Division and Department

Department of Cell Biology and Morphology

A Greeting from the Professor

The act of "seeing" has been one of the best ways to understand things. It is self-evident that observing cells and tissues in the field of medicine is essential for investigating the causes of diseases and understanding biological phenomena. Since more than 400 years ago, technology for microscopic imaging has continued to advance and microscopes with various functions have been created according to the purpose. We are currently working on researches about three organisms (Mouse, Drosophila, and Lamprey) using various microscopes.

【Mouse】

A specific antibody against a protein molecule is a powerful research tool in elucidating it’s biochemical or morphological functions. We have established specific antibodies against protein molecules whose tissue expression and intracellular localization are still unknown. Using them, we are studying the expression and localization of protein molecules in mammalian nerve tissue and nerve cells by performing immunohistochemical staining.

【Drosophila】

Drosophila is one of the representative model organisms and is very useful for the analysis of various life phenomena. In addition, more than 70% of the genes related to human diseases are also present in Drosophila, and "human disease research" using Drosophila is attracting attention. We are trying to elucidate the mechanism of tissue construction and the pathogenesis of various diseases using multifaceted approaches including molecular genetics and live imaging.

【Lamprey】

Vitamin A has various physiological functions. Vitamin A-storing cells exist in organs and are thought to play important roles in maintaining homeostasis of physiological functions related to vitamin A. We are studying the functions of vitamin A-storing cells by analyzing the storage and metabolism of vitamin A using morphological and biochemical methods using lampreys, which are rich in vitamin A.

Staff

Professor:
Yasukazu HOZUMI, M.D., Ph.D.

Associate Professor:
Masakazu YAMAZAKI, Ph.D.

Research Areas

  1. Studies on the Intracellular localization, expression in various tissues, and function of enzymes related with phosphoinositide turnover using specific antibodies.
  2. Molecular mechanisms of planar cell polarity.
  3. Studies on the storage and physiological functions of vitamin A in the stellate cells (vitamin A-storing cells).

Contact Information

Professor Yasukazu HOZUMI
Phone: +81-18-884-6056
Fax: +81-18-834-7808
E-mail: yahodumi@med.akita-u.ac.jp

Most Recent Achievements

  1. Tissue flow regulates planar cell polarity independently of the Frizzled core pathway.
    Ayukawa T, Akiyama M, Hozumi Y, Ishimoto K, Sasaki J, Senoo H, Sasaki T, Yamazaki M.
    Cell Rep. 2022;40(12):111388.
  2. Immunocytochemistry of phospholipase D1 and D2 in cultured cells.
    Hozumi Y, Yamazaki M, Nakano T.
    Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 2022;625:161-166.
  3. A mass spectrometric method for in-depth profiling of phosphoinositide regioisomers and their disease-associated regulation.
    orioka S, Nakanishi H, Yamamoto T, Hasegawa J, Tokuda E, Hikita T, Sakihara T, Kugii Y, Oneyama C, Yamazaki M, Suzuki A, Sasaki J, Sasaki T.
    Nat Commun. 2022;13(1):83.
  4. Cellular expression and subcellular localization of diacylglycerol kinase  in rat brain.
    Hozumi Y, Nakano T, Goto K.
    Biomed Res. 2021;42(1):33-42.
  5. Regulation of p53 and NF-κB transactivation activities by DGK in catalytic activity-dependent and -independent manners.
    Tanaka T, Nakano T, Hozumi Y, Martelli AM, Goto K.
    Biochim Biophys Acta Mol Cell Res. 2021;1868(4):118953.
  6. Preservation of collagen in the soft tissues of frozen mammoths.
    Hattori S, Kiriyama-Tanaka T, Kusubata M, Taga Y, Ebihara T, Kumazawa Y, Imai K, Miura M, Mezaki Y, Tikhonov A, Senoo H.
    PLoS One. 2021;16(10):e0258699.
  7. DGKζ depletion attenuates HIF-1α induction and SIRT1 expression, but enhances TAK1-mediated AMPKα phosphorylation under hypoxia.
    Akimoto R, Tanaka T, Nakano T, Hozumi Y, Kawamae K, Goto K.
    Cell Signal. 2020;71:109618.
  8. Nucleosome assembly proteins NAP1L1 and NAP1L4 modulate p53 acetylation to regulate cell fate.
    Tanaka T, Hozumi Y, Martelli AM, Iino M, Goto K.
    Biochim Biophys Acta Mol Cell Res. 2019;1866(12):118560.
  9. Knockdown of DEAD-box RNA helicase DDX5 selectively attenuates serine 311 phosphorylation of NF-κB p65 subunit and expression level of anti-apoptotic factor Bcl-2.
    Tanaka K, Tanaka T, Nakano T, Hozumi Y, Yanagida M, Araki Y, Iwazaki K, Takagi M, Goto K.
    Cell Signal. 2020;65:109428.
  10. DzMab-1: Anti-Human Diacylglycerol Kinase ζ Monoclonal Antibody for Immunocytochemistry.
    Nakano T, Ogasawara S, Tanaka T, Hozumi Y, Sano M, Sayama Y, Yamada S, Kaneko MK, Kato Y, Goto K.
    Monoclon Antib Immunodiagn Immunother. 2019;38(4):179-182.
  11. Expression and localization of diacylglycerol kinase ζ in guinea pig cochlea and its functional implication under noise-exposure stress conditions.
    Shinkawa C, Ito T, Hozumi Y, Chiba M, Matsui H, Goto K, Kakehata S.
    Histochem Cell Biol. 2019;151(6):461-474.
  12. Localization of ATP-sensitive K+ channel subunits in rat liver.
    Zhou M, Yoshikawa K, Akashi H, Miura M, Suzuki R, Li TS, Abe H, Bando Y.
    World J Exp Med. 2019;9(2):14-31.
  13. DgMab-6: Antihuman DGKγ Monoclonal Antibody for Immunocytochemistry.
    Nakano T, Ogasawara S, Tanaka T, Hozumi Y, Yamaki A, Sakane F, Shirai Y, Nakamura T, Yanaka M, Yamada S, Kaneko MK, Kato Y, Goto K.
    Monoclon Antib Immunodiagn Immunother. 2018;37(5):229-232.
  14. NAP1L1 regulates NF-κB signaling pathway acting on anti-apoptotic Mcl-1 gene expression.
    Tanaka T, Hozumi Y, Iino M, Goto K.
    Biochim Biophys Acta Mol Cell Res. 2017;1864(10):1759-1768.
  15. Modulatory Effects of Perineuronal Oligodendrocytes on Neuronal Activity in the Rat Hippocampus.
    Yamazaki Y, Hozumi Y, Kaneko K, Fujii S.
    Neurochem Res. 2018;43(1):27-40.
  16. Diacylglycerol kinase ε localizes to subsurface cisterns of cerebellar Purkinje cells.
    Hozumi Y, Fujiwara H, Kaneko K, Fujii S, Topham MK, Watanabe M, Goto K.
    Cell Tissue Res. 2017;368(3):441-458.
  17. Vps34 regulates myofibril proteostasis to prevent hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.
    Kimura H, Eguchi S, Sasaki J, Kuba K, Nakanishi H, Takasuga S, Yamazaki M, Goto A, Watanabe H, Itoh H, Imai Y, Suzuki A, Mizushima N, Sasaki T.
    JCI Insight. 2017;2(1):e89462.

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