OCARINA Communication 7

OCARINA通信
The OCU Advanced Research Institute for Natural Science and Technology―Feature―
Next mission of OCARINA where seven projects participated in:What is the key to promoting multidisciplinary researches?
―Research Introductions―
Tomoko Yoshida, Professor, OCARINAOCU Research grant on GLOCAL Base for Constructing Society with Intelligence and Health"A new approach for the fusion of photochemical materials science and environmental health science"
Yasuyuki Tsuboi, Professor, Graduate School of Science, OCU"Nano-scale Manipulation through Optical Electric Field Controling"
Taro Nakamura, Professor, Graduate School of Science, OCU"National BioResource Project (NBRP) – Yeast〜Resource Center Supporting Global Yeast Research〜"
Syusaku Ikeyama, Specially-appointed assistant professor, OCARINA"Conversion of Carbon Dioxide into Organic Molecules with Biocatalysts"―Activity Report―
8th OCARINA International Symposium
Okamura Award for Female Researchers(Award ceremony and commemorative lecture)
OCU Tenure Track Study Conference
OCARINA Seminars

Vol.7
The OCU Advance Research Institute for Natural Science and TechOCARINA Communication 7■ Feature
What is the key to promoting multidisciplinary researches?

Professor, Department of Biology
and Geosciences (Functional
Biosciences), Graduate School of
Science, OCU

Taro Nakamura

Obtained a doctoral degree(Engineering) at the Department ofChemical Engineering, Graduate Schoolof Engineering, Hiroshima University.
Studying syngenesis by ﬁssion yeast,
analyzing meiosis mechanisms andorganizing yeast genetic resources (bioresource project) at OCARINA since
2017.

1

Three new projects in areas attracting attention started in OCARINA this year. During thecourse of research, we faced diﬃcult problems such as the establishment of research spaceand support systems and the promotion of multidisciplinary research and industry-academia
collaboration. Though the present condition is not ideal, various ideas were presented in order toapproach the problems proactively.
Dr. Yoshida s new research topic adopted
as a GLOCAL Project

members. I m proceeding with my research gradually with thehelp of others. I really appreciate it.

Dr. Miyano/We had three standout topics for this year.
First, the Okamura Award for excellent female researchers
was awarded to Dr. Yoshida. Secondly, her new project was
adopted as a project in the GLOCAL base for constructing
society with a smile, intelligence and health initiative. Thirdly,
Dr. Nakamura and Dr. Tsuboi launched a new collaborative
project.
First of all, Dr. Yoshida, congratulations on your receivingof the Okamura Award and your project being adopted as aproject for the GLOCAL base . Could you introduce your new
project?

Dr. Miyano/Since you came, I had been concerned thatperhaps we were not providing you with enough support. I m
glad to hear that your research is proceeding steadily.
Next, let us talk about new projects. Could you explain yourproject, Dr. Nakamura?

Dr. Yoshida/Thank you very much. My main ﬁeld of study
is solid photocatalysts; however, this new research involves not
only solid photocatalysts but also their interaction with various
other types of optical energy. It was very lucky that the topic
matched the aim of the GLOCAL base initiative, which is theintegration of human health and science.
Dr. Miyano/Although the research has just started, how doyou feel about it at present?
Dr. Yoshida/I am still in the stage of preparing theexperiment environment. A new specially appointed professor
was assigned to my team to increase the number of staﬀ

New projects begun and progressing
steadilyDr. Nakamura/I m now participating in the National Bioresource Project. It aims to construct a global base for the
strategic collection, preservation and provision of yeast genetic
resources.
Biological research needs biomaterials such as strains andDNA. If we have an institute that collects bio resources
strategically, researchers can access materials easily, removing
the need to write to various institutes to request them. Our
project will make that possible. Therefore, this project ismore a support project for many research topics rather thanresearch.
Dr. Miyano/OCU is playing a leading role in this project as arepresentative of Japan, which we are very proud of. You havebeen involved in this project for a long time; have there been
any notable points after it became a new OCARINA project?

The OCU Advance Research Institute for Natural Science and TechOCARINA Communication 7

Next mission of OCARINA where seven projects participated in:Professor, Department of Molecular Materials
Science, Graduate School of Science, OCU

Yasuyuki Tsuboi
Completed a major in applied physics at the Graduate
School of Engineering, Osaka University, then brieﬂy
worked for a company before returning to research.
Taught at the Kyoto Institute of Technology and
Hokkaido University while working as the director of
PREST (sakigake), JST. Engaged in the foundation of
LaserSystems Inc. and has worked as its technicaladvisor since 2004. Took up his present oﬃce in 2013.
Holds a doctorate in engineering.

Dr. Nakamura/Solving the problem of research space wasquite notable. We are storing about 30 thousand strains andneed a lot of space. As the project expanded, the storage
problem had become our biggest issue.
Dr. Miyano/The research space problem had often been
discussed, and I think that OCARINA s establishment was able
to improve the situation.
What potential do you think this research has not only inscientiﬁc research but also in the ﬁelds of engineering, biology
and medicine?
Dr. Nakamura/Firstly, we are able to collectively manage
bio resources that are made and stored by researchers
individually.
Also, we will be able to facilitate the eﬃcient use ofexperimental instruments that are shared between researchers.
At present, they are held by the researchers who bought them,and other researchers have to go to their location to use them.
If they are stored in one place, everyone can use them easily
and eﬃciently.
Dr. Miyano/I see. If this idea is realized, it will be a driving
force for many research topics. Moving on: Dr. Tsuboi, could
you tell us about your new project?
Dr. Tsuboi/We are studying technologies for the opticalcontrol of atoms and molecules. In short, we are currently
depriving optically generated atoms of kinetic energy bycooling them, trying to control them more simply by catchingmolecules and nano-structures selectively.
We were having trouble ﬁnding space for our research, andapplied to OCARINA. Now we have been accepted and canconduct our research here, and we appreciate it very much.

Awareness from varied
perspectives leads to great projects.
Dr. Miyano/We have heard about new projects from threeresearchers. Now, could we have a few words from Vice
Director Shigekawa?
Dr. Shigekawa/I started to work for OCARINA in addition
to my work for OCU two years ago, and there is one thing I ve
been strongly aware of these days regarding one of its main
purposes - multidisciplinary collaboration. I can see possibilities
for collaboration here and there, but we are not making full useof them.

Professor, OCARINA

Tomoko YoshidaObtained a doctoral degree (Engineering) at Graduate
School of Engineering, Kyoto University. Awarded the
Okamura Award, given to excellent female researchers,
and her research was adopted as a project in the
GLOCAL base for constructing society with a smile,
intelligence and health initiative in 2017. Has studied
optical functional material science at OCARINA since2015.

