Research Theme

• Structural analysis using cryo-electron microscopy facilities including BSL3 microscope to establish of rational design for vaccine design (Structural Vaccinology)

Keyword

• Zoososes
• Virus
• Cryo-electron microscopy
• Therapeutic drug
• structural biology
• vaccine

Overview of Research

• Based on the COVID-19 pandemic, we aim to establish a rational vaccine design method based on three-dimensional structures for the next pandemic.
• Using structural biology techniques including cryo-electron microscopy, we will analyze the HA and particles of the selected influenza viruses and the S protein particles of SARS-CoV-2 variants.
• Complexes of viral proteins and particles with monoclonal antibodies obtained from vaccinated animals will be analyzed using cryo-electron microscopy. We will evaluate the profiling of the binding mode to the epitope from the three-dimensional structures.
• The relationship between structure and pathogenicity,and the identification of antibody-binding epitopes, will be examined with vaccine efficacy. We aim to establish “Structural Vaccinology”, which can infer the effect of vaccines from the binding structures of monoclonal antibodies.