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Biochemistry Lab
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The lab explores new functions and mechanisms of enzymes that act on carbohydrates.
AboutAbout the lab
Finding new functions of enzymes that act on sugars
The Biochemistry Lab studies enzymes involved in carbohydrate metabolism.
Carbohydrates have highly diverse structures, and the enzymes that act on them are also diverse, so many enzymes are thought to remain unknown in nature.
The lab finds enzymes with new functions and clarifies what they do and the protein structures that underlie their activity, aiming to develop better enzymes and to produce useful substances.
Working with plants and microorganisms, the lab bases its research on biochemical experiments and also incorporates methods from molecular biology and organic chemistry.
Key terms
- Phosphorolysis
- A reaction that cleaves the bonds between sugars using phosphate instead of water. When run in reverse, it can also join sugars together
- Crystal structure
- The three-dimensional arrangement of atoms in a protein, read by crystallizing the protein and exposing it to X-rays
- Gut microbiota
- The community of many kinds of bacteria living in the intestine, including bifidobacteria and lactic acid bacteria
NewsLab news
A master's student received a Poster Award at the Japanese Society of Applied Glycoscience 2026 Annual Meeting
A paper on α-glucanotransferase was accepted by the FEBS Journal
A master's student received a Poster Award at the Japanese Society of Applied Glycoscience 2025 Annual Meeting
A paper on the reaction mechanism of cellobiose 2-epimerase was accepted by Bioscience, Biotechnology, and Biochemistry
An undergraduate student received an Outstanding Presentation Award at the Hokkaido Branch Lecture Meeting of the Japanese Society of Applied Glycoscience
ResearchResearch themes
Carbohydrates are not only an energy source for organisms but also substances involved in forming the body and transmitting information. The lab finds carbohydrate-metabolizing enzymes with new functions and investigates their activity and structure, aiming to link them to enzyme development and the production of useful substances.
*Illustrative imageStructure and function of cellobiose 2-epimerase
The lab studies a rare enzyme that changes the configuration of sugars, found in bacteria living in the cow's stomach (rumen). Together with a research group at the Graduate School of Life Science, it determined the crystal structure and inferred the reaction mechanism from that structure.
*Illustrative imageDevelopment of epilactose, a functional oligosaccharide
When this enzyme acts on lactose, it produces epilactose, a rare oligosaccharide. Rat studies showed that epilactose improves the gut microbiota, and the lab found a thermostable enzyme suitable for industrial production and built a system for continuous production.
*Illustrative imageβ-Mannan metabolism by a combination of enzymes
The lab investigates a pathway in which an enzyme that changes sugar configuration and a phosphorolytic enzyme work as a pair to degrade β-mannan, a polysaccharide. It also discovered a new enzyme from rumen bacteria that degrades long mannooligosaccharides.
*Illustrative imageThree-dimensional structure of mannoside phosphorylases
The lab determined the crystal structures of two enzymes involved in β-mannan metabolism. Differences in the shape of the loop at the substrate-binding region are thought to determine whether an enzyme prefers disaccharides or longer oligosaccharides.
MembersFaculty
The Biochemistry Lab consists of faculty members and undergraduate and graduate students.As of 2026
- ProfessorHaruhide Mori
- Associate ProfessorWataru Saburi
- Assistant ProfessorTomoya Ota
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Report an errorAbout the images
The top and research theme images are illustrative and were not taken at the lab. They are cropped from Wikimedia Commons images. Cropped CC BY-SA images are provided under the same CC BY-SA license as the original (version shown on each line).
- Top image: “Jodprobe” Flo Sorg / Public domain (cropped)
- Structure and function of cellobiose 2-epimerase: “Contented cows chewing their cud - geograph.org.uk - 7763621” Mick Garratt / CC BY-SA 2.0 (cropped)
- Development of epilactose, a functional oligosaccharide: “A person is pouring white milk into a glass cup” Shixart1985 / CC BY 2.0 (cropped)
- β-Mannan metabolism by a combination of enzymes: “BacteroidesFragilis Gram” Content Providers(s): CDC/Dr. V.R. Dowell, Jr. / Public domain (cropped)
- Three-dimensional structure of mannoside phosphorylases: “Lysozyme crystals” Ilyassova Bayan / CC0 (cropped)
- Related lab (Bioorganic Chemistry Lab): “Jasmonic acid molecule ball” Jynto (talk) / CC0 (cropped)
- Related lab (Food and Nutrition Lab): “Foods with a high fibre content, such as bread, grains, chia seeds and nuts” formulatehealth / CC BY 2.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (Environmental Life Geochemistry Lab): “Dairy cows grazing near Trefonen - geograph.org.uk - 555401” John Haynes / CC BY-SA 2.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (Food Function Chemistry Lab): “Intestinal villi through microscope” Jamil Baza / CC BY 4.0 (cropped)
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