Kyushu University · Medicine
Professor Kiyoko Kato's research lab focuses on molecular mechanisms underlying cancer cell signaling, particularly Ras oncoproteins and their post-translational modifications that drive transformation and membrane localization. The lab also investigates stem cell biology in the human endometrium, including side population (SP) cells and endometrial cancer stem cells (CSCs), with a focus on their role in fertility, receptivity, and tumorigenesis. Using primary cell cultures and molecular techniques, the lab explores how cellular microenvironments during the proliferative phase influence embryo implantation and stemness. A key direction involves identifying small molecules, such as salinomycin, that selectively target cancer stem cells.
Figures are computed from collected data and may differ slightly.
We have introduced a variety of amino acid substitutions into carboxyl-terminal CA1A2X sequence (C = cysteine; A = aliphatic; X = any amino acid) of the oncogenic [Val12]Ki-Ras4B protein to identify the amino acids that permit Ras processing (isoprenylation, proteolysis, and carboxyl methylation), membrane association, and transformation in cultured mammalian cells. While all substitutions were tolerated at the A1 position, substitutions at A2 and X reduced transforming activity. The A2 residue
SP cells in the human endometrium can function as progenitor cells. This is the first report of the phenotype of SP cells from normal human endometrial cells.
This is the first report of an inhibitory effect of salinomycin on the properties of endometrial CSCs.
Successful assisted reproductive technology pregnancy depends on the viability of embryos and endometrial receptivity. However, the literature has neglected effects of the endometrial environment during the proliferative phase on implantation success or failure. Human endometrial stromal cells (hESCs) were isolated from endometrial tissues sampled at oocyte retrieval during the proliferative phase from women undergoing infertility treatment. Primary hESC cultures were used to investigate the rel
Open papers in the app to read, cite, and organize with AI.
