MAXIZYMEs: Allosterically controllable ribozymes with biosensor functions

Kurata, Hiroyuki,Miyagishi, Makoto,Kuwabara, Tomoko,Warashina, Masaki,Taira, Kazunari Korean Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biol 2000 Journal of biochemistry and molecular biology Vol.33 No.5

Ribozymes are catalytic RNAs that can cleave RNAs at specific sites, thus they have been employed to degrade a target mRNA in vivo. Development of allosterically controllable ribozymes is of great current interest, but it remained difficult to furnish such functions to ribozymes in cultured cells or in animals. Recently, we designed allosterically controllable ribozymes termed maxizymes, which have sensor arms that recognize target mRNA sequences and, in the presence of such target sequences only, they form a cavity that can capture catalytically indispensable $Mg^{2+}$ ions, cleaving the target. The maxizyme was applied to therapy for chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML). It cleaved specifically the chimeric BCR-ABL mRNA, which caused CML, without damaging the normal ABL or BCR mRNA in mammalian cells and also in mice, providing the first successful example for allosteric control of the activity of artificial ribozymes in vivo.

호르몬 면역학적 측정법의 원리와 방법

Kurata, Kunio 대한핵의학회 1970 핵의학 분자영상 Vol.4 No.1

호르몬의 면역학적 측정법은 내분비학적인 입장에서 가장 중요한 연구방법의 하나이며, 또한 핵의학적 입장에서도 방사성 동위원소를 이용한 성체관내 측정의 하나로 중요한 위치를 차지하고 있다. 이 방법의 일반원리는 동위원소로 표식된 호르몬의 특정항체에 대하여 가역적으로 반응하고, 표식된 호르몬과 복합체를 형성하는데 근거를 두고 있다. 단일 system내에서 표식되지 않은 호르몬이 표식된 호르몬과 면역학적으로, 특정항체에 대해 경합적으로 작용하기 때문에, 실제적으로는 일정량의 표식된 호르몬과 일정량의 항체가 있는 조건하에서 미지성료와 알려진 양의 호르몬을 가진 표준 호르몬을 동시에 처리하여, 표준곡선을 얻고, 여기에서 미지성료의 호르몬 양을 추정하게 된다. 이때 경합적으로 결합한 표식호르몬(bound form)과 결합하지 못한 표식호르몬(free form)을 분리하는 것이 필요하며, 전기영동법, 이중항체법, solid phase법, 염석법 및 효소에 의한 단백소산법 등이 이 목적을 위해 개발되어 있다. 이 중에서 전기영동법은 변성된 호르몬 및 유리된 방사성옥소를 알 수 있는 특장이 있고, 이중항체법 등은 다수의 성료를 처리하거나, 시간을 단축시키는 이점이 있다. 호르몬에$quot;

Research and Development Methodology for Practical Use of Accident Tolerant Fuel in Light Water Reactors

Kurata, Masaki Korean Nuclear Society 2016 Nuclear Engineering and Technology Vol.48 No.1

Research and development (R&D) methodology for the practical use of accident tolerant fuel (ATF) in commercial light water reactors is discussed in the present review. The identification and quantification of the R&D-metrics and the attribute of candidate ATF-concepts, recognition of the gap between the present R&D status and the targeted practical use, prioritization of the R&D, and technology screening schemes are important for achieving a common understanding on technology screening process among stakeholders in the near term and in developing an efficient R&D track toward practical use. Technology readiness levels and attribute guides are considered to be proper indices for these evaluations. In the midterm, the selected ATF-concepts will be developed toward the technology readiness level-5, at which stage the performance of the prototype fuel rods and the practicality of industrial scale fuel manufacturing will be verified and validated. Regarding the screened-out concepts, which are recognized to have attractive potentials, the fundamental R&D should be continued in the midterm to find ways of addressing showstoppers.

STANDING WAVE SOLUTIONS FOR THE PLANER CHERN-SIMONS GAUGED NONLINEAR SCHRODINGER EQUATION WITH AN EXTERNAL ELECTROMAGNETIC FIELD

Kurata, Kazuhiro Korean Mathematical Society 2000 대한수학회지 Vol.37 No.6

In this paper we construct a standing solitary wave solution with prescribed total electric charge to the planer Chern-Simons gauged nonlinear Schrodinger equation with an external electromagnetic field by using a variations method.

The International Context of North Korea`s Proposal for a "New Peace Arrangement": Issues agter the US-DPRK Nuclear Accord

