Ichio Shimada joins the BDR

RIKEN BDR is pleased to welcome Ichio Shimada as team leader of the new Laboratory for Dynamic Structure of Biomolecules, which was established at the RIKEN Yokohama Campus in April of this year. Formerly a professor at The University of Tokyo's Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Dr. Shimada has long been contributing to the elucidation of the functions and structures of biologically important biomolecules using nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR).

At BDR, he will use in situ NMR in addition to conventional NMR techniques to capture the structural changes in molecules close to their physiological states. In particular, using dynamic structural analyses, the team aims to elucidate the functional mechanism of membrane proteins, which are major targets for drug development.

"The strength of NMR is its ability to capture dynamic structural changes of biomolecules. We will take advantage of this strength to reveal the regulatory mechanisms of biomolecular function. We would like to pursue research that is grounded in evidence," says Team Leader Shimada.