Department of Virus infection dynamics,
National Research Center for the Control and Prevention of Infectious Diseases,
Nagasaki University


Research content

Messages:

Because viruses consist of the nucleic acid as their genetic materials and an outer shell of protein (capsids), they cannot reproduce by itself. Viruses are allowed to replicate by exploiting cell machinery in host cells. Ebolavirus (EBOV) and Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) both cause major infectious diseases in humans, such as Ebolavirus disease and EBV -associated malignancies, respectively. The long-term goal of our study is to provide insights into the molecular mechanisms of their pathogenesis in the aspect of host-virus interaction, which shall lead to the development of rational therapies and diagnosis for them.

Ongoing projects

  1. Characterization of the mechanism by which EBOV is internalized into host cells
  2. Characterization of the mechanism of EBOV virion formation
  3. Role of exosomes released from EBV-infected cells
  4. Molecular mechanism of cell-to-cell contact-mediated EBV transmission in epithelial cells
  5. Characterization of maturation of EBV virions
  6. Development of therapeutics and diagnosis for EBOV- and EBV-associated diseases

Student Recruitment

We are recruiting energetic and motivated graduate students from various background, including but not limited to virology, biochemistry, medicine, pharmacology and veterinary medicine. Our laboratory belongs to the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, and School of Tropical Medicine and Global Health, Nagasaki University. If you are interested in Virology, infectious diseases, bioimaging, research at BSL-4 facility, please contact us.
Please refer to the following sites for the admission policy and information.
1. Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences (Ph.D. course)
2. School of Tropical Medicine and Global Health (Ph.D. and master courses)

Red fluorescent dye-labeled Ebolavirus particle (red) were internalized into the cells expressing GFP-actin (green). Internalization of viral particles induced membrane raffling, which is known to be associated with macropinocytosis.

Labeled Ebolavirus particles (red) were internalized into the cells expressing GFP-SNX5, which allows to visualize macropinosomes (green). Internalized viral particles were co-localized with macropinosomes.

News:

  1. 2025/3/17 Dr. Furuyama gave a flash talk and poster presentation at the Second Joint Symposium of AMED SCARDA “Japan Initiative for World-leading Vaccine Research and Development Centers”.
  2. 2025/3/13-14 Dr. Furuyama was selected for a flash talk at the 25th International Conference on Emerging Infectious Diseases (EID) in the Pacific Rim of the U.S.-Japan Cooperative Medical Sciences Program (USJCMSP) and was further honored with the Outstanding Poster Award.
  3. 2025/3/13-14 Prof. Nanbo organized the 25th EID in of the USJCMSP and the Panel Meeting of the Expert Committee on Viral Diseases. Additionally, Prof. Nanbo gave a talk at the panel meeting.
  4. 2025/3/6 Prof. Nanbo, Dr. Furuyama, Mr. Yamada, Ms. Sakai, and Ms. Nakagawa gave talks at the 1st meeting of the Genotype to Phenotype Japan (G2P-Japan).
  5. 2024/11/11 Prof. Nanbo invited Dr. Andrea Marzi and Dr. Vincent Munster from the Rocky Mountain Laboratories, NIAID, NIH to the CCPID and hosted a graduate seminar.
Past news