Toshio Hirano was born in 1947. He graduated from the Faculty of Medicine at Osaka University in 1972 and started his research carrier in 1973 with studies on the regulation of the development of cytotoxic T lymphocytes at the Gerontology Research Center (now called the National Institute on Aging), the National Institutes of Health, the USA. He returned to the Faculty of Medicine at Osaka University in 1976 to study B lymphocyte differentiation. In 1978, he moved to Osaka Prefectural Habikino Hospital, now the Osaka Prefectural Medical Center for Respiratory and Allergic Diseases, where he started his pioneering work on the characterization and isolation of soluble factors inducing B lymphocyte differentiation into antibody forming plasma cells. This study led to the discovery of interleukin 6 in 1986. Subsequent extensive studies demonstrated that IL-6 is a multifunctional cytokine involved in not only immune response but also acute phase reaction, inflammation, hematopoiesis, and so on and that IL-6 plays critical roles in autoimmune and inflammatory diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis. These basic studies have paved the way for drug development for these diseases. He was promoted to Professor at Osaka University in 1989 (to 2011). He acted as Director at Biomedical Research Center of Faculty of Medicine (1997-1999), Dean of Graduate School of Frontier Biosciences (2004-2006) and Dean of Graduate School of Medicine (2008-2011). He is currently President of Osaka University (2011 to present time). He is also Group Director at Research Center for Allergy and Immunology, RIKEN (2001 to 2012). Between 2005 and 2006, he was President of the Japanese Society for Immunology. He was awarded Erwin von Balz Prize in1986, CIBA-GEIGY Rheumatism Prize in1990, The Sandoz Prize for Immunology in 1992, Osaka Science Prize in1997, Mochida Memorial Prize in 1998, ISI Citation Laureate Award, 1981-98 in 2000, The Fujihara Prize in 2004, Medical Award of The Japan Medical Association in 2005, The Emperor's Purple Ribbon Medal in 2006, The Crafoord Prize in Polyarthritis from the Royal Swedish Academy of Science in 2009 and The Japan Prize in 2011.