Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, The University of Tokyo
Laboratory of Protein Metabolism
Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, The University of Tokyo
People
Message
For a period of time after graduating medical school, I mainly examined patients with rheumatism and collagen disease as a physician of internal medicine. Without an understanding of the causes or mechanism of these diseases, I met too many patients who suffered because of a lack of fundamental treatments. This experience made the limits of modern medicine painfully clear, and triggered my decision to go into basic research. After entering graduate school, I knocked at the gate of Dr. Keiji Tanaka (Currently Director General of the Tokyo Metropolitan Institute of Medical Science), and immersed myself in research of the ubiquitin proteasome system during its boom period. I was possessed by the joy of unraveling biological phenomena with my own hands, and this experience ultimately led to my decision to abandon my career as a physician and become a researcher in basic science. Thereafter, I have pursued unraveling basic biological phenomena controlled by protein degradation. In this age when the applied sciences are extolled, basic research may perhaps be unappealing to young people. However, there can be no developments in clinical medicine without fundamental research, which forms the foundations for understanding diseases. For instance, my current research topic is ubiquitin-proteasome mediated protein degradation, and there was no one who could accurately foresee its importance at the time of its discovery thirty years ago. Yet today, it is becoming clear that the ubiquitin proteasome system is not only necessary for life, but also deeply connected to numerous diseases such as cancer, neurodegenerative disease, inflammation and immunological disease, and aging. While there are still numerous unsolved problems in this research field, the time is ripe for applying the fruits of our research in developing clinical treatments. In addition to continuing my pursuit of fundamental problems, I would like to make an effort to repay my debt to those patients who showed me the importance of research with through firsthand experience.
Biography
Education and Appointments
1994
B.A. and M.D., Faculty of medicine, The University of Tokyo
1994
Resident, The University of Tokyo Hospital
1995
Medical docotor, Japan community health care organization
1996
Ph.D Candidate in Graduate school of Medicine, The University of tokyo
2000
Ph.D in Graduate school of Medicine, The University of Tokyo
2000
Researcher, Japan Science and Technology Agency
2001
Researcher, The Tokyo Metropolitan Institute of Medical Science
2003
Researcher, Japan Science and Technology Agency
2005
Senior researcher, The Tokyo Metropolitan Institute of Medical Science
2007 -
Professor and M.D, Graduate School of Pharmaceutical sciences, The University of Tokyo
Awards and Honors
2006
Tokyo metropolitan organization for medical research researcher award
Unraveling the mechanism of proteasome (protein degradation enzyme) molecular assembly
The molecular biology society of Japan mitsubishi chemical encouragement award
Analysis of the diversity and molecular basis of mammalian proteasomes
2007
Minister of education, culture, sports, science and technology young researcher award in the science and technology field
Research of the mammalian proteasome in the life sciences field
Japanese bochemical society encouragement award
Research of regulation of the adaptive immunity system by the proteasome
2009
6th Japan society for the promotion of science award
Unraveling the diversity and biological significance of mammalian proteasomes
2018
Academic Award of the Mochida Memorial Foundation
Elucidation of molecular diversity and physiological function of the proteasome
2019
Academic Award of the Saburo Kakiuchi Memorial
Discovery of the thymoproteasome and its role in thymic selection
