Dr. Taniguchi graduated from Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan and obtained his MD degree in 1967 and then PhD degree from the same university in 1972. He became an assistant professor of the Department of Preventive Medicine, Hokkaido University and visiting associate professor at the Cornell University Medical School, New York in 1976. After he came back to Japan, he became associate professor at Graduate School of Environmental Science and then Cancer Institute, Hokkaido University Medical School. In 1986 he became Professor and Chair of Department of Biochemistry Osaka University Medical School. In 2006 after retirement from medical school, he became endowed chair professor at Osaka University and professor emeritus. Meanwhile, he launched Systems Glycobiology Research Group at RIKEN, Advanced Science Institute in 2007 as the group director. In 2019 he became a chair for the Department of Glyco-Oncology and Medical Biochemistry, Research Center of Osaka International Cancer Institute (OICI) and since 2020 he has been a director of Research Center, OICI and honorable researcher of RIKEN.

He holds honorary memberships of the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Japan Biochemical Society, Japan Cancer Association etc., and is a member of Japan Science Council. He received the International Glycoconjugate Organization IGO award, HUPO human proteome organization distinguished service award USA, IUBMB medal Greece, Purple Ribbon Award Japan, Takada Foundation award Japan, International Glycoconjugate Organization (IGO) Award, Karl Meyer Award from Society for Glycobiolgy USA, and Japan Academy Award. etc. He is focusing on Structure and Function of Glycans, especially the role of N-linked glycoproteins in relation to the mechanism of the disease biomarker discovery and therapeutics. He is also working on redox regulation including glutathione and superoxide dismutase and non-enzymatic glycosylation Maillard reaction.