International Center for Medical Research (ICMR), Kobe University School of Medicine, which would later be re-reorganized to be become International Center for Medical Research and Treatment (ICMRT), was established in April 1979 for the purpose of becoming “Center for Learning” to promote cooperative research/educational activities in the field of medical science between Japan and other Asian countries.

The Outline of ICMR activities, achieved during the past three decades, is more than what was originally expected. It is extremely effective means of promoting medical education and research activities in the counterpart countries. The academic results of the cooperation with the Asian countries have elucidated and will continue clarifying the global diversities of diseases and their pathogenesis, which would not have been accomplished if academic exchange had been carried out only with the western countries.

In April 2004, ICMR was re-organized to become the International Center for Medical Research and Treatment (ICMRT) to further promote the international collaboration and establish the “Center of Research and Learning in Asia” in the field of medicine and medical sciences.
As part of interdisciplinary program of ICMRT, in May 2007, Kobe University-affiliated Cooperative Research Center for Emerging and Reemerging Infectious Diseases (CRC-ERID) was established in Tropical Disease Center, Airlangga University, Indonesia, in May 2007 in the program of Founding Research Centers for Emerging and Re-emerging Infectious Diseases, under the auspices of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology JAPAN. The project for strengthening of malaria control had been carried out in Solomon Islands from December 2006 to February 2010 under the auspices of Japan International Cooperation Agency （JICA）.

On theses backgrounds, Kobe University Graduate School of Medicine has established Center for Infectious Diseases (CID) in April 2009 by re-reorganizing ICMRT. The purpose of CID is to become a comprehensive hub for the research and education of infectious diseases dealing with both basic biomedical science and clinical science at the molecular, cellular, individual and global levels. Infectious diseases being studied here include viral hepatitis, influenza, herpes virus infection, salmonellosis, etc

Also, the project “Identification of anti-hepatitis C virus (HCV) substances and development of HCV and dengue vaccines” has carried out cooperative activities with University of Indonesia and Airlangga University, Indonesia from February 2010 to February 2014 under the auspices of Japan International Cooperation Agency （JICA） and Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST) .