For instance, when we recognize one phenomenon, if westudy it in a diﬀerent ﬁeld, we can become aware of diﬀerent
approaches for establishing the technology.
Unfortunately, however, that awareness is currently being lost.
If even one percent of it can be captured and used in someway, it can become a great project.
Dr. Miyano/If joint research across diﬀerent ﬁelds is
activated, it can widen our perspectives and connections withother researchers. In turn, it will expand the research topic
and may lead to obtaining external funding and establishingindustry-academia collaboration.
Dr. Shigekawa/Yes, but in the meantime, researchers arevery busy, and it s obstructing collaboration between projects.
I used to work for a company, but to tell you the truth, I feelI am busier now than I was then. Even if we ﬁnd somethinginteresting, we can t aﬀord the time to explore it.
Dr. Tsuboi/I think the situation is the same in otheruniversities, too. University professors are too busy with work
other than research.
Dr. Shigekawa/In addition, in the case of companies, allresearch resources are managed centrally by their researchpromotion department. Therefore, if they want to advance acertain research topic, they often stop funding other research
to focus on the topic. But in universities, research funds areallocated to professors, so other collaborative projects have tomanage with the remaining funds. Therefore, they tend to be
temporary, thus it is diﬃcult to foster research with a longterm perspective.

OCARINA has the potential to be abreakthrough mechanism in solving problems.
Dr. Tsuboi/I thing OCARINA can be a breakthroughfor researchers. We are fortunate to have an independent
organization for supporting research, as strong external
support is required when taking concrete measures to promote
projects.
Dr. Miyano/The larger the projects we apply for, theheavier the loads on researchers. Thus the establishment ofbusinesslike support systems is a pressing issue. OCARINA
should enhance this kind of support system, too. What do you
think about this, Dr. Kamiya?

The OCU Advance Research Institute for Natural Science and Tech

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OCARINA Communication 7■ Feature
Director and Vice President, OCU

Hiroyuki Sakuragi
Completed the PhD program of the Graduate School of
Science, Kyushu University (Physics). Doctor of Science.
Took up a post at OCU as professor of the Faculty of
Science in 1999 after working as a researcher at theInstitute for Nuclear Study, University of Tokyo.
Became the dean of the faculty and the Graduate
School of Science in 2010, and took up his present oﬃce
in 2016. Specialized in nuclear physics. While actively
involved in research, he is also engaged in lectures,
exercise and academic supervision for students as well
as classes for high school students and international
exchange.

Dr. Kamiya/I totally agree with you. When OCARINA wasin the concept establishment stage, we had many discussions
on that. Your thinking is the same as the basic concept weagreed upon. But, when we consider how much of the concept
has been realized so far, I think we are still halfway through.
Project groups supported by external funds naturally
concentrate on the success of their own project. Unfortunately,
it is diﬃcult to ﬁnd a new research topic through lateralcollaboration.
I hope we will take a step forward within the next few years
to boost the combined study aspect of OCARINA. It s easier
said than done, but I will try my best.

3

Dr. Miyano/Thank you very much. That is precisely the aim
for OCARINA that we ve been targeting since the beginning.
We must make an eﬀort to realize it.
You have just joined from outside the university, Dr. Yoshida.
Could we have your opinion from an external perspective?
Dr. Yoshida/It is excellent that OCARINA is not just a
virtual mechanism. Since there is an actual, physical facility,
when researchers come from outside for joint research, they
can do experiments on the spot. Also, we are always awareof the locations of individual researchers, so we can ﬁnd themeasily when we want to ask them something.
Another advantage is that since the number of students issmall, they study in one big room together. Thus, students
from diﬀerent laboratories can easily talk together about whatkind of devices they have, in which places they are stored,
and what kinds of collaborative research they can do. It s goodthat OCARINA is creating an atmosphere in which not only
teachers but also students can exchange ideas from diﬀerent
ﬁelds.
There is, however, some diﬃculty in teaching students. Since
the number of students admitted to OCARINA is limited, even
if there are students who want to study at OCARINA, the door
is not fully open to such students.
Another issue is that many of the researchers are speciallyappointed, temporary researchers. That may be good in that
it facilitates the ﬂow of staﬀ; however, it is unfortunate thatexcellent researchers will not stay here for long. To promotecollaboration among team members, we should increase thenumber of young researchers as permanent staﬀ.

Advisor to the President, OCU
Director, OCARINA

Michio Miyano
Completed the doctoral program of the Graduate
School of Engineering, Tokyo Metropolitan University in
March 1980. Doctor of Engineering. Became the deanof the Faculty and the Graduate School of Human Life
Science in 2006, Vice President in 2010 and got thecurrent position in 2016. Specialized in regional disasterprevention and housing safety engineering. Studying
natural disasters such as earthquakes and wind and/or ﬂood damage as well as daily accidents in living
environment.

Dr. Miyano/As OCARINA is an organization specialized
in research, its education system is not well established. We
must consider this issue for the future, including the number ofpermanent teaching staﬀ.
Dr. Tsuboi/Student support is indispensable in making
OCARINA a strong organization that can represent ouruniversity. It takes time to realize that if we start from thebottom; we may need understanding and strong support fromtop management.

Strengthening industry collaboration throughmaintaining connections with graduates
Dr. Miyano/Do you have any ideas or comments regarding
industry-academia collaboration, Dr. Tsuboi?
Dr. Tsuboi/There are many OCU graduates who havesucceeded in the industry. I think we should use ourconnections with such people.
It often happens that technologies created through research atuniversities lack the concept of mass production, even though
their individual performance is very good. Thus, they cannot
be transformed into practical use cases. Therefore, we shouldcollaborate with companies consistently, understanding theirneeds in order to prevent our technologies from being lost
without being used.
Until now it was acceptable to simply write papers, without
taking further steps. But this situation will change. In an age
when many problems are solved by AI, it is important for eachof us to recognize what the industry needs from universities.
Dr. Shigekawa/Now, patents are as important as papers.
We sometimes fail to obtain large funding if we do not holdpatents. I think the importance of patents should be recognized
more. In the long run, that will lead to the acquisition of big
funds.
Dr. Tsuboi/I think it s a good idea to bring in incentive
systems or point systems for patents. If we have a system forclearly reﬂecting performance in personnel evaluations, it will
stimulate motivation.
Dr. Miyano/On motivation, we have established anaward system through the support of the university alumni

The OCU Advance Research Institute for Natural Science and TechOCARINA Communication 7

