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Biomolecular Dynamics Lab (Takano Lab)
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The lab uses signal transduction to uncover how cancer is suppressed and how muscle is built.
AboutAbout the lab
Connecting and reading the signals inside cells.
The Biomolecular Dynamics Lab studies signal transduction, the mechanisms that transmit information inside cells.
Cell functions are controlled by a series of reactions in which receptors receive information from outside and relay it inside.
DA-Raf, a protein discovered by this lab, suppresses the Ras–ERK pathway, which is involved in carcinogenesis.
The lab studies the function of DA-Raf and the mechanisms by which skeletal muscle is formed and regenerated, from the perspective of signal transduction.
Key terms
- Signal transduction
- A series of mechanisms by which a cell receives external stimuli, relays them inside, and triggers a response
- Ras–ERK pathway
- A representative signaling flow that drives cell proliferation and differentiation. Overactivity can cause cancer
- Membrane tension
- The degree to which the cell membrane is stretched. It is involved in shaping cells and in cell–cell fusion
NewsLab news
View More ↗ResearchResearch themes
Inside cells, a series of reactions receives information from outside and transmits it, and when its regulation breaks down, disease can result. From the perspective of signal transduction, including DA-Raf discovered by this lab, the lab studies the mechanisms of cancer suppression and of skeletal muscle formation and regeneration.
*Illustrative imageDA-Raf, a cancer suppressor
DA-Raf binds to activated Ras and suppresses the Ras–ERK pathway. It induces the differentiation of skeletal muscle cells and also functions in the process by which alveoli form. Against carcinogenesis caused by activating mutations of Ras, which are found in about 30% of human cancers, it functioned as a tumor suppressor protein.
*Illustrative imageHow skeletal muscle is formed and regenerated
The lab showed that N-WASP, which regulates actin, is involved in forming the actin filaments of myofibrils during muscle hypertrophy. It is now using genetically modified animals to investigate how actin dynamics, in coordination with proteins that deform membranes, regulate the maturation of skeletal muscle.
*Illustrative imageWatching molecular movement in living cells
The lab links fluorescent proteins to the signaling molecules that make up the Ras–ERK pathway, expresses them in living cells, and continuously observes and measures their movements. It aims to discover new ways of regulating signaling through membrane tension and remodeling of the actin cytoskeleton.
MembersFaculty
- Assistant ProfessorKazunori Takano
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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: “Indian Muntjac fibroblast cells ( )” ZEISS Microscopy from Germany / CC BY 2.0 (cropped)
- DA-Raf, a cancer suppressor: “KRAS protein 3GFT” Thomas Splettstoesser (www.scistyle.com) / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- How skeletal muscle is formed and regenerated: “Skeletal Muscle Tissue” Community College Bioscience / CC0 (cropped)
- Watching molecular movement in living cells: “Multicolor fluorescence image of living HeLa cells” 8x57is / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (Neural Proteomics Lab (Terasaki Lab)): “Chk-UCH1-GFAP-20X-1” GerryShaw / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (Plant Evolutionary Ecology Lab): “Sea lettuce in Brofjorden 1 - cropped” W.carter / CC0 (cropped)
- Related lab (Cell Function Regulation Lab (Matsura-Itakura Lab)): “Gram positive budding yeast cells” Microrao / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (Animal Evolutionary Ecology Lab): “Hermit crab with a shell on a sandy bottom at night” Dmitry Domrin / CC BY 4.0 (cropped)
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