The Japanese Imperial Army, which experienced considerable setbacks due to unclean water sources during the Sino-Japanese War at the end of the 19th century, was working on solutions to combat infectious diseases. Surgeon-major , an instructor at the Military Medical College, discovered in 1903 that creosote agent was an effective suppressant for the typhoid fever pathogen. Taiko Pharmaceutical claims the Osaka-based medicine merchant developed the a year earlier in 1902 and initiated sales, which business was eventually handed over to Taiko.