Professor, OCU
Vice Director, OCARINA

Nobuo Kamiya
Graduated from the School of Science and completed
the doctoral course at the Graduate School of Science,
Nagoya University. Doctor of science. Worked as theguest researcher at the High Energy Physics ResearchInstitute, Photon Factory (PF), the researcher andresearch sub head at RIKEN and the director of the R&D
oﬃce of RIKEN Harima Center (Spring-8). Became theprofessor of the Graduate School of Science, OCU in2005 and took up his present post in 2010. Awarded the
Asahi Prize in 2012.

association; however it would be helpful if we could acquire
further support from a range of providers.
Looking toward the future, what direction do you think ouruniversity should take, Dr. Sakuragi?
Dr. Sakuragi/One of the future directions for the university
is multidisciplinary integration; in which OCARINA is leading
the university. I expect that by integrating accomplishmentsfrom various ﬁelds, a totally new bud of research,characterizing OCU, may come forth. Another possibility is
the academic strategy conference, which started when Dr.
Miyano was in my place. It was changed to an academic open
café style this year to strengthen lateral relationships in theuniversity, so that students and general faculty staﬀ can also
participate.
As for industry-academia collaboration, companies related tograduates jointly established a limited liability company named
Wellness Open Living Lab (WOLL), and we are planning tocooperate with it. The arrangement will provide interesting
research with joint research opportunities and funding. The
number of participating companies has increased to 17. I
expect that we will be able to accomplish more through URA s
connection with external organizations and the cooperation of
the alumni association.

The university is a citizen asset. Aiming tobecome a university cherished by local residents.
Dr. Tsuboi/
I have another comment regarding industry-academia
collaboration. Companies wish to strengthen their connection
with universities partly because they desire motivation andtechnology, but they also want students.
I have observed many students to date, and I believe ourstudents are especially remarkable. We should convey to theindustry the advantages of employing our students. Therefore,
we should publicize that point more.
Dr. Kamiya/
Perhaps digressing a little, but upon listening to the alumni
association discussion I thought that the university should ask
for contributions more proactively.

Professor, Graduate School of Engineering, OCU

Naoteru Shigekawa
Graduated from the Department of Physics, Facultyof Science, University of Tokyo in March 1984, andcompleted the master s course at the Departmentof Physics, Graduate School of Science in March
1986. Studied chemical semiconductor hetero binding
devices at NTT Atsugi Research Institute for ElectricalCommunication (present NTT Device Technology
Laboratories) from April 1986 until Sep. 2011. Took up
his present post in Oct. 2011. Doctor of science.

contributions in the U.S.A. and European countries. The reason
being, local governments and universities are more closely
connected, and residents regard universities as their property.
We should aim to be a university cherished by the people of
Osaka City and nearby towns. We are the only university witha school of medicine in our city, and there are many noted
people among our graduates. It s important to publicize thesepoints more, bringing them to the attention of citizens. We
should convey our large contribution to Osaka and foster an
atmosphere of support for the university.
Dr. Sakuragi/
Information on OCARINA s symposiums should be shared
more widely across the university. We should make an
appeal to all members of the university, in order to increase
participants. PR activities and visualization of our initiatives areimportant.
Dr. Yoshida/
I agree with you all. If we put eﬀort into PR, it will also
encourage our students.
Dr. Sakuragi/
When I was the Dean of the Faculty of Science, I felt I was
more so the Director of the Department of Public Relations,and I worked hard at PR. If we ask for contributions, weshould put a lot of eﬀort into showing that we are a citizens
university.
Dr. Shigekawa/
Yes, we may be too reserved in both our pursuit ofcontributions and PR.
Dr. Tsuboi/
I hate to say it s impossible . In a world where we are trying
to go to Mars, nothing is impossible if we truly want to realize
it.
Dr. Miyano/
I suppose we have clariﬁed OCARINA s problems. At the sametime, I have heard many encouraging words from you all. It s
important that we work together to solve our problems, andalso to realize the various ideas you have presented, step bystep.

Dr. Tsuboi/
I agree. Compared to Japan, universities are collecting more
The OCU Advance Research Institute for Natural Science and Tech

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OCARINA Communication 7■ Research Introductions

OCU Research grant on GLOCAL
Base for Constructing Society withIntelligence and Health"A new approach for the fusion ofphotochemical materials scienceand environmental health science"

5

For the realization of our slogan a GLOCAL base forconstructing society with a smile, intelligence and health ,it is now important to start a new project for full-scale
multidisciplinary integration. Fortunately, our research was
adopted as a project in August 2017, and we have been making
steady progress. This research started when Dr. Kamiya sent
us an email, asking are there any proposals from OCARINA
or the Research Center for Artiﬁcial Photosynthesis (ReCAP)
for new research through the integration of multiple ﬁeldsof study? I replied with what came to my mind, and hesuggested starting a project based on my idea. This is how I
obtained a chance to apply.
Since it was just a casual idea and I had not thought it over, I
continued to ask myself if it could be a research topic regarding
intelligence and health. I also discussed the research concept
with my joint researchers several times. When we had ﬁnallysettled upon the concept and were about to apply for research
category B, Dr. Amao and Dr. Nango encouraged us to takeon a larger challenge and apply for category A. I rememberthat while I was waiting for the hearing interview, Dr. Miyano
happened to pass by and cheered me up with a ﬁst pump. In
this way, this research was born not only from the integrationof many joint researchers ideas, but by the encouragement andsupport from the teachers and staﬀ of OCARINA. I am deeply
grateful for their support.
This research is based on the study at OCARINA and
ReCAP in the ﬁelds of artiﬁcial photosynthesis, photocatalyst
chemistry and materials science. It was generated throughthe organic integration of studies at the graduate schools ofengineering of OCU and Osaka Prefecture University andthe Institute of Materials and Systems for Sustainability at
Nagoya University. This core research project aims for thecreation of environmental puriﬁcation materials and systems
based on innovative ideas. I feel honored to work with leading
researchers in varied ﬁelds of study.
To accomplish our aim, it is important to develop and build thefollowing two technologies.
1) Development of photocatalysts for the eﬃcient use ofroom light and sunlight, and air puriﬁcation (sterilization,
antibacterial function, mold prevention and deodorization)by means of photocatalysts ( air and health technology)

Professor, OCARINA

Tomoko YoshidaObtained a doctoral degree (Engineering) at Graduate
School of Engineering, Kyoto University in 1996.
Through a fellowship (PD) of the Japan Society for the
Promotion of Science, she became an assistant of the
Graduate School of Engineering, Nagoya University inJune 1996. After working as an associate professorof the above graduate school and Eco Topia Science
Institute of Nagoya University, she became a professorof OCARINA in April 2015.

