Professor Michihiro Suga of the Research Institute for Interdisciplinary Science (RIIS) served as a moderator at the 14th HOPE Meeting of the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS), held February 27 - March 3.
The HOPE Meeting is an opportunity for outstanding graduate students selected from Asia, the Pacific, Africa, and other regions to interact with Nobel laureates and others who have pioneered the frontiers of global knowledge, to exchange with their peers, and to learn about the humanities and social sciences through lectures and artistic programs.
Dr. Suga moderated the 14th HOPE Meeting with Dr. Johan Deisenhofer. Dr. Diesenhofer, together with Dr. Huber and Dr. Michiel, was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1988 for their work in determining the three-dimensional structure of the photosynthetic reaction center. Prior to Dr. Deisenhofer's lecture, Professor Suga said, "Most researchers at the time thought it was impossible to make good crystals from membrane proteins. Dr. Deisenhofer's outstanding work has not only advanced our understanding of photosynthesis, but has also led the way in membrane protein research. In his lecture, Dr. Deisenhofer said, "The photosynthetic reaction centers in bacteria are beautifully shaped like this. Later studies showed that it is very similar to a protein called photosystem II in plants. The structural study of photosystem II by Prof. Suga and his colleagues using an X-ray free electron laser is state-of-the-art research," he commented. Okayama University is the national university located closest to SACLA (Sayo-cho, Hyogo Prefecture), Japan's X-ray free electron laser facility, and Professor Jian-Ren Shen and Professor Suga's group have achieved world-class results in the structural study of photosystem II using the X-ray free electron laser.
For more information on the HOPE Meeting, please visit the website ofthe Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS).
[Contact]
Research Institute for Interdisciplinary Science
Professor Michihiro Suga
Phone: 086-251-7877
E-mail: msuga@okayama-u.ac.jp
Dr. Deisenhofer (left) and Prof. Suga
Prof. Suga introduces Dr. Deisenhofer's background as moderator
