Japanese manga artist Toriyama Akira, known globally for such works as "Dragon Ball" and "Dr. Slump," has died at the age of 68.

The official website of the Weekly Shonen Jump magazine said Toriyama died of acute subdural hematoma on March 1.

Toriyama was born in Aichi Prefecture, central Japan. He published his first work with Shonen Jump in 1978.

He achieved huge success with the "Dr. Slump" manga series that began in 1980. It was made into an animated series.

His most famous work, "Dragon Ball," came out in 1984. The main character, Son Goku, battles various villains.

The manga series sold more than 260 million copies worldwide. There have been "Dragon Ball" animations, games and a Hollywood movie.

Toriyama also designed characters for a popular game series, "Dragon Quest".

His characters are loved by manga fans and inspired many cartoonists.

The weekly magazine posted a condolence message on its website. It said the attractive characters created by Toriyama and his overwhelming sense of design had a major impact on many manga artists.