New approach for the integration of photochemical
Research topic materials
science and environmental healthscience

Pigment NanoEnzyme particle
Light
Photocatalyst
The creation of environmental puriﬁcation materials and systems is planned
through the organic integration of multidisciplinary ﬁelds, based on researchaccomplishments related to artiﬁcial photosynthesis, photocatalyst chemistry andmaterials science.

Air and health technology
Light

HarmfulchemicalPhotocatalyst

Decomposition/
Detoxiﬁcation

Water, soil and healthExperimental and applied research for practical application

Four research groups
Basic research on the developmentof photocatalysts for air
puriﬁcation<OCARINA>◎ Tomoko Yoshida(solid photocatalyst science)<Graduate School of Engineering>
Yusuke Yamada(molecular photocatalyst science)◎ Research leader〇 Research subleader

Basic research on thedevelopment of photocatalysts forenvironmental water puriﬁcation<OCARINA>〇 Yutaka Amao
(bio-photocatalyst chemistry)
Nobuo Kamiya(biomolecule function science)

Multidisciplinary
research

Basic research on the developmentof photocatalysts for soil
puriﬁcation<OCU>
Masaya Matsuoka(optical solid science)<Nagoya Univ.>
Jun Kumagaya(radiation chemistry)Experimental and applied researchfor practical application<OCARINA>◎ Tomoko Yoshida〇 Yutaka Amao
Sakai Chemical Industry Co., Ltd.

2) Puriﬁcation of environmental water and soil by meansof energy conversion through interaction of high-energy
radiation (X-rays/ γ-rays) and solid materials, which
had been regarded as diﬃcult ( water, soil and healthtechnology)

The OCU Advance Research Institute for Natural Science and TechOCARINA Communication 7

1) Air and health technology
Our research is characterized by multilateral and organic
integration of photochemical materials knowledge andskills accumulated in the ﬁelds of artiﬁcial photosynthesis,
photocatalyst chemistry and materials science, withvarious other ﬁelds of study. We aim to reconstruct thetechnology based on completely innovative ideas andperspectives in order to apply them to environmental
health science. For instance, solid photocatalysts canabsorb various gas molecules at high concentration,
facilitating their chemical reactions through the absorptionof light. ReCAP has synthesized chemical materials
and ﬁne chemicals from CO2 and water, using various
photocatalysts. In our research, photocatalysts are used todecompose harmful chemicals in air.
Harmful chemicals including environmental hormone
have already been spread widely in the environment (air/water/ soil). Although their concentration is very low (inthe order of ppm), they have a large inﬂuence on humanhealth and physical conditions. We intend to dissolveand detoxify harmful chemicals, which exist thinly inthe air, quickly and eﬃciently by condensing them bymeans of the excellent molecule-absorbing ability of solid
photocatalysts. Existing solid photocatalysts are mostly
semiconductor photocatalysts; therefore, only ultraviolet
light can be used. We aim to create solid photocatalysts
that can use light ranging from the ultraviolet to visible
spectrum by means of innovative, rational photocatalyst
design, such as ﬁne surface processing and the addition offunctional nano-particles. Through this, we hope to realize
the highly eﬃcient decomposition and detoxiﬁcation ofharmful chemicals.
2) Water, soil and health technology
Photocatalysts, which use ultraviolet and visible light,
cannot be used to dissolve harmful materials andcontaminants that exist in places without light, suchas cloudy environmental water (domestic wastewater,industrial wastewater, etc.) and soil. In contrast, highenergy radiation such as X-rays and γ-rays can penetrateenvironmental water and soil; however, due to theirenergy being so high, their eﬃciency in chemical reactions(such as the decomposition of harmful chemicals) is
extremely low. Therefore, we need light or electrons
with the same amount of energy as sunlight in order toproduce eﬃcient chemical reactions.
Thus, we aim to convert radiation into low-energy photons
or electrons with a few eV to tens of eV, which areeﬀective at inducing chemical reactions, using reactions(Compton eﬀect, photoelectric eﬀect, etc.) of high-energy
radiation and solid materials. We will use this technology
to attempt to dissolve and detoxify harmful materials andcontaminants in environmental water and soil. Speciﬁcally,
stable solid materials such as metal and metal oxide areplaced in reaction ﬁelds (water or soil) to convert highenergy radiation into low-energy electrons and photons.
This involves a totally new concept and technology:
while utilizing radiation s high permeability (enabling
it to spread widely throughout the water and soil), it isconverted to electrons and photons (suited to chemical
reactions in water and soil), for the eﬃcient degradationand detoxiﬁcation of harmful materials.
This technology should allow the energy distribution
and number of electrons and photons emitted fromsolid materials to be changed freely, according to theconstituent elements and volume of solid materials.
Eﬃcient energy conversion should be possible bycontrolling the shape of solid materials and theirdistribution in the reaction space and the constituent
elements. We expect this technology to become an
innovative approach to eﬃciently dissolving anddetoxifying domestic wastewater, industrial wastewaterand soil.

Air and health technology

Water, soil and healthAir puriﬁcation by photocatalysts(sterilization, antibacterial function, mold prevention and deodorization)

Development of technology for environmental water and soil puriﬁcation,using reactions (Compton eﬀect/ photoelectric eﬀect) of high-energy
radiation and solid materials

Application forinterior/
exterior walls

Harmfulmaterial

Metal, etc.
γ-ray

Response to visible light by means of ﬁne surface processing ofphotocatalysts and the addition of functional nano-particles

Most γ-rays penetrate(with little decomposition)

Energy is absorbed by water(facilitating decomposition)

Infrared

Utilize the high permeability (broad
spread of energy throughout the water)of high-energy radiation (X-ray/ γ-ray)

Light intensity

Ultraviolet

Visibleγ-ray

Conversion to low-energy electronsand photons in water for the eﬃcient
decomposition and detoxiﬁcation ofharmful materials

Wavelength (nm)Development of photocatalysts for environmental puriﬁcation with theeﬃcient use of room light (ultraviolet ˜ visible light)

Eﬃcient decomposition and detoxiﬁcation of harmful materials inenvironmental water and soil

The OCU Advance Research Institute for Natural Science and Tech

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OCARINA Communication 7■ Research Introductions
Professor, Graduate School of Science, OCU

