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Macromolecular Structural Science Lab
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A lab that investigates how biomolecular machines such as bacterial flagella work, based on their three-dimensional structures.
AboutAbout the lab
Solving how molecular motors work through three-dimensional structures
The Macromolecular Structural Science Lab studies how biological molecular machines work, starting with the bacterial flagellar motor.
Bacteria such as Escherichia coli and Salmonella swim using motors made of protein about 50 nm in diameter, and these motors rotate at speeds of more than 10,000 rpm.
The lab investigates their operating mechanism through atomic-level three-dimensional structure analysis and reconstitution of molecular machines.
On the lab's website, it is presented under the name "Imada Lab."
Key terms
- Flagellum
- A twisted filament on the bacterial surface. It is a motile organelle that generates propulsion when the rotary motor at its base turns
- X-ray diffraction
- A method that uses X-rays to investigate the molecular-level structure and structural changes of a substance
- Type III secretion system
- An organelle of pathogenic bacteria. A syringe-like apparatus that injects virulence factors into host cells
- Chemotaxis
- The property of bacteria swimming in a directed way in response to the concentration gradient of a specific chemical in their surroundings
ResearchResearch themes
This lab uses mainly X-ray diffraction to study the molecular-level structures, structural changes, and formation processes of macromolecular substances, and their relationship to interactions and functions. Its targets include proteins related to molecular motors in living organisms, oxidases, synthetic polymers, and complexes of polymers and low-molecular-weight compounds.
*Illustrative imageStructural Analysis of the Flagellar Motor
The flagellum is a motile organelle in which a rotary motor at its base turns to give bacteria propulsion. The motor and other parts are supramolecular nanomachines made of many proteins, and the lab investigates how they work based on molecular structures.
*Illustrative imageHow Flagella Are Built
A flagellum first forms its basal body. Component proteins are then exported through the central channel and assemble at the tip, extending the structure. The lab traces which proteins act, and how, in this process.
*Illustrative imageBacterial Infection Apparatus
Pathogenic bacteria infect host cells by injecting virulence factors into them through the type III secretion system. Because the flagellar export apparatus closely resembles this system, determining its structure is expected to lead to the development of ways to prevent infection.
*Illustrative imageStructure of Chemotaxis Receptors
The lab used X-ray crystallography to investigate how Vibrio cholerae recognizes taurine, which is abundant in bile, with the receptor Mlp37. Because there is room around the side-chain position, the receptor is thought to be able to recognize various amino acids.
MembersFaculty
The members of the Macromolecular Structural Science Lab consist of faculty, doctoral, master's, and undergraduate students, and administrative staff.
- ProfessorKatsumi Imada
- LecturerTatsuya Kawaguchi
- Assistant ProfessorNorihiro Takekawa
VoicesStudent voices
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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: “Flagellar Motor Assembly” PKS615 / CC BY 4.0 (cropped)
- Structural Analysis of the Flagellar Motor: “Alphavirus” 作者不詳 / Public domain (cropped)
- How Flagella Are Built: “Physical model of a bacterial flagellum” Alan Wolf / CC BY-SA 2.0 (cropped)
- Bacterial Infection Apparatus: “SalmonellaNIAID” 作者不詳 / Public domain (cropped)
- Structure of Chemotaxis Receptors: “Vibrio cholerae” Tom Kirn, Ron Taylor, Louisa Howard - Dartmouth Electron Microscope Facility / Public domain (cropped)
- Related lab (Cell Architecture Lab): “Cryo-EM image of C. thermophilum lysate” Pkastrit / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (Plant Cell Fate Regulation Lab): “A thaliana seedlings (cropped)” Safflle / CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (Single-Molecule Biology Lab): “Fluorescence microscope” Sarathkumaran Ranganathan / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (Cellular Life Science Lab): “Mitochondria in living HeLa cells” 8x57is / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
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