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Research projects -- Regeneration

We are studying molecular mechanisms of photoreceptor proteins in the atomic level, and investigating regeneration and evolution of vertebrate vision.

1. Molecular mechanism of photoreceptor proteins

Photoreceptor proteins are activated by absorbing light and change their structure, that leads to play their physiological function. We are studying how the energy of photon is transferred to the structural change of photoreceptor proteins by, for example, low-temperature spectroscopy and ultra-fast laser flash photometry (Click the photo to see our femto-second laser system).

2. CREST project

We have many organs that consist of variety of cells. Cells have intracellular micro-organs that are further composed of proteins and other molecules. In each class, the function and alignments of the components are quite important for the function of the higher-order components. A CREST project "Protein module: From nano assembling to micro multiplitation (project leader, Fumio Tokunaga)" has started from November 2002. In this project, we are attempting to construct artificial bio-organs, by making modules of the lower-order components (Click the figure to see the strategy of our project).

3. Molecular mechanism of retinal regeneration

A vertebrate retina is usually difficult to regenerate except at an embryonic stage in life. However, newts possess the ability to regenerate a functional retina from retinal pigment epithelial cells even as adults. We are investigating genes expressed during regeneration to understand the molecular mechanism of retinal regeneration.

4. Evolution of vertebrate phototransduction systems

Light triggers an enzymatic cascade, called the phototransduction cascade, that leads to the excitation of photoreceptor cells. Phototransduction proteins involved in this cascade are known to have some isoforms which have distinct physicochemical properties. We are investigating the molecular properties and distribution of these isoforms, and studying the diversity of vertebrate photoreceptor cells.

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