RIKEN Center for Biosystems Dynamics Research Laboratory for NMR Engineering and Structural Science

Unit Leader: Toshio Yamazaki (Ph.D.)

Japanese Page

Research Summary

We are developing experimental technologies and instruments for nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. Ultra-high magnetic fields produced by high-temperature superconductors leads to higher NMR sensitivity and resolution. We are working to enhance the performance of the spectrometer to accommodate higher magnetic fields and frequencies. A higher magnetic field will yield more advantages. We will develop new techniques for detecting the structure and movements of molecules as well as develop new types of magnets and detection probes enabling analyses of wider range of samples and conditions.

Main Research Fields

Chemistry

Related Research Fields

Engineering
Physical chemistry
Measurement engineering
Biophysics

Keywords

Nuclear magnetic resonance
Photoisomerization
High-temperature superconductivity
Protein folding

Selected Publications

1. Nan Wu, Naohiro Kobayashi, Kengo Tsuda, Satoru Unzai, Tomonori Saotome, Yutaka Kuroda & Toshio Yamazaki.:
"Solution structure of Gaussia Luciferase with five disulfide bonds and identification of a putative coelenterazine binding cavity by heteronuclear NMR"
Scientific Reports 10:20069 (2020)
2. Takako Ohyama, Hazuki Takahashi, Harshita Sharma, Toshio Yamazaki, Stefano Gustincich, Yoshitaka Ishii, Piero Carninci.:
"An NMR-based approach reveals the core structure of the functional domain of SINEUP lncRNAs"
Nucleic Acids Research 48, pp9346–9360 (2020)
3. Guzmán-Afonso C, Hong YL, Colaux H, Iijima H, Saitow A, Fukumura T, Aoyama Y, Motoki S, Oikawa T, Yamazaki T, Yonekura K, Nishiyama Y.:
"Understanding hydrogen-bonding structures of molecular crystals via electron and NMR nanocrystallography"
Nat Commun. 10(1):3537 (2019)
4. Nagashima, Toshio; Ueda, Keisuke; Nishimura, Chiaki; Yamazaki.:
"Structure-Correlation NMR Spectroscopy for Macromolecules Using Repeated Bidirectional Photoisomerization of Azobenzene"
Anal. Chem. 87, pp11544-52 (2015)
5. Kenjiro Hashi et al.:
"Achievement of 1020 MHz NMR"
J. Magn. Reson. 256, pp30-33 (2015)

Lab Members

Principal investigator

Toshio Yamazaki: Unit Leader

Core members

Takashi Nakamura: Senior Technical Scientist
Masato Takahashi: Senior Scientist

Contact Information

West NMR building
1-7-22 Suehiro-cho, Tsurumi-ku,
Yokohama City, Kanagawa,
230-0045, Japan
Tel: +81-(0)45-503-9262
Fax: +81-(0)45-503-9441
Email: toshio.yamazaki [at] riken.jp