Toshio Yanagida
Toshio Yanagida (柳田 敏雄, Yanagida Toshio) (born
1946) is a Japanese biophysicist famous for his pioneer Toshio Yanagida
research in single molecule biology, and made 柳田 敏雄
important contributions to single molecule
fluorescence microscopy. [1]
Contribution
Yanagida has been leading the development of single
molecule detection techniques to study molecular
motors, enzyme reactions, protein dynamics, and cell
signaling since he succeeded in the direct observation
of motion of single F-actin filaments in the presence of
myosin in 1984.[2] His single molecule experiments
designed to investigate how thermal fluctuations
(noise) play a positive role in the unique operation of
biological molecular machines allowing for flexible
and adaptive biological systems including muscle and
brain.[3] Toshio Yanagida
Nationality Japanese
Alma mater Osaka University
Biography Known for Single molecule fluorescence
microscopy
Yanagida was born in Hyogo, Japan, and received his
doctorate in Engineering Science in 1976 from Osaka Awards Imperial Prize of the Japan
University. He was Professor of Bionics at the Faculty Academy (1998)
of Engineering Science, Osaka University from 1988 Asahi Prize (1998)
to 2010, and also Professor of Physiology at the Osaka Scientific career
University Medical School from 1996 to 2010, where Fields Biophysics
he served as Dean from 2002 to 2004. After retiring Single Molecule Biology
from this position and becoming Professor Emeritus,
Institutions Osaka University
he has been Specially Appointed Professor at the
RIKEN
Graduate School of Frontier Biosciences, Osaka
Doctoral Fumio Oosawa
University and Director of RIKEN Quantitative
advisor
Biology Center.[3]
Honors and awards
For his outstanding contributions, Yanagida received numerous honors and awards including the 1998
Imperial Prize of the Japan Academy, the 1998 Asahi Prize,[4] and also the 2011 US Genomic Award for
Outstanding Investigator in the Field of Single Molecule.[1] He was selected as a Person of Cultural Merit
by the Government of Japan in 2013.
References
1. 2011 Society Awadees, Biophysical Society ([Link]
ter/PastIssues/October2010/2011SocietyAwardees/tabid/2670/[Link])
2. Yanagida, T; Nakase, M; Nishiyama, K; Oosawa, F (1984). "Direct observation of motion of
single F-actin filaments in the presence of myosin". Nature. 307 (5946): 58–60.
Bibcode:1984Natur.307...58Y ([Link]
doi:10.1038/307058a0 ([Link] PMID 6537825 ([Link]
[Link]/6537825). S2CID 4362315 ([Link]
62315).
3. Professor Toshio Yanagida ([Link]
mistryandNanoscience/[Link])
4. Asahi Prize recipients ([Link]
External links
Yanagida's Lab, Osaka University ([Link]
[Link])
Retrieved from "[Link]