Yasuyuki Tsuboi

Nano-scale Manipulation throughOptical Electric Field Controling7

I joined OCARINA when I came to OCU in 2013. I was very
fortunate to be given an opportunity to lead a project andhave a place for experiments here. Although it has diﬃcultyin funding, OCU shows a cold attitude toward researchers
who have succeeded in obtaining large external funding, eventhough it receives a substantial kickback from the overheads.
I have worked for various organizations including companies,
national universities in various regions and the former imperial
universities. Through these experiences, I must insist that
OCU s system is too strict and, to be honest, the worst forearnest researchers. Even though they obtain external funding
and accomplish research results, there is no recognition forstaﬀ. OCU is lagging behind Osaka Prefecture University,
another public university in Osaka (in spite of receiving thisexternal assessment). There is not even a system for young
researchers including me (though I m not sure if I m included)
to provide our opinions to the executives. Even other national
universities have appointed researchers in their 30 s as
assistants for university presidents. Now, however, I have been
given an opportunity to launch a project with OCARINA s
support, and I appreciate it very much.
Now, changing the topic to research. When I was a student,
people would often say that the 21st century would be theage of light. Now that nearly 20 years have passed in the new
century, I feel strongly that light is becoming more and more
important, exceeding the boundaries of the ﬁelds of chemistry
and material science. From the perspectives of these ﬁelds,
there are two approaches to becoming familiar with light andaccomplishing technological breakthrough: one is the creation ofmolecules and material groups that can reveal special, valuable
functions by absorbing light; the other is the innovative designand creation of reaction ﬁelds for the interaction of light andmaterials. The former has a long history of study and is still
an active academic ﬁeld, while the latter is a relatively new
approach.
Originally, the interaction ratio (absorption ratio) of light(photons) and molecules is not very high. While the size ofmolecules is measured in nanometers, photons can only belocalized to a few hundred nanometers due to their diﬀraction
limit. We need to reconsider this initial reaction phase of lightand materials to construct a highly eﬃcient light-material

Completed the doctoral program of the Department ofApplied Physics, Graduate School of Engineering, Osaka
University (Doctor of Engineering).
Worked for Fujiﬁlm Corporation, Kyoto Institute ofTechnology (assistant/ lecturer), and Hokkaido University(associate professor), and took up his present post in 2013.
He was also engaged in the following research activities:
2004: Participated in the establishment of LaserSystems Inc.
and served as an executive member (technical consultant).
1998-2001: Researcher of Sakigake 21, PRESTO JST( condition and revolution section)
2010-2014: Researcher of PRESTO JST (optical energy andmaterial conversion)
Worked as a part-time lecturer for Tokyo Institute ofTechnology, Kyoto University, Nagoya University, Kitami
Institute of Technology, Mie University, Kyoto Institute ofTechnology, Shimane University and Osaka Prefecture
University.

reaction system. One potential approach is the reaction ﬁeld forhigh-eﬃciency light collection. So, what is this?
Cooperative, collective oscillation of free electrons in precious
metal is called plasmon . Plasmon waves can be created byradiating resonance light (green or red light) on particles
of precious metals such as gold and silver. In particular, in
structures in which nanoparticles are positioned separated
by 20 nm or less (nano-gaps), oscillatory electric ﬁelds
are remarkably localized in nano-gaps by the radiation ofresonance light (red and near infrared rays in most cases). Thisphenomenon is called gap mode localized surface plasmon.
Most of Surface-Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy (SERS) is
included in this phenomenon. In nano-gaps, electric ﬁeld
intensity E2 increases to thousands of times higher than that of
the incoming resonance light. Due to this enhancing eﬀect, thephotoreaction yield of photoreactive molecules may increase
if they exist near nanostructures of precious metals. Misawa(Hokkaido Univ.) and Tatsuma (Univ. of Tokyo) proposed the
expansion of this concept into general photochemical reactions
and photoelectric conversion.
We are proposing a reaction ﬁeld based on an innovative
concept; we use increased light pressure of optical antennas
enhanced by plasmonic precious metal nano-gaps to collectfunctional nano particles and molecules, couple them withphotons directly in the nano space and generate reactions
without energy loss. We have conducted research on plasmon
optical tweezers to establish highly ﬂexible nanomaterial
manipulation technology. The plasmon optical electric ﬁeld
enhancing eﬀect of precious metals can be applied to theenhancement of optical pressure, that is, the grasping powerof materials. (Fig. 1)
We succeeded in collecting light of semiconductor nanocrystals(quantum dots) in 2010. I will explain this using the simple
example of DNA. We were the ﬁrst in the world to succeed incollecting DNA plasmon light not combined with nanoparticles,
such as glass particles, and conﬁrmed characteristic collection
behavior believed to be speciﬁc to DNA. Firstly, DNA wascollected and formed a ring-shaped pattern when the plasmon
was excited by a continuous wave (CW) laser. Even aftersuspending plasmon excitation, the DNA did not scatterbut remained ﬁxed in the ring pattern on the nanostructure

The OCU Advance Research Institute for Natural Science and TechOCARINA Communication 7

Fig. 1: Conceptual illustration of plasmon optical tweezers

substrate semi-permanently. (Fig. 2) Absorption due toelectrostatic reactions between the DNA and glass surface
is considered to be the cause of this ﬁxation. Also, when afemtosecond-scale ultra-high frequency pulse wave laser wasused instead of a CW laser, DNA showed trap-and-release
type collection behavior as seen in polystyrene microspheres.
Thus, by switching the excitation mode between CW and pulse
waves, collection behavior can be switched between the ﬁxation
type and trap-and-release type. This is a unique opticalcollection method that has to date only been accomplishedthrough our DNA method.
In CW excitation, DNA forms a ring pattern while being
collected. We examined this mechanism in detail, and conﬁrmedthat not only enhanced optical pressure but the following fourtypes of forces work cooperatively to collect plasmon: (1) anelectromagnetic force which draws the DNA into the plasmon
excitation area (enhanced optical pressure), (2) a force thatpulls the DNA away from the plasmon excitation area dueto the steep temperature incline (˜1K/μm) (thermophoretic
force), (3) a force that moves DNA into the area under opticalpressure (caused by heat convection) (4) a reaction between
the plasmon generation ﬁeld and DNA (coulomb force). We areproposing this model of collecting and ﬁxing DNA in a ringpattern by means of these forces. If patterning of bio-molecules
in a plasmon-generation ﬁeld can be done in this way (Fig. 2(c)),
the technology can also be expected to be applied to biosensor
manufacturing. We are quantitatively evaluating opticalpressure and thermophoresis operating in optical DNA plasmoncollection. We evaluated the potential energy of thermophoresis
in micro-ring formation and conﬁrmed that thermophoresis
operated more strongly in accordance with the increase in
the number of base pairs. This ﬁnding explained why DNA
with a larger number of base pairs formed a larger microring. Both optical pressure energy and thermophoresis energy
were in the range of 10-19J. Thus, it is expected that DNA canbe collected and ﬁxed at a desired position by controlling thenumber of base pairs, optical pressure and thermophoresis.
Also, we succeeded in the basic demonstration of plasmon
photo-chromatography , which separates two types of DNA
with diﬀerent numbers of base pairs from the mixed solution
and ﬁxes them.
In the future, we hope to examine the optical enhancement
function in the nanostructures of semiconductors anddielectrics in addition to precious metals, and search for opticalmanipulation technology that can control nano materials freely.
This enhancement function and high-eﬃciency collection havebeen accomplished for silicon nanostructures, and the future
success of this methodology is highly anticipated. The content
of this article is included in the following reports. Please contact
me if you are interested. I will send a printout.
Applied Physics Vol. 86 (2017) p.45-49
Modern Chemistry No. 555 (June edition) (2017) p.50-54

