Research & Education

In our department, human retroviruses, HTLV-I and HIV-I, have been studied. Recently plasmids harboring HCV and HBV genes were also used. Although these four viruses are very important for human or may cause serious diseases in humans, their infection mechanisms are not well elucidated, excepting HIV-I. The infection mechanisms of these viruses as well as the development of antiviral agents against them have been studied. Main research subjects are as follows
a. The entry mechanism of HTLV-I into cells.
b. Identification and analyses of HIV-I coreceptors.
c. Identification of Iigands for orphan receptors (GPCR) using HIV-I as a tool
d. Establishment of assay systems for HCV and HBV entry and analyses of their entry mechanisms into cells.

Lectures for the third year medical students.
a. Oncology and virology
b. Preventive medicine and hygiene
2. Laboratory periment practices for medical students several courses for virology, preventive medicine and hygiene.
3. Lecture for graduate students
a. Serial lectures for graduate students in.
4. Training of laboratory experiment for graduate, students.
a. cDNA cloning and gene expression.

Clinical Activities

(no clinical assignments)

Citizenship Activities

Laboratory straining for graduate students has been open to public, especially, high-school teachers in science.

Achievements

Isomura H, Stinski MF: Coordination of Late Gene Transcription of Human Cytomegalovirus with Viral DNA Synthesis: Recombinant viruses as potential therapeutic vaccine candidates. Expert Opin Ther Targets. manuscript invited review, in press (Isomura, invited).

Isomura H, Stinski MF, Murata T, Yamashita Y, Kanda T, Toyokuni S, Tsurumi T. The human cytomegalovirus gene products essential for late viral gene expression assemble into pre- replication complexes before viral DNA replication. J Virol, 2011; 85: 6629-6644

Isomura H. DNA polymerase processivity factor of human cytomegalovirus may be a key molecule for molecular coupling of viral DNA replication to transcription. Edited by Jelena Kusic, DNA Replication/Book 2, ISBN: 978-953-307-259-3, Croatia, InTech - Open Acess Publisher, in press

磯村寛樹．ヒトサイトメガロウイルス．松島綱治編，分子予防環境医学，東京：本の泉社，2010：218-224.

Isomura H., Stinski M.F., Murata T., Nakayama S., Chiba S., Akatsuka Y., Kanda T., and Tsurumi T. The Human Cytomegalovirus UL76 Gene Regulates the Level of Expression of the UL77 Gene. PLoS One 5(7): e11901, 2010.

Lashmit P., Wang S., Li H., Isomura H., and Stinski M.F.: The CREB site in the proximal enhancer is critical for cooperative interaction with the other transcription factor binding sites to enhance transcription of the major intermediate-early genes in human cytomegalovirus-infected cells. J Virol, 2009; 83:8893-8904.

Isomura H., Stinski M.F., Kudoh A., Murata T., Nakayama S., Sato Y., Iwahori S., and Tsurumi T. Noncanonical TATA Sequence in the UL44 late promoter of human cytomegalovirus is required for the accumulation of late viral transcripts. J. Virol. 82: 1638-1646, 2008.

Isomura H., Stinski M.F., Kudoh A., Nakayama S., Murata T., Sato Y., Iwahori S., and Tsurumi T. A cis-element between the TATA Box and the transcription start site of the major immediate-early promoter of human cytomegalovirus determines efficiency of viral replication. J. Virol. 82: 849-858, 2008.

Stinski. MF. and Isomura H.: Role of the cytomegalovirus major immediate early enhancer in acute infection and reactivation from latency. Med. Microbiol. Immunol., 2008; 198: 223-231 (review)

Isomura H., Stinski M.F., Kudoh A., Nakayama S., Iwahori S., Sato Y., and Tsurumi T. The late promoter of the human cytomegalovirus viral DNA polymerase processivity factor has an impact on delayed early and late viral gene products but not on viral DNA synthesis. J. Virol. 81: 6197-6206, 2007. 

Isomura H., Stinski M.F., Kudoh A., Daikoku T., Shirata N., and Tsurumi T. Two Sp1/Sp3 binding sites in the major immediate-early proximal enhancer of human cytomegalovirus have a significant role in viral replication. J. Virol. 79: 9597-9607, 2005. 

