Biomolecular Characterization Team
This team is engaged in structural characterization of biological molecules and in development of methodology for analysis of them to elucidate biological phenomena. Proteins in particular cause the biological phenomena and have various biological activities. Investigation of protein structures helps us to elucidate a mechanism of the biological activities, regulation of the activities, or gene functions. We support biological researchers by developing equipment and analytical methods and managing them, or giving advice on methodologies. A qualitative identification of small amount of proteins becomes easy with the development of the mass spectrometry, the excellent database, and the search program of it. The structural analysis and quantitative analysis of proteins with unknown modification or sequence is, however, still difficult. We are wrestling with development of new characterization methods for such proteins by combining sophisticated mass spectrometry with chemical methods. Our activities include mass spectrometry, protein chemical analyses, ultracentrifugal analysis, and x-ray analysis. We also established mail-in system with RIKEN SPring-8 center to deliver protein crystals prepared in Wako campus.
- Development and application of analytical methods for structural details on biological molecules
- Development of quantitative analysis of biomolecules
- Studies on structural biology and its related technologies
- RNA mass spectrometry
- Octorber 06,2010
- First-ever system for automatic protein hydrolysis developed using solid acid catalyst
- April 16, 2007
- Bioarchitect Research Group and Biomolecular Characterization Team in DRI produced contractile myofiber cells from myofibroblast by making use of intracellular stress.
- Nishimasu H, Okudaira S, Hama K, Mihara E, Dohmae N, Inoue A, Ishitani R, Takagi J, Aoki J, Nureki O.:
"Crystal structure of autotaxin and insight into GPCR activation by lipid mediators."
Nat Struct Mol Biol., 18(2):205-12 (2011) - Hamamoto R, Cho HS, Suzuki T, Dohmae N, Hayami S, Unoki M, Yoshimatsu M, Toyokowa G, Takawa M, Chen T, Kurash JK, Field H, Ponder BA, Nakamura Y.:
"Demethylation of RB regulator MYPT1 by histone demethylase LSD1 promotes cell cycle progression in cancer cells."
Cancer Res., 71(3):655-60 (2011) - Masuda A, Dohmae N.:
"Automated Protein Hydrolysis Delivering Sample to a Solid Acid Catalyst for Amino Acid Analysis."
Anal Chem. , 82(21), 8939-45(2010) - Kuraishi T, Nakagawa Y, Nagaosa K, Hashimoto Y, Ishimoto T, Moki T, Fujita Y, Nakayama H, Dohmae N, Shiratsuchi A, Yamamoto N, Ueda K, Yamaguchi M, Awasaki T, Nakanishi Y.:
"Pretaporter, a Drosophila protein serving as a ligand for Draper in the phagocytosis of apoptotic cells."
EMBO J., 28(24):3868-78 (2009) - Arakawa T, Kawano Y, Katayama Y, Nakayama H, Dohmae N, Yohda M, Odaka M.:
"Structural Basis for Catalytic Activation of Thiocyanate Hydrolase Involving Metal-Ligated Cysteine Modification."
J Am Chem Soc., 131(41):14838-43 (2009) - Nishimura K, Okudaira H, Ochiai E, Higashi K, Kaneko M, Ishii I, Nishimura T, Dohmae N, Kashiwagi K, Igarashi K.:
"Identification of proteins whose synthesis is preferentially enhanced by polyamines at the level of translation in mammalian cells."
Int J Biochem Cell Biol., 41(11):2251-61 (2009) - Nakayama H, Akiyama M, Taoka M, Yamauchi Y, Nobe Y, Ishikawa H, Takahashi N, Isobe T.:
"Ariadne: a database search engine for identification and chemical analysis of RNA using tandem mass spectrometry data."
Nucleic Acids Res., 37(6):e47 (2009) - Kurokawa K, Lee H, Roh KB, Asanuma M, Kim YS, Nakayama H, Shiratsuchi A, Choi Y, Takeuchi O, Kang HJ, Dohmae N, Nakanishi Y, Akira S, Sekimizu K, Lee BL.:
"The Triacylated ATP Binding Cluster Transporter Substrate-binding Lipoprotein of Staphylococcus aureus Functions as a Native Ligand for Toll-like Receptor 2."
J Biol Chem., 284(13):8406-11 (2009) - Tsukazaki T, Mori H, Fukai S, Ishitani R, Mori T, Dohmae N, Perederina A, Sugita Y, Vassylyev DG, Ito K, Nureki O.:
"Conformational transition of Sec machinery inferred from bacterial SecYE structures."
Nature, 455(7215):988-91 (2008) - Kawatani M, Okumura H, Honda K, Kanoh N, Muroi M, Dohmae N, Takami M, Kitagawa M, Futamura Y, Imoto M, Osada H.:
"The identification of an osteoclastogenesis inhibitor through the inhibition of glyoxalase I."
Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U. S. A., 105(33):11691-6 (2008)
Principal Investigator
- Naoshi DOHMAE
- Team Head
Staff Scientist
- Nobuhiro MORISHIMA
- Senior Research Scientist
- Hideyuki MIYATAKE
- Senior Research Scientist
- Hiroshi NAKAYAMA
- Senior Research Scientist
- Kowashi WATANABE
- Senior Technical Scientist
- Takehiro SUZUKI
- Technical Scientist
Postdoctoral Fellow
- Akiko MASUDA
- ASI Technical Scientist