I deeply appreciate the support from Dr. Tatsuya Shoji (OCU),
our students, Prof. Hajime Ishihara (Osaka Univ./ Osaka
Prefecture Univ.), Prof. Takashi Murakoshi (Hokkaido Univ.)and other people in OCARINA.

Fig. 2: The optical microscope photo (a) and ﬂuorescencemicroscope image (b) of ﬂuorescence-stained DNA ﬁxed in a ring
shape on the nanostructure substrate
Ring diameter: approx. 5 micron
DNA formation in a desired pattern on the nanostructure
substrate (c) is also possible
The OCU Advance Research Institute for Natural Science and Tech

8

OCARINA Communication 7■ Research Introductions

Professor, Graduate School of Science, OCU

Taro Nakamura

National BioResource Project(NBRP) ‒ Yeast

Completed the doctoral program of the Graduate Schoolof Engineering, Hiroshima University in March 1996.
Doctor of Engineering. Became a special postdoctoral
researcher of RIKEN in April 1996. OCU: Became aprofessor s assistant in April 1997, a lecturer in April
2001, an associate professor in October 2006, and took
up his present post in April 2010. Became the leader of
NBRP Yeast in April 2007.

NBRP Yeast is the largest resource center for ﬁssion yeast() in the world, providing nearly
5,000 bioresources to 30 countries annually. OCU forms thebasis of this center, and I will now describe its activities.

NBRP Yeast ‒ Activities and Main Resources
NBRP Yeast is administered by the Yeast Genetic Resource
Center (YGRC) (Fig. 2). OCU and Osaka University are
managing ﬁssion yeast () (Fig. 1)
and budding yeast () respectively.
These two types of yeast are the main research materials, andeach yeast researcher should manage yeast appropriately tomaintain the world-class resource organizations. At present,
ﬁve researchers (two full-time, three part-time) are engaged inthis work at OCU.
The three main responsibilities of the NBRP Yeast project
are the collection, preservation and provision of bioresources.
At present, around 23,000 strains are preserved, including
mutations in cell cycles and syngenesis obtained throughconventional mutation induction as well as gene-destructedstrains. NBRP also holds proprietary resources including alibrary of strains created by integrating around 1,000 genesof ﬁssion yeast and green ﬂuorescent protein (GFP). Thesestrains are very popular since the localization of each gene iscataloged.
Strains can be preserved at -80°
C for a long period of time.
NBRP Yeast has six ultra-low temperature freezers. Also, in
preparation for large-scale earthquakes, we are storing backup
bioresources at Hiroshima University, located far from ouruniversity. So far, we have created and stored backups ofstrains that cannot be restored if lost eﬃciently. They accountfor one-third of the entire resources.
Yeast genes can be recombined freely; therefore, their DNA isalso an important bioresource. We have a total of 100 thousand
DNA materials such as basic plasmid vectors, various DNA
libraries including genome libraries and clones that constitutethe libraries. There is a lot of demand for chemical-resistantmarker plasmid used for gene destruction and plasmid forexpressing tag fusion genes such as GFP.
Last year, around 5,000 bioresource materials were provided toresearchers, with two-thirds sent overseas. Over the last ﬁve
years, we provided resources to 30 countries (Fig. 3).
The most-supplied resources include DNA libraries and GFP
gene fusion strains. We provide resources not only for veteran
yeast researchers but also basic resources that are useful forﬁrst-time yeast researchers. Information on newly collectedresources is sent to our 2,000 users via our mailing list.

〜 Resource Center Supporting Global Yeast
Research〜

9

About the National BioResource Project (NBRP)
In order to conduct research eﬃciently, it s needless to saythat we require high-quality reagents and advanced equipment.
However, it is particularly important in biological research that
researchers can access bioresources (biological materials suchas individuals, cells, strains and DNA) that have been used instudies presented in journals and conferences. NBRP began asa project by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Scienceand Technology in 2002 to establish a bioresource center,
which collects bioresources from international researchers,preserving and making them available (currently managed by
the Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development).
The projects are renewed every ﬁve years. 2017 is the ﬁrst
year of the fourth period. Resource centers have been set up in
universities and research institutes to each manage one of 30
species of model organisms (Fig. 1). OCU is responsible for the
management of yeast, and we are working in collaboration with
Osaka University and Hiroshima University, which are also incharge of yeast.
Yeast as a Research Material
Dr. Yoshinori Ohsumi, who was awarded the Nobel Prizein 2016, was mainly using yeast in his study of autophagy.
Yeast is a truly vital research material in life science for thefollowing reasons: i) it s safe and easy to use; ii) it can be usedin various ﬁelds such as genetics, cell biology and biochemistry;iii) recombinant DNA techniques can be performed easily andeﬃciently; iv) it s cell structure is similar to those of higher
whole genome sequence forms of life including humans ; and v)
all genomic sequences having been decoded ﬁrst in eukaryote,and information has been accumulated through the postgenome research of proteome and metabolome. Yeast is being
studied across the world and there are many yeast researchersin Japan. Thus, it is indispensable to establish yeast resource
centers for the development of life science.

