The paper determines the structure of an active FlhA ring and shows how it couples substrate specificity to export engine activation through linker-mediated docking.

bioRxiv · May 30, 2026 · PreprintMicrobiology

From Monomers to Oligomers: Structural Mechanism of Receptor-Triggered MyD88 Assembly in Innate Immune Signaling

Kazuki Kasai, Kayo Imamura, Masatoshi Uno, Shiho Nukui, Naotaka Sekiyama, Tomoko Miyata, Fumiaki Makino, Ryusei Yamada, Yoshiki Takahashi, Noriyuki Kodera, Keiichi Namba, Hidenori Ohnishi, Akihiro Narita, Hiroki Konno, Hidehito Tochio

This study reveals the structural mechanism of MyD88 oligomerization in innate immune signaling using cryo-EM and high-speed AFM.

Nature Communications · Apr 17, 2026Peer-reviewedBiophysics

Structural basis for the interaction between the bacterial cell division proteins FtsZ and ZapA

Junso Fujita, Kazuki Kasai, Kota Hibino, Gota Kagoshima, Natsuki Kamimura, Shungo Tobita, Yuki Kato, Ryo Uehara, Keiichi Namba, Takayuki Uchihashi, Hiroyoshi Matsumura

This study reports the cryo-EM structure of the ZapA-FtsZ complex, revealing how ZapA interacts with FtsZ to regulate bacterial cell division.

Nature Communications · Jul 1, 2025Peer-reviewedMolecular Biology

Nanobodies recognizing conserved hidden clefts of all SARS-CoV-2 spike variants

Ryota Maeda, Junso Fujita, Yoshinobu Konishi, Yasuhiro Kazuma, Hiroyuki Yamazaki, Itsuki Anzai, Tokiko Watanabe, Keishi Yamaguchi, Kazuki Kasai, Kayoko Nagata, Yutaro Yamaoka, Kei Miyakawa, Akihide Ryo, Kotaro Shirakawa, Kei Sato, , Akifumi Takaori‐Kondo

The paper presents nine alpaca nanobodies that recognize conserved hidden epitopes on SARS-CoV-2 spike proteins across variants and maintain neutralizing activity against escape mutations.

Communications Biology · Jul 6, 2022Peer-reviewedMolecular Biology