Biography:Shigekazu Nagata

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Shigekazu Nagata
長田 重一
Born1949
Kanazawa, Ishikawa, Japan
NationalityJapanese
Alma materUniversity of Tokyo
Known forInterferon
Granulocyte colony-stimulating factor
Fas ligand
Fas receptor
Apoptosis
AwardsRobert Koch Prize (1995)
Imperial Prize (2000)
Scientific career
FieldsBiochemistry
Immunology
InstitutionsKyoto University
Osaka University
Osaka Bioscience Institute
University of Tokyo
University of Zurich
Doctoral advisorYoshito Kaziro

Shigekazu Nagata (長田 重一, Nagata Shigekazu, born 1949) is a Japanese biochemist, best known for research on apoptosis, the process of programmed cell death occurring in multi-cellular organisms.[1]

Contribution

Nagata identified Interferon in 1980[2] and Granulocyte colony-stimulating factor in 1986.[3] He also identified a death factor (Fas receptor) in 1991[4] and its ligand (Fas ligand) in 1993,[5] and elucidated their physiological and pathological roles in apoptosis.[6]

Biography

Nagata was born in Kanazawa, Japan, and completed his PhD under the supervision of Yoshito Kaziro at the University of Tokyo in 1977.[7]

Nagata served as a postdoctoral fellow under Charles Weissmann at University of Zurich, where he worked on sequencing the cDNA of Interferon gene between 1977 and 1981. He was assistant professor at the Institute of Medical Science, the University of Tokyo between 1982 and 1987, and Head of Department of molecular biology at Osaka Bioscience Institute between 1987 and 1998, where Osamu Hayaishi served as president at that time.

Nagata became Professor of genetics at Osaka University Medical School between 1995 and 2007, before being appointed as Professor of medical chemistry at the Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto University in 2007.

After retiring from Kyoto University and becoming Professor Emeritus in 2015, Nagata has been Professor of biochemistry and immunology at the Immunology Frontier Research Center, Osaka University.

Honors and awards

  • 1994: Emil von Boehring Prize, Marburg University
  • 1995: Robert Koch Prize
  • 1996: Prix Lacassagne, French Cancer League
  • 1998: Asahi Prize
  • 2000: Imperial Prize of the Japan Academy
  • 2001: Person of Cultural Merit
  • 2004: Cell Death Society Prize, International Cell Death Society
  • 2010: Member of the Japan Academy
  • 2012: Honorary Doctorate, University of Zurich
  • 2012: Tomizo Yoshida Award, Japanese Cancer Association and Tomizo Yoshida Memorial Hall
  • 2012: Debrecen Award for Molecular Medicine[8]
  • 2013: Keio Medical Science Prize[9]
  • 2015: Foreign Associate of the United States National Academy of Sciences

External links

References

  1. Cyranoski, D. (2001). "Shigekazu Nagata". Nature Medicine 7 (7): 759. doi:10.1038/89860. PMID 11433328. 
  2. Nagata, S; Taira, H; Hall, A; Johnsrud, L; Streuli, M; Ecsödi, J; Boll, W; Cantell, K et al. (1980). "Synthesis in E. Coli of a polypeptide with human leukocyte interferon activity". Nature 284 (5754): 316–20. doi:10.1038/284316a0. PMID 6987533. Bibcode1980Natur.284..316N. 
  3. Nagata, S; Tsuchiya, M; Asano, S; Kaziro, Y; Yamazaki, T; Yamamoto, O; Hirata, Y; Kubota, N et al. (1986). "Molecular cloning and expression of cDNA for human granulocyte colony-stimulating factor". Nature 319 (6052): 415–8. doi:10.1038/319415a0. PMID 3484805. Bibcode1986Natur.319..415N. 
  4. Itoh, N; Yonehara, S; Ishii, A; Yonehara, M; Mizushima, S; Sameshima, M; Hase, A; Seto, Y et al. (1991). "The polypeptide encoded by the cDNA for human cell surface antigen Fas can mediate apoptosis". Cell 66 (2): 233–43. doi:10.1016/0092-8674(91)90614-5. PMID 1713127. 
  5. Suda, T; Takahashi, T; Golstein, P; Nagata, S (1993). "Molecular cloning and expression of the Fas ligand, a novel member of the tumor necrosis factor family". Cell 75 (6): 1169–78. doi:10.1016/0092-8674(93)90326-L. PMID 7505205. 
  6. "F1000 faculty". Faculty of 1000. Faculty of 1000. http://f1000.com/prime/thefaculty/member/5937964516849241. 
  7. CV of Shigekazu Nagata, JST (pdf)
  8. "Debrecen Award for Molecular Medicine". University of Debrecen. http://deoec.hu/info.aspx?sp=82&web_id=. 
  9. "The 2013 Keio Medical Science Prize Awardees". The Keio Medical Sciences Prize. Keio University. http://www.ms-fund.keio.ac.jp/prize/winner/prize2013.html.