Laboratory for Cell Function Dynamics
Research Areas
| "Why bio-imaging, i.e. real time fluorescence imaging?" Currently, this is a topic of great interest in the bioscience community. Many molecules involved in signal transduction have been identified, and the hierarchy among those molecules has also been elucidated. It is not uncommon to see a signal transduction diagram in which arrows are used to link molecules to show enzyme reactions and intermolecular interactions. To obtain a further understanding of a signal transduction system, however, the diagram must contain the three axes in space as well as a fourth dimension, time, because all events are controlled ingeniously in space and time. Since the isolation of green fluorescent protein (GFP) from the bioluminescent jellyfish in 1992 and later with its relatives, researchers have been awaiting the development of a tool, which enables the direct visualization of biological functions. This has been increasingly enhanced by the marriage of GFP with fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) or fluorescence cross-correlation spectroscopy (FCCS), and is further expanded upon by the need for "post-genomic analyses." It is not my intent to discourage the trend seeking the visualization of biological function. I would like to propose that it is time to evaluate the true asset of "bio-imaging" for its potential and limitations in order to utilize and truly benefit from this novel technique. |  Laboratory Head Atsushi MIYAWAKI (M.D., Ph.D.)  |
Research Subjects
|
 |
List of Selected Publications
| (1) | Sakaue-Sawano, A., Kurokawa, H., Morimura, T., Hanyu, A., Hama, H., Osawa, H., Kashiwagi, S., Fukami, K., Miyata, T., Miyoshi, H., Imamura, T., Ogawa, M., Masai, H., and Miyawaki, A.: "Visualizing Spatiotemporal Dynamics of Multicellular Cell Cycle Progression." Cell, (in press) (2008). |
| (2) | Katayama, H., Yamamoto, A., Yoshimori, T., Mizushima, N., and Miyawaki, A.: "GFP-like proteins stably accumulation in lysosomes." Cell Struct Funct. In Press (2008). |
| (3) | Shimozono, S., and Miyawaki A.: "A.Engineering FRET Constructs Using CFP and YFP." Methods Cell Biol. 85C:381-393 (2007). |
| (4) | Ando, R., Flors, C., Mizuno, H., Hofkens, J., and Miyawaki A.: "Highlighted generation of fluorescence signals using simultaneous two-color irradiation on Dronpa mutants." Biophysical J., 92: L97-L99 (2007). |
| (5) | Fukano, T., Sawano, A., Ohba, Y., Matsuda, M., Miyawaki, A.: "Differential Ras activation between caveolae/raft and non-raft microdomains." Cell Struct. Func., 32: 9-15 (2007). |
| (6) | Kogure, T., Karasawa, S., Araki, T., Saito, K., Kinjo, M., and Miyawaki A.: "A fluorescent variant of a protein from the stony coral Montipora facilitates dual-color single-laser fluorescence cross-correlation spectroscopy." Nature Biotechnology, 24: 577-581 (2006). |
| (7) | Tsutsui, H., Karasawa, S., Shimizu, H., Nukina, N., and Miyawaki, A.: "Semi-rational engineering of a coral fluorescent protein into an efficient highlighter." EMBO Rep., 6, 233-238 (2005). |
| (8) | Miyawaki, A.: "Innovations in the imaging of brain functions using fluorescent proteins." Neuron, 48, 189-199 (2005). |
| (9) | Ando, R., Mizuno, H., and Miyawaki, A.: "Regulated fast nucleocytoplasmic shuttling observed by reversible protein highlighting." Science, 306, 1370-1373 (2004). |
| (10) | Hama, H., Hara, C., Yamaguchi, K., and Miyawaki, A.: "PKC signaling mediates global enhancement of excitatory synaptogenesis in neurons triggered by local contact with astrocytes." Neuron, 41, 405-415 (2004). |