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Masaki Tsujimura (M2), Department of Applied Chemistry, received The best poster award at the 47th symposium on biomolecular science

 

 


〈Name of award and short explanation about the award〉
The best poster award at the 47th symposium on biomolecular science.
This award is conferred to excellent poster presentations delivered by young researchers or students.

About awarded research〉
Microbial rhodopsins are photoresponsive membrane proteins that are used as neural regulating tools in optogenetics. Although microbial rhodopsins commonly consist of seven transmembrane helices and a retinal chromophore, their functions (light-driven ion pumps, light-gated ion channels, and sensors) and absorption wavelengths (450-600 nm) are highly diverse. Using a quantum mechanical/molecular mechanical (QM/MM) approach, we analyzed the mechanisms of how the protein environment shifts the absorption wavelength in microbial rhodopsins. We revealed that amino acid residues at the three common positions, which are important for the protein function, predominantly determine the absorption wavelengths of microbial rhodopsins. It seems likely that protein function is directly associated with the absorption wavelength in microbial rhodopsins.

〈Your impression & future plan〉
I am very honored to receive the award. I appreciate Professor Hiroshi Ishikita, Associate Professor Keisuke Saito, Research Associate Tomoyasu Noji, and everyone in the laboratory for many discussions. I will work harder on my research to contribute to the understanding on the molecular mechanisms of microbial rhodopsins.