( Hideya Kurata ) 한국국방연구원 1995 The Korean Journal of Defense Analysis Vol.7 No.1

The Agreement on Reconciliation, Nonaggression and Exchange and Cooperation between North and South (the Basic Accord) provided the basis for the establishment of a peace system on the Korean peninsula. South Korea`s position is that the Armistice Agreement should be replaced with a peace agreement between North and South Korea. North Korea, however, has reverted to pre-Basic Accord "fundamentalist" position, proposing a "New Peace Arrangement" in which it asserts that the Armistice Agreement must be replaced with a peace agreement through talks with the United States in the midst of the "nuclear problem." As early as October 1993 Song Won-ho, North Korea`s vice-minister of foreign affairs, gave a speech to the United Nations General Assembly, proposing this new peace arrangement, while referring to Resolution 339GB of the Thirtieth UN General Assembly in 1975. Resolution 339GB not only stated, "it is necessary to dissolve the ``United Nations Command``," but recommended that tile "real parties to the Armistice Agreement ... replace the Korean Armistice Agreement with a peace agreement." In 1994, moreover, North Korea implemented institutional measures in line with its new peace arrangement, announcing the unilateral withdrawal of the Korean People`s Army from the Military Armistice Commission, paralyzing the Neutral Nations Supervisory Commission, and finally creating the "Korean People`s Army Mission at Panmunjom" independent of the commission. North Korea`s measures to make its new peace arrangement a fait accompli only added to South Korea`s sense of diplomatic isolation arising from its exclusion from the talks between the US and North Korea over the nuclear problem. The deadlock was temporarily broken when former US President Jimmy Carter paid a visit to Pyongyang, and Kim Il Sung promised to hold North-South summit talks in June 1994. South Korea`s attempt to contain the new peace arrangement, however, was negated by a very unexpected tum of events, Kim Il Sung`s sudden death on July 8 in the same year. Furthermore, Seoul was given another major shock by China, a party to the Armistice Agreement. When Song Ho-gyong was dispatched to Beijing as a special envoy of North Korea`s Foreign Ministry, China announced the withdrawal of its delegation to the Military Armistice Commission, apparently giving its tacit support for the new peace arrangement. As shown in a statement by Li Peng on Cheju Island, it remains to be seen if China unconditionally supports North Korea`s position. Coverage by Renmin Ribao and Jiefangjun Bao shows that Li Peng employed the term "new peace mechanism" and not the term "new peace arrangement" used by Song Ho-gyong during his visit to Beijing. Li Peng used the term "new peace mechanism" in a broad sense to mean a new system replacing the armistice system. Li Peng`s statement was received favorably and was referred to in South Korea as the "two-plus-two" formula (North and South Korea and the US and China). Such a new multilateral arrangement centering around North and South Korea can only be made possible if South Korea skillfully combines its diplomatic relations with the major powers with a positive and appropriate policy towards North Korea.

Modeling of Driver Steering Behavior in Lateral Wind toward Driver Assistance System

Yoshinori Kurata,Norimasa Kamiji,Takahiro Wada,Shun’ichi Doi 한국자동차공학회 2008 한국자동차공학회 Symposium Vol.2008 No.9

Disturbances decrease vehicle stability and increase driver’s mental and physical workload. Especially, lateral wind increases driver’s workload greatly, because driver cannot expect it. Various driver assistance systems by steering assist have been developed to improve vehicle stability in such disturbance. Gap between vehicle motion and driver’s motion recognition characteristics, however, often leads to uncomfortable feeling in driver assistance system with steering assist. Thus, this study aims to develop more comfortable driver assistance system in lateral wind disturbance by studying relationship between driver’s motion recognition characteristics and driving behavior against disturbance. First, the driver’s posture change, the head movement and the corrective steering behavior were measured under various lateral wind conditions utilizing a driving simulator with one dof motion in lateral direction. As the results, strong correlation was found between driver’s head lateral jerk by lateral disturbance and angular acceleration of steering wheel. Then, we build a driver’s steering model against lateral disturbance based on the experimental results. Finally, validity of the proposed model is shown by comparing the steering angle of experimental results and that of simulation results.

Research and Development Methodology for Practical Use of Accident Tolerant Fuel in Light Water Reactors

Masaki Kurata 한국원자력학회 2016 Nuclear Engineering and Technology Vol.48 No.1

Research and development (R&D) methodology for the practical use of accident tolerant fuel(ATF) in commercial light water reactors is discussed in the present review. The identificationand quantification of the R&D-metrics and the attribute of candidate ATF-concepts,recognition of the gap between the present R&D status and the targeted practical use, prioritizationof the R&D, and technology screening schemes are important for achieving acommon understanding on technology screening process among stakeholders in the nearterm and in developing an efficient R&D track toward practical use. Technology readinesslevels and attribute guides are considered to be proper indices for these evaluations. In themidterm, the selected ATF-concepts will be developed toward the technology readinesslevel-5, at which stage the performance of the prototype fuel rods and the practicality ofindustrial scale fuel manufacturing will be verified and validated. Regarding the screenedoutconcepts, which are recognized to have attractive potentials, the fundamental R&Dshould be continued in the midterm to find ways of addressing showstoppers.

Prevention of Osteoporotic Bone Loss by Whole Body Vibration

Kosaku Kurata,Takanobu Fukunaga,Hiroshi Takamatsu 대한기계학회 2013 대한기계학회 춘추학술대회 Vol.2013 No.5

Rheological Behavior of Entangled Polymer Systems

Michio Kurata 한국고분자학회 1980 폴리머 Vol.4 No.3

Impacts of Indoor and Outdoor Air Pollution on Child Health in Bangladesh

( Masamitsu Kurata ) 한국환경경제학회·한국자원경제학회(구 한국환경경제학회) 2018 한국환경경제학회 학술발표논문집 Vol.2018 No.하계

Indoor air pollution (IAP) and outdoor air pollution (OAP) are recognized as critical risk factors for child health, especially in developing countries. However, most previous studies have focused on the effect of either IAP or OAP without considering the timing of prenatal and postnatal exposure. This article evaluates the impacts of IAP and OAP on child health in Bangladesh, one of the most air-polluted countries in the world. By combining individual-level data from a nationally representative survey and satellite-based high-resolution data on ambient PM2.5 concentrations, we estimate individual prenatal and postnatal exposure to PM2.5 and examine their adverse impacts on child underdevelopment (stunting and underweight) and respiratory illness. Our study finds that the use of solid fuels for cooking, a proxy variable of IAP, is associated with respiratory illness in girls, but not in boys. Prenatal exposure to ambient PM2.5 adversely affects only child underdevelopment, while postnatal exposure consistently increases the risk of both child underdevelopment and respiratory illness.