Mokutaro Kinoshita

Mokutaro Kinoshita (木下 杢太郎), August 1, 1885 - October 15, 1945) was a Japanese author and doctor.

He was born in Ito, Shizuoka as Masao Ota (太田正雄). He translated German literature with “Gathering of Pan” (パンの会) and studied documents of Japanese Christianity in 16th century. He wrote a play titled “切支丹物” (Kirisitan Mono) which depicted Kirishitan, Christian in feudal Japan.

Profile
He used the name Masao Ota professionally for his dermatology and leprosy research. Not only a dermatologist, he was a poet, a writer, and studied art history and history of Christianity. As professor of dermatology, he served in 4 universities (South Manchuria Medical College, Aichi Medical College, Tohoku Imperial University, Tokyo Imperial University.) His pen names included Horikason 堀花村、Chikaisshakusei,地下一尺生、Sounan葱南 and others.

His poems were called gorgeous, exotic (of Southeast and Medieval Christianity taste and hedonistic). Ogai Mori, a noted novelist, suggested that Ota should concentrate on literature, as his reputation was widespread, but Ota chose to become a dermatologist, and became Professor of Dermatology, Tokyo University and a famous leprosy researcher. Mokutaro had been active not only in the education of dermatologists, but also in literature. He died of gastric cancer in 1945 and he sleeps in the Tama Memorial Park. The house in which he was born is preserved as Kinoshita Mokutaro Memorial House.

Department of Dermatology

 * He entered the Department of Dermatology, since he respected Keizo Dohi, the first professor of dermatology at Tokyo University. At age 31, in 1916 he was named professor of dermatology at South Manchuria Medical University and earned his Ph.D. based on the culture of "Malassetia furfur". In 1920 he left Tokyo University to study mycology in France. He became known for the classification of Ota and Langeron, based on morphology.
 * His observations were very exact, and according to Hideyo Yamaguchi, this classification closely resembled the classification based on genes. In 1924, he was named professor of Dermatology, Aichi Medical University. In 1926, he went to Tohoku University.

Tokyo University

 * In 1937, he went to Tokyo University. His interest in leprosy increased and did experimental works intended for the inoculation of leprosy in which he failed. In 1938 he first presented the case which was later named Nevus of Ota in 1939.
 * In October 1945, he died of gastric cancer.

Nevus of Ota (Nevus Ota)
The Nevus of Ota is a birthmark, mostly seen in Mongoloid people. A bluish gray melanosis (the color of the Mongolian spot) involves the area innervated by the first and second branches of the trigeminal nerve, in one side(the upper side of the face). Melanosis involves the sclera of the eye. There are thinner brown freckles. The melanosis increases in intensity in childhood, but remains unchanged in adult life. Cosmetic camouflage is useful, though laser treatment is also tried.

Ota and Kensuke Mitsuda

 * Ota attended an International Leprosy Meeting at Bangkok and probably got interested in leprosy problems, according to Narita Knowing that Mitsuda had studied and described the Mitsuda reaction (Lepromin reaction), Ota lobbied for the publication of an international journal, and finally Hayashi F, wrote the first article on the Mitsuda reaction in its first issue
 * He opposed segregation of patients into sanatoriums. "Mitsuda firmly believed that leprosy is not cured. Segregation is not the only method. "
 * Ota had been in the right direction. It is to be deplorable that he died without knowing the work of Faget who discovered Promin, a wonder cure for leprosy, according to Narita.

Major works of Mokutaro Kinoshita

 * The Death of Youth (少年の死 Shonen no shi, 1915)
 * Sukanpo (すかんぽ, 1945)
 * On The Front of Christian Church (南蛮寺門前 Nanban ji monzen, 1909)
 * Memories of Gathering of Pan (パンの会の回想 Pan no kai no kaiso, 1926)
 * Binding (本の装釘 Hon no sotei, 1942)

External link

 * Kinoshita Mokutaro Memorial House, in Japanese