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Molecular Mechanisms of Life Lab
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The lab seeks to uncover biological phenomena at the molecular level through autophagy and liquid–liquid phase separation.
AboutAbout the lab
Uncovering autophagy and phase separation at the molecular level.
The lab studies, at the molecular level, the mechanism of autophagy, in which cells degrade their own components.
Its approach draws on the concept of liquid–liquid phase separation, in which proteins assemble into liquid-like condensates, and on information about protein three-dimensional structures.
The lab pursues two lines of research in parallel: reconstituting complex phenomena in a simplified form in the test tube, and studies using yeast and mammalian cells.
The lab belongs to the Institute for Genetic Medicine and also serves as the Molecular Mechanisms of Life Laboratory in the Department of Immune Science at the Graduate School of Medicine.
Key terms
- Autophagy
- Autophagy: a mechanism by which a cell engulfs and degrades its own proteins, organelles, and other components. It helps maintain the cell's condition.
- Liquid–liquid phase separation
- Liquid–liquid phase separation: a phenomenon in which proteins and nucleic acids gather together and form membrane-less, liquid-like condensates inside cells.
- AlphaFold2
- AlphaFold2: a program that predicts the three-dimensional structure of a protein with high accuracy from its amino acid sequence alone.
NewsLab news
Joint research with Yokohama City University and others reveals how the lipid-degrading enzyme Atg15 breaks down membranes safely
Joint research with Osaka University and others discovers a new temperature sensor inside cells
Joint research with Nagoya University and others discovers a quality control mechanism that assists the folding of membrane proteins
Joint research with Juntendo University and others discovers a new quality control mechanism that protects neurons
Joint research with Institute of Science Tokyo reconstitutes the early steps of autophagy in vitro
ResearchResearch themes
The lab aims to clarify a wide range of biological phenomena at the molecular level with two approaches: understanding the collective behavior of proteins through the concept of liquid–liquid phase separation, and investigating protein function using three-dimensional structural information. In addition to autophagy, which it has focused on until now, the lab has begun work to elucidate the mechanisms of higher-order biological phenomena such as sleep.
*Illustrative imageMechanisms of autophagy
Autophagy proceeds through the cooperation of several dozen Atg proteins. The lab examines the structure and function of each protein and reconstitutes the process in the test tube using purified proteins and artificial membranes. It also combines these with analyses in yeast and cultured cells.
*Illustrative imageBiological phenomena controlled by liquid–liquid phase separation
The lab focuses on liquid–liquid phase separation, in which proteins and nucleic acids assemble into liquid-like condensates and create "compartments" with specific functions inside cells, and investigates its roles in biological phenomena including autophagy.
*Illustrative imageElucidating function based on three-dimensional structure
Drawing on the three-dimensional structures of Atg proteins that it has determined experimentally, together with structure predictions from AlphaFold2, the lab rationally investigates protein function from structural information.
*Illustrative imageThe mechanism of sleep from the perspective of proteins
In collaboration with the University of Tsukuba, the lab studies the function of Nemuri, a sleep-promoting protein discovered in Drosophila. The research is guided by the hypothesis that sleep is induced when proteins undergo liquid–liquid phase separation in the brain.
MembersFaculty
The members of the Molecular Mechanisms of Life Lab are faculty, postdoctoral researchers, academic researchers, research support staff, technical assistants, administrative assistants, doctoral and master's students, and visiting researchers.As of 2026
- ProfessorNobuo Noda
- Associate ProfessorYuko Fujioka
- Project LecturerTakuma Tsuji
- Assistant ProfessorDaisuke Noshiro
- Project Assistant ProfessorEigo Takeda
- Project Assistant ProfessorSuguru Nishinami
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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: “Autophagosomes” Genericuser / Public domain (cropped)
- Mechanisms of autophagy: “1ugm bio r 500” Hannes Röst / Public domain (cropped)
- Biological phenomena controlled by liquid–liquid phase separation: “HeLa-Tubulin-HSP60-Fibrillarin-DNA” GerryShaw / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Elucidating function based on three-dimensional structure: “Cryo-EM structure of bovine phosphodiesterase 6 bound to IBMX - 8ULG” Aplin C, Cerione RA / CC0 (cropped)
- The mechanism of sleep from the perspective of proteins: “Drosophila melanogaster - side (aka)” André Karwath aka Aka / CC BY-SA 2.5 (cropped)
- Related lab (Cardiovascular Surgery Lab): “A moulage of heart” Realmastery / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (Molecular Neuroimmunology Lab): “Fluorescently Labeled Microglia in a Coronal Brain Section from a C57 Mouse” Syed07 / CC BY 4.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (Histology and Cell Biology Lab): “Z MaxProjection of MediumSpinyNeurons Gpr101Cre dtTomato” Bruttokolliko / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (Stem Cell Biology Lab): “"Forest of memory"” RebecaCuesta / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
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