The University of Tokyo · 농업·생명과학
타카히로 히카와다 교수의 연구실은 극한의 건조 환경에 내성을 가진 곤충인 '수면모기(Polypedilum vanderplanki)'를 모델 생물로 삼아, 탈수 내성의 분자 기전을 규명하는 데 초점을 맞추고 있습니다. 특히 테레오오오즈, LEA 단백질, 수송수용체 등 보호 분자의 기능과 발현 조절 메커니즘을 분석하며, 대사체-전사체 통합 분석을 통해 탈수 적응의 생화학적 기반을 밝혀내고 있습니다. 이들의 연구는 생명 유지 기술, 생물 보존, 극한 환경 생물학 등 응용 분야로까지 확장되고 있습니다.
표시된 성과는 수집된 데이터 기준으로 산출되며, 일부 차이가 있을 수 있습니다.
Trehalose is potentially a useful cryo- or anhydroprotectant molecule for cells and biomolecules such as proteins and nucleotides. A major obstacle to application is that cellular membranes are impermeable to trehalose. In this study, we isolated and characterized the functions of a facilitated trehalose transporter [trehalose transporter 1 (TRET1)] from an anhydrobiotic insect, Polypedilum vanderplanki. Tret1 cDNA encodes a 504-aa protein with 12 predicted transmembrane structures. Tret1 expres
An African chironomid, Polypedilum vanderplanki, is the only insect known to be capable of extreme desiccation tolerance, or anhydrobiosis. In the 1950s and 1960s, Hinton strenuously studied anhydrobiosis in this insect from a physiological standpoint; however, nobody has afterward investigated the phenomenon. In 2000, research on mechanisms underlying anhydrobiosis was resumed due to successful establishment of a rearing system for P. vanderplanki. This review is focused on the latest findings
LEA proteins are found in anhydrobiotes and are thought to be associated with the acquisition of desiccation tolerance. The sleeping chironomid Polypedilum vanderplanki, which can survive in an almost completely desiccated state throughout the larval stage, accumulates LEA proteins in response to desiccation and high salinity conditions. However, the biochemical functions of these proteins remain unclear. Here, we report the characterization of a novel chironomid LEA protein, PvLEA4, which is th
Some organisms are able to survive the loss of almost all their body water content, entering a latent state known as anhydrobiosis. The sleeping chironomid (Polypedilum vanderplanki) lives in the semi-arid regions of Africa, and its larvae can survive desiccation in an anhydrobiotic form during the dry season. To unveil the molecular mechanisms of this resistance to desiccation, an anhydrobiosis-related Expressed Sequence Tag (EST) database was obtained from the sequences of three cDNA libraries
Some organisms have evolved a survival strategy to withstand severe dehydration in an ametabolic state, called anhydrobiosis. The only known example of anhydrobiosis among insects is observed in larvae of the chironomid <i>Polypedilum vanderplanki</i> Recent studies have led to a better understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying anhydrobiosis and the action of specific protective proteins. However, gene regulation alone cannot explain the rapid biochemical reactions and independent met
The African chironomid Polypedilum vanderplanki exhibits anhydrobiosis, i.e., the larvae can survive complete desiccation. Recovery rate and trehalose content were investigated in larvae desiccated slowly or at a rate more than 3 times faster. Upon slow desiccation (evaporation rate 0.22 ml day(-1)) larvae synthesized 38 μg trehalose/individual before complete desiccation, and all of them recovered after rehydration, whereas larvae that were dehydrated quickly (evaporation rate 0.75 ml day(-1))
Genomic safe harbors (GSHs) provide ideal integration sites for generating transgenic organisms and cells and can be of great benefit in advancing the basic and applied biology of a particular species. Here we report the identification of GSHs in a dry-preservable insect cell line, Pv11, which derives from the sleeping chironomid, <i>Polypedilum vanderplanki</i>, and similar to the larvae of its progenitor species exhibits extreme desiccation tolerance. To identify GSHs, we carried out genome an
