"Calpain" is an intracellular Ca²⁺-dependent protease, modulating our various organs and tissues such as skeletal muscles and gastrointestinal-tracts to function properly. In case calpains are not working well, they cause various disorders such as muscular dystrophies and stomach ulcer. We are investigating physiological functions of calpains to understand molecular mechanisms of "calpainopathies" (diseases caused by defective functions of calpains) by using genetically modified mice.

<Recent Topics>

(0): Calpain research for drug discovery: challenges and potential

(1): Autolytic fragments of CAPN3 restore activity by intermolecular complementation

(2): Unique calpain (CAPN3) that is activated by Na⁺

(3): CAPN3 is moving around skeletal muscle cells

(4): G-calpain, a complex of CAPN8 and CAPN9, protects the stomach from stress

(5): At where do calpains cut substrate proteins?