Masaki Lab

AboutAbout the lab

Pursuing the possibilities of nucleic acids to the fullest

The Masaki Lab approaches, from the side of organic chemistry, the challenges that stand in the way of putting nucleic acid therapeutics into actual clinical use.
Nucleic acid therapeutics have the potential to treat intractable diseases that cannot be cured today.
At the same time, many challenges remain to be solved before they can be applied to treatment.
The lab confronts the question of why this cannot yet be done, and advances its research by combining nucleic acid chemistry, physical chemistry, biochemistry, and information science.

ResearchResearch themes

The lab does chemistry on nucleic acids. Its research proceeds in two directions: chemical modifications that expand the possibilities of nucleic acid therapeutics, and the development of chemical synthesis methods for nucleic acids that go beyond current limits.

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Using nucleic acids↗

Antisense oligonucleotides, one type of nucleic acid therapeutic that acts on RNA, face a challenge called off-target effects, in which genes other than the intended ones are also affected. The lab examines from structure which interactions are responsible, and explores ways to improve safety from first principles.

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Making nucleic acids↗

When long nucleic acids are chemically synthesized, tiny side reactions at each step accumulate until synthesis becomes impossible. The lab comprehensively analyzes the side reactions to infer their causes, considers conditions that can suppress them, and works toward better synthesis methods.

VoicesStudent voices

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Students who take part in an interview may receive a thank-you gift worth ¥1,000, regardless of what they say.