The University of Tokyo · Medicine
Professor Motoyuki Otsuka's research lab focuses on molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying reproductive biology, viral pathogenesis, and microRNA regulation in disease. The lab investigates the roles of microRNAs, such as miR17-5p and miR122, in developmental processes, angiogenesis, and viral replication—particularly in hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection. Key research directions include the regulation of gene expression by microRNAs, the impact of Dicer1 deficiency on fertility and vascular development, and the therapeutic potential of small molecules like apigenin in targeting host factors essential for viral persistence. The lab integrates molecular biology, viomics, and translational approaches to uncover novel regulatory mechanisms in health and disease.
Figures are computed from collected data and may differ slightly.
The microRNA (miRNA) processing enzyme Dicer1 is required for zygotic and embryonic development, but the early embryonic lethality of Dicer1 null alleles in mice has limited our ability to address the role of Dicer1 in normal mouse growth and development. To address this question, we used a mouse mutant with a hypomorphic Dicer1 allele (Dicer(d/d)) and found that Dicer1 deficiency resulted in female infertility. This defect in female Dicer(d/d) mice was caused by corpus luteum (CL) insufficiency
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), a peer reviewed journal of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) - an authoritative source of high-impact, original research that broadly spans the biological, physical, and social sciences.
<P>Abstract copyright UK Data Service and data collection copyright owner.</P> <b>Background</b><br> The <i>Labour Force Survey</i> (LFS) is a unique source of information using international definitions of employment and unemployment and economic inactivity, together with a wide range of related topics such as occupation, training, hours of work and personal characteristics of household members aged 16 years and over. It is used to inform social, economic and employment policy. The LFS was firs
Abstract— A sensitive method for measuring γ‐aminobutyric acid (GABA) has been developed. This method consists of a combination of the enzymic GABA assay of J akoby and S cott (1959) with the enzymic cycling technique of L owry , P assonneau , S chulz and R ock (1961) and permits the measurement of as little as 2 × 10 −14 mol of GABA. Using this method, GABA analyses were made on single isolated nerve cell bodies of different types from the CNS of the cat. Average GABA concentrations in these ce
Hepatitis C virus (HCV) causes a persistent infection, chronic hepatitis, and hepatocellular carcinoma. Since there are several reports indicating that some viruses influence the tumor suppressor p53 function, we determined the effects of HCV proteins on p53 function and its mechanism determined by use of a reporter assay. Among seven HCV proteins investigated (core, NS2, NS3, NS4A, NS4B, NS5A, and NS5B), only core protein augmented the transcriptional activity of p53 and increased the expressio
Despite recent progress in the development of direct-acting antivirals against hepatitis C virus (HCV), chronic HCV infection remains an important health burden worldwide. MicroRNA122 (miR122), a liver-specific microRNA (miRNA), positively regulates HCV replication, and systemic application of antisense oligonucleotides against miR122 led to the long-lasting suppression of HCV viremia in human clinical trials. Here, we report that apigenin, a flavonoid and an inhibitor of maturation of a subset
The persistent nature of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection suggests that HCV encodes proteins that enable it to overcome host antiviral responses. Toll-like receptor 3 (TLR3)-mediated signaling, which recognizes the double-stranded RNA that is produced during viral replication and induces type I interferons, including interferon beta (IFN-beta), is crucial to the host defense against viruses. Recent studies suggest that a TIR domain-containing adaptor protein, TRIF, and two protein kinases, TANK
Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a common human malignancy. Its high mortality rate is mainly a result of high intrahepatic recurrence and portal venous invasion (PVI). We previously reported that the development of PVI is related to levels of des-gamma-carboxy prothrombin (DCP), a serum protein that increases at a notably higher rate in patients with HCC. Because DCP is produced by a vitamin K shortage, we examined the biological effects of extrinsic supplementation of vitamin K(2) in HCC cell
A peptide that exerts a depolarizing action on frog spinal motoneurons was found in the dorsal root of bovine spinal nerve. Pharmacological, chemical, and immunological properties of this motoneuron-depolarizing peptide were investigated and the results indicated that the peptide is identical with an undecapeptide, substance P, recently isolated from bovine hypothalamus by M.M. Chang and S.E.Leeman. The amount of hypothalamic substance P in bovine dorsal root determined by bioassay or radioimmun
1. The pharmacological profile of Spantide, [D-Arg1, D-Trp7,9, Leu11] substance P, as a substance P (SP) antagonist was examined in isolated spinal cords of newborn rats. Potential changes were recorded extracellularly from a lumbar ventral root (L1-L5). Application of SP to the perfusion bath with a brief pressure pulse of 0.05-0.8 s duration produced a dose-dependent depolarization of the ventral root. Spantide in concentrations of 2-16 microM depressed the depolarizing responses of the ventra
These results indicate that NTZ, which targets an HBV-related viral-host protein interaction, may be a promising new therapeutic agent and a step toward a functional HBV cure.
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