumanLifeCord in partnership with IMSUT.

Step back and look at the longer arc, and what is being rewritten is not a single drug. It is our posture toward aging itself. For most of human history, aches and weakness were attributed to age and accepted as fate. When a piece of that aging gets decomposed into a specific, observable mechanism (chronic inflammation), it shifts from something endured to something addressed. The slow-burning fire is still there. But at least now, people are seriously working on how to put it out.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: How do umbilical cord-derived stem cells differ from bone marrow or adipose-derived stem cells?

The key difference is age. The umbilical cord connects mother and newborn, and the mesenchymal stromal cells it contains are among the youngest in the human body. They proliferate rapidly, maintain consistent quality, and are unaffected by donor age. Cells harvested from bone marrow or adipose tissue decline in proliferative and regenerative capacity as the donor gets older. A single umbilical cord can also yield hundreds to thousands of doses, putting it in an entirely different supply category.

Q: When could this treatment become available, and will it require out-of-pocket payment?

According to President Harada in the interview, HumanLifeCord’s target is to bring its first product, HLC-001, to market as a regenerative medicine product within four years, and to pursue coverage under public health insurance. The long-term vision is for it to become as routine as an IV drip for elderly patients in hospital. Until formal approval is granted, these remain development-stage goals, not a therapy available today.

Q: Could using someone else’s umbilical cord cells cause an immune rejection?

Mesenchymal stromal cells possess intrinsic immunomodulatory properties, which is precisely why they are used to suppress inflammation. After proliferation, cells undergo multiple rounds of verification (confirming MSC identity, absence of viral or bacterial contamination, and functional immunomodulatory capacity) before cryogenic storage. The complete safety profile of any cell therapy ultimately rests on the results of clinical trials and regulatory review in each jurisdiction.

Q: Is cell therapy the only option for sarcopenia? Don’t exercise and diet still matter?

This article focuses on cell therapy as a new avenue; it does not displace existing approaches. Regular resistance training and adequate protein intake remain the foundation of sarcopenia prevention. Cell therapy targets chronic inflammation, which conventional methods have difficulty addressing directly. They operate at different levels; one does not replace the other.

About this article: Compiled and translated from the JST Science Portal series “A Society of 100-Year Lives: The Science Supporting It (Part 4),” original title “Challenging Sarcopenia with Umbilical Cord-Derived Cells,” published July 6, 2026. Reported and written by science writer Eiji Kondo (近藤英次); interviewee: Masamichi Harada, president of HumanLifeCord. All technical and commercial details reflect statements made by President Harada in that interview. The Chinese compilation, segment restructuring, and translation were produced by this site; the ICD-10-CM M62.84 disease code for sarcopenia was independently verified. For more on health and the body: Contemplation & Memory → Health & the Body.

Source: https://scienceportal.jst.go.jp/stories/20260706_s01/