The OCU Advance Research Institute for Natural Science and TechOCARINA Communication 7

It is diﬃcult to accurately evaluate how much resource projects
such as NBRP have contributed to the progress of research.
However, bioresources provided by NBRP Yeast have beenused in over 660 scientiﬁc papers. Most of them are presented
in high-level international journals including some prestigious
journals such as Nature, Cell and Science. We have been
contributing to the progress of studies that have attained highevaluation internationally.
NBRP Yeast ‒ Database and Provision Systems
We created our website in collaboration with the NBRP
Information Center of the National Institute of Genetics, inorder to promote our activities eﬃciently (Fig. 4). We also
created our database, Genomic Viewer, which links genome
information and bioresource information (Fig. 5).
With Genomic Viewer, you can visually check the preserved
strains and DNA resources and their location information(where they are positioned in which chromosomes). The
bioresource information is linked to the PomBase (Britain)
webpage - the largest international gene database ofallowing you to examine the details of related gene information.
Likewise, PomBase is connected to the NBRP Yeast website,allowing for streamlined ordering of resources.
You can order bioresources as easily as you enjoy Internet
shopping. Resources can be delivered in a week or so to any
country in the world after ordering.
This year marks the 16th anniversary of NBRP Yeast. It
has become the leading resource center of ﬁssion yeast in
the world both in quality and quantity. It is vital for us toreinforce our stock of bioresource through strategic collection,in order to maintain a world class standard. At the same time,
research continues to progress, creating new ﬁelds of study;bioresources required for research are ever changing. It is noteasy to identify research trends and prepare truly necessary
bioresource at all times. We think it s essential to proactively
develop bioresources independently as well as jointly withresearchers by supporting them. Also, as the liquidity of
research units increases, it becomes more diﬃcult to pass overbioresources to successors when researchers retire or transfer.
Thus the work of NBRP becomes evermore diversiﬁed inensuring this succession. In contrast to general research, thebioresource project is a project that supports research; it isdiﬃcult to accomplish highly noticeable success. However,bioresources are the products of past research, and they cannot
be restored once lost. The most important mission of NBRP
Yeast is to continue its business ensuring its relevance and topass on precious resources to future generations.
Acknowledgement:
Our project could not have been implemented without the
support of various organizations, such as the provision ofadequate space and the processing of large amounts ofpaperwork. I would like to extend my sincere appreciation
for the support received from the Graduate School of Science,
OCU, OCARINA and the administration oﬃce.

A

B

C

Fig. 1: What is NBRP?
(A) NBRP Website
http://www.nbrp.jp/about/about.jsp(B) NBRP yeast logo mark(C) A microphotograph of diﬀerential interference of ﬁssion
yeast ()

Room for preservation

Laboratory

Bioresource preservation space
Culture/ Experiment space
Fig. 2: NBRP Yeast work spaces

件



10
EuropeYGRC

North America
NSouth America
Asia, Oceania

Fig. 3: NBRP Yeast - providing countries (2012―2016)

Fig. 4: NBRP Yeast website

Chromosome

ORFs annotated bygene database

Strains

cDNA clones

Genomic DNA clones

Fig. 5: NBRP Yeast database (Genomic Viewer)

The OCU Advance Research Institute for Natural Science and TechOCARINA Communication 7■ Research Introductions

Specially-appointed assistant professor,
OCARINA

Shusaku Ikeyama

Conversion of Carbon Dioxide into
Organic Molecules with Biocatalysts

11

I began working at OCARINA as a specially appointed
assistant professor in April 2017. Since then, I have studied
the conversion of carbon dioxide into organic molecules withbiocatalysts. At present, I am working on the conversion
technology, using biocatalysts and visible light energy (artiﬁcial
photosynthesis).
Industrial and economic development of urban areas
including Osaka City has supported our daily life and social
infrastructure. At the same time, however, it has caused urgent
problems such as global warming caused by greenhouse eﬀect
gases such as carbon dioxide, as well as energy problems. For
the sustainable development of society, we need to constructenvironmentally friendly energy circulation systems andenergy conversion systems through the eﬀective use of harmful
materials.
OCARINA is now implementing projects for solving urban
environmental problems and developing next-generation energy.
Our artiﬁcial photosynthesis project team has been studying
the conversion of carbon dioxide into organic molecules using
optical energy, modeled on natural photosynthesis, as shown in
Fig. 1.
Artiﬁcial
photosynthesis

Chemicalmaterial

Hydrogencarrier

Lowcarbon
fuelFig. 1: Development of artiﬁcial photosynthesis for the
resourciﬁcation of carbon dioxide

In natural photosynthesis, collected optical energy is usedas the driving force to facilitate electron transfer andﬁnally convert carbon dioxide into organic molecules. In
artiﬁcial photosynthesis as well, electron transfer from lightharvesting photosensitizers to catalysts is a key issue. Also, theObtained the doctoral degree at the Department of
Molecular Materials Science, Graduate School of
Science, OCU in March 2017. Doctor of Science. Tookup his present post in April 2017.

construction of a catalytic reaction process is indispensable for
reducing environmental loads and reduction and converting
carbon dioxide. Biocatalysts can convert carbon dioxide toorganic molecules in high selectively at ambient conditions
thus becoming ideal functional materials for environmentallyfriendly photosynthesis. We aim to improve the eﬃciency ofthe conversion from carbon dioxide into formic acid throughdeoxidization with formate dehydrogenase.
I would like to describe our two research topics below.
1) Improvement in conversion eﬃciency by reducing carbon
dioxide to formic acid with formate dehydrogenase.
We are working to improve the eﬃciency of the conversion
from carbon dioxide into formic acid by deoxidization withformate dehydrogenase. As shown in Fig. 2, in the naturalenvironment, FDH activates the oxidization of formic acid andreduction of co-enzyme NAD+ to NADH. In this process, as areverse reaction, carbon dioxide is reduced and converted into
formic acid. We are studying the reaction process using carbon
dioxide reduction catalytic activity. Until now, this conversion
eﬃciency was dependent on the NADH concentration in thesystem. Therefore, as formic acid generation proceeded, thereverse reaction of its oxidization occurred due to NAD+
generation and FDH activity, and control of this reverse
reaction was an issue.
Thus, as a solution for this problem, viologen derivative (BP)is used instead of NADH as shown in Fig. 2. In the conversion
process from carbon dioxide to formic acid, the one-electron
reduced viologen derivative (BP•+) acts as an artiﬁcial coenzyme for FDH. In contrast, the conversion reaction to carbon
dioxide through formic acid oxidization with FDH and oxidized
viologen derivative (BP2+) does not occur. Therefore, only the
carbon dioxide reduction catalytic activity of FDH can be used.
[1]
Furthermore, we have identiﬁed that carbon dioxide reduction
catalytic eﬃciency of FDH can be controlled through the
optimal design of the viologen derivative as an artiﬁcial coenzyme for FDH. [2,3]

The OCU Advance Research Institute for Natural Science and TechOCARINA Communication 7

We discovered that the catalytic eﬃciency of improves 560
times by using viologen derivative with amino group (DAV)
instead of NADH.
Formic acid production from carbon dioxide with NADH and FDH

as artiﬁcial coenzymes for other biocatalysts such as alcohol
dehydrogenase and malic enzyme. [7, 8]

References[1] Y. Amao, S. Ikeyama, Chem. Lett., 2015, 44,1182

Formic acid production from carbon dioxide with one-election reduced viologen derivative (BP) and FDH

Fig. 2: Improvement of the CO₂ reduction catalytic eﬃciency
of formate dehydrogenase with one-election reduced viologen
derivative (FDH)

2) Improvement of formic acid production eﬃciency in theartiﬁcial photosynthesis system with FDH.