Isomura H., Tsurumi T., and Stinski M.F. Role of the proximal enhancer of the major immediate-early promoter in human cytomegalovirus replication. J. Virol. 78: 12788-12799, 2004.

Isomura H., and Stinski M.F. The human cytomegalovirus major immediate-early enhancer determines the efficiency of immediate-early gene transcription and viral replication in permissive cells at low multiplicity of infection. J. Virol. 77: 3602-3614, 2003.

Shimizu, N., A. Tanaka, A. Jinno-Oue, T. Mori, T. Ohtsuki, and H. Hoshino. (2010) Identification of the conformational requirement for the specificities of coreceptors for human and simian immunodeficiency viruses. AIDS Res. Hum. Retroviruses 26:321-328.

Shimizu, N., A. Tanaka, A. Oue, T. Mori, T. Ohtsuki, C. Apichartpiyakul, H. Uchiumi, Y. Nojima, and H. Hoshino. (2009) Broad usage spectrum of G protein-coupled receptors as coreceptors by primary isolates of human immunodeficiency virus. AIDS 23:761-769.

Shimizu, N., A. Tanaka, A. Oue, T. Mori, C. Apichartpiyakul and H. Hoshino. (2008) A short amino acid sequence containing tyrosine in the N-terminal region of G protein-coupled receptors is critical for their potential use as co-receptors for human and simian immunodeficiency viruses. J. Gen. Virol. 89:3126-3136. 

Shimizu, N., A. Tanaka, T. Mori, T. Ohtsuki, A. Hoque, A. Jinno-Oue, C. Apichartpiyakul, S. Kusagawa, Y. Takebe, and H. Hoshino. (2008) A formylpeptide receptor, FPRL1, acts as an efficient coreceptor for primary isolates of human immunodeficiency virus. Retrovirology　5:52.

Shimizu N, Soda Y, Kanbe K, Liu HY, Mukai R, Kitamura T, Hoshino H. (2000) A putative G protein-coupled receptor , RDC1,is a novel coreceptor for human and simian immunodeficiency viruses. J Virol.2000 Jan;74(2):619-26.

Jinno-Oue A, Tanaka A, Shimizu N, Mori T, Sugiura N, Kimata K, Isomura H, and Hoshino H.: Inhibitory effect of chondroitin sulfate type E on the binding step of human T-cell leukemia virus type 1. AIDS Res. Hum. Retroviruses in press

Jinno-Oue A, Shimizu N, Soda Y, Tanaka A, Ohtsuki T, Kurosaki D, Suzuki Y, Hoshino H.　(2005)　The synthetic peptide derived from the NH2-terminal extracellular region of an orphan G protein-coupled receptor, GPR1, preferentially inhibits infection of X4 HIV-1. J. Biol. Chem. 280:30924-30934,

Seto, E., A. Moosmann, S. Gromminger, N. Walz, A. Grundhoff, and W. Hammerschmidt. Micro RNAs of Epstein-Barr virus promote cell cycle progression and prevent apoptosis of primary human B cells. PLoS Pathog, 2010; 6:e1001063.

Seto, E., T. Ooka, J. Middeldorp, and K. Takada. Reconstitution of nasopharyngeal carcinoma-type EBV infection induces tumorigenicity. Cancer Res, 2008; 68:1030-1036.

History

1. The chairman and professors at this departments as follows:
1)Yoshitaka Komiya (1947-1950) Moved to National Institute of Health, Japan.
2)Toshisada SAWADA (1950-1966) Moved to the Department of Parasitology of the University.
3)Susumu Imamura (1966-1976) Moved to Tokyo Medical and Dental University.
4)Osamu Wada (1977-1984) Moved to Tokyo University.
5) Hiroo HOSHINO (1984--present)
2. The English of this Departments has changed: Department of Hygiene, Department of Hygiene and Virology, and Department of Virology and Preventive Medicine. Prof. Hoshino has introduced virological research into this Department. April 2003, Medical School and its departments have been reorganized to be the Graduate School of Medicine.