Molecular bioscientist wins international awards for protein research

Two prizes from Japan for researcher whose work aims to unlock the secrets of cells - News

By Danielle Reeves
12 March 2007

Two prestigious prizes recognising excellence in research have been awarded to Professor So Iwata  from Imperial's Division of Molecular Biosciences. He receives the Japan Academy Medal and the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) prize for excellent young researchers, for his work on defining the structure of proteins.

Professor Iwata, who is a native of Japan but who has been based in Europe for 15 years, joined Imperial in 2000. His groundbreaking research has resulted in the first detailed understanding of the atomic structure of a number of key proteins in the body and in plant-life.

A key success came from his six-year collaboration with Imperial biochemist Professor Jim Barber , which enabled Professor Iwata to solve the detailed atomic structure of the plant protein photosystem II. This is the protein that drives photosynthesis - the process through which plants use sunlight to split water into its component parts: oxygen and hydrogen. Professors Iwata and Barber used an x-ray crystallography technique to see for the first time that the water-splitting protein complex in plants is made up of three of the manganese atoms, a calcium atom and four oxygen atoms in a cube-like structure, with a fourth, more reactive manganese atom attached to one of the oxygen atoms in the cube.

Explaining the significance of his work on this particular protein, Professor Iwata says: "Defining the precise atomic make-up of the plant's water-splitting protein was of key significance. Not only did this discovery give us more information than anyone had before on how plants work at the atomic scale, it also created the possibility for scientists in the future to mimic this photosynthesis function, which would allow mankind to easily produce hydrogen gas – for use as a fuel – from the Earth's plentiful water resources."

Professor Iwata has also carried out extensive work on defining the structure of proteins in the body, including important proteins in cell membranes which govern inter-cell communications and the uptake up substances – such as drugs – into the body of the cell. Past successes have included revealing the structure of lactose permease which is responsible for sugar uptake into cells.

On receiving the awards at a ceremony in Tokyo on Friday 2 March 2007, Professor Iwata said: "I'm delighted to receive these awards for the work I’ve carried out on proteins. The molecules that I aim to understand have some of the most important jobs in our bodies and in plant life. Understanding how the proteins that are targeted by drugs work, for example, will allow medical researchers to develop more effective drugs for major diseases."

Currently, Professor Iwata is working on determining the structure of cell receptors, which are the target of over 50% of drugs currently in use. "Although many modern drugs target receptors in our bodies, very little is known about what these receptors are made of and precisely how they work. I hope to develop a technique for doing exactly that," he adds.

Professor Iwata is also working towards the launch of an Imperial College laboratory at the Diamond Synchrotron facility in Oxfordshire, later this year. The giant synchrotron machine, which can be described as a series of 'super microscopes', will give Professor Iwata and his team access to extremely powerful x-ray crystallography, allowing them to look at protein structures in more detail than ever before.

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