| Project/Area Number |
16K14685
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| Research Category |
Grant-in-Aid for Challenging Exploratory Research
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| Allocation Type | Multi-year Fund |
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| Research Field |
Structural biochemistry
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| Research Institution | Institute for Molecular Science |
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Principal Investigator |
Furuike Yoshihiko 分子科学研究所, 協奏分子システム研究センター, 助教 (70757400)
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| Project Period (FY) |
2016-04-01 – 2019-03-31
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| Project Status |
Completed (Fiscal Year 2018)
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| Budget Amount *help |
¥3,640,000 (Direct Cost: ¥2,800,000、Indirect Cost: ¥840,000)
Fiscal Year 2018: ¥1,430,000 (Direct Cost: ¥1,100,000、Indirect Cost: ¥330,000)
Fiscal Year 2017: ¥1,430,000 (Direct Cost: ¥1,100,000、Indirect Cost: ¥330,000)
Fiscal Year 2016: ¥780,000 (Direct Cost: ¥600,000、Indirect Cost: ¥180,000)
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| Keywords | 概日時計 / 時計タンパク質 / KaiC / X線結晶構造解析 / シアノバクテリア / ATPase / 時計タンパク質KaiC / 生物時計 / タンパク質進化 |
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| Outline of Final Research Achievements |
Various organisms on the Earth possess biological clock systems for adapting to the environment which changes with a 24-hours period. The clock system of cyanobacteria is driven by a clock protein, KaiC. A unique double-ring shaped structure of KaiC achieves two functions simultaneously. The speed of the whole system is determined by the ATPase ring of KaiC, while the rhythm is amplified in the phosphorylation ring. In this research, we mainly conducted the structural analysis of KaiC to clarify the relationships between the two rings. We succeeded to observe diverse molecular structures of KaiC which were different from ones previously deposited in the data bank. The results enabled us to investigate the structural flexibility of KaiC accommodating various chemical states in order to encode the Earth rotation from the ancient time.
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| Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements |
体内時計の仕組みを解明するためには、ナノサイズの構成部品である遺伝子やタンパク質の構造変化（空間情報）に基づき化学反応機構（空間情報から時間情報への変換）を明らかにして、そこから地球自転周期という時間情報を抽出する必要があります。したがって体内時計研究の進展そのものは、これまで空間情報の収集に関心の高かった構造生物学に時間方向への視点の転換を促すことに繋がります。放射光施設等を活用した本課題の一定の進捗により、少なくとも10億年以上前には成立した多様で特異なKaiC構造が明らかになりつつありますが、今後は他の手法を組み合わせて多角的に議論を深める必要があります。
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