Photosensitizer

Electron carrier

Biocatalyst

Water-soluble porphyrin
Viologen derivative

Formate dehydrogenase

Fig. 3: The artiﬁcial photosynthesis system with FDH converting
carbon dioxide into formic acid by use of FDH

Formic acid yield

Viologen derivative (BP) functioning as an artiﬁcial coenzyme for FDH

Fig. 4: Improvement in the conversion eﬃciency of carbon
dioxide to formic acid in an artiﬁcial photosynthesis system withformate dehydrogenase[2] S. Ikeyama, R. Abe, S. Shiotani, Y. Amao, Chem. Lett., 2016, 45,907[3] S. Ikeyama, Y. Amao, ChemCatChem, 2017, 9, 833.
[4] S. Ikeyama, Y. Amao, Chem. Lett., 2016, 45, 1259.
[5] S. Ikeyama, Y. Amao, Sustinable Energy & Fuels, 2017, 1, 1730.
[6] S. Ikeyama, Y. Amao, Photochem. Photobiol. Sci., 2018, 17, 60.
[7] S. Ikeyama, T. Katagiri, Y. Amao, J. Photo. Photobiol. A. Chem,
2017, DOI: 10.1016/j.jphotochem.2017.09.044[8] Y. Amao, S. Ikeyama, T. Katagiri, K. Fujita, Faraday Discuss,
2017, 198, 73.

The viologen derivative used for improving carbon dioxide
reduction eﬃciency can be easily reduced by visible light byuse of photosensitizers, such as a water-soluble porphyrinderivative. It is, therefore, possible to construct an artiﬁcial
photosynthesis system that uses visible light to convert carbon
dioxide into formic acid with FDH. In the system, viologen
derivative acts an electron carrier that receives electrons fromphotosensitizers and provides them to FDH, for converting
carbon dioxide into formic acid.
In conventional methods, methyl viologen (MV) was used as theelectron carrier. By replacing MV with the viologen derivativewith amino group (DAV, MAV in Fig. 2), the eﬃciency ofelectron transfer from photosensitizers to FDH is improved.
We have succeeded in doubling the amount of formic acidgeneration per one hour of visible light radiation. [5]Also, when the viologen derivative containing a carboxylgroup was used (DCV, MCV in Fig. 2), the amount of formic
acid generation decreased. We have found out that wecan be controlled the conversion eﬃciency of the artiﬁcial
photosynthesis by changing the type of the viologen derivative
used as an electron carrier. [6]Based on these ﬁndings, we are now developing viologen
derivatives that can improve FDH catalytic eﬃciency as well as
artiﬁcial photosynthesis systems that use viologen derivatives
The OCU Advance Research Institute for Natural Science and Tech

12

OCARINA Communication 7■ Activity Report
8th OCARINA International Symposium
Invited speakers
Masakazu Sugiyama (Professor, Graduate School ofEngineering, University of Tokyo)
Hiromi Yamashita (Professor, Graduate School of Engineering,Osaka University)
Takeharu Nagai (Professor, Institute of Scientiﬁc and Industrial
Research, Osaka University)
Long-Jiang Yu (Assistant professor, Research Institute forInterdisciplinary Science, Okayama University)
Yukihiro Kimura (Assistant professor, Graduate School of
Agricultural Science, Kobe University)
Mai Watanabe (Specially-appointed researcher, Graduate
School of Arts and Sciences, The University of Tokyo)

13

Invited speakers in OCARINA project team
Naoteru Shigekawa (Vise Director of OCARINA / Professor,
Electronic information system, Graduate School of Engineering, OCU)
Seiya Kobatake (Professor, Applied Chemistry andBioengineering, Graduate School of Engineering, OCU)
Masatoshi Kozaki (Professor, Molecular Materials Science,
Graduate School of Science, OCU)
Kazunobu Sato (Professor, Molecular Materials Science,
Graduate School of Science, OCU)
Makoto Miyata (Professor, Biology & Geosciences, Graduate
School of Science, OCU)
Akihisa Terakita (Professor, Biology & Geosciences, Graduate
School of Science, OCU)
Muneki Mitamura (Professor, Biology & Geosciences, Graduate
School of Science, OCU)
Masatoshi Nishioka (Professor, Urban Design & Engineering,
Graduate School of Engineering, OCU)

The 8th OCARINA International Symposium was held in the OCU Media Center (Conference room, 10th ﬂoor) on March 7 and 8,
2017.This symposium serves as an annual meeting of OCARINA and holds it in an international conference form approximately
every year to promote mutual knowledge exchange between research projects participated in OCARINA, including study for
artiﬁcial photosynthesis, advanced materials urban energy disaster prevention, and advanced biotechnology and frontier biomedical
engineering. This year, seven researchers from ﬁve OCARINA research projects presented their recent progresses, and six guest
researchers gave three keynote lectures and three topical presentations. In the keynote lectures, large-scale proposals for nextgeneration energy were given, such as plant lanterns that illuminate the leaves of roadside trees or 4th generation solar batteries
combining solar batteries and fuel batteries. These proposals brought about discussions, which were indicative of OCARINA-'s
future direction.
In the poster session, 38 subjects were presented by students and younger staﬀs from the graduate school of Human Life Science,
Engineering, and Science in OCU. Active discussions were made during short oral presentation followed by the poster viewing
session. Director of OCARINA awarded two posters selected among 30 entries by a vote held among the symposium participants.
In total, 125 researchers from both academia and companies participated at the symposium.

The OCU Advance Research Institute for Natural Science and TechOCARINA Communication 7

Okamura Award for Female Researchers (Award ceremony and commemorative lecture)
The award ceremony and commemorative lecture meeting of 4th Okamura Award forfemale researchers were held in the OCU Media Center (conference room, 10th ﬂoor)
on December 21, 2017.
The special award was given to OCARINA professor Tomoko Yoshida, and theencouragement award for doctoral research fellows was given to Isil TULUM of the
Graduate School of Science. Four award winners gave presentations on research topics
at the commemorative lecture meeting.
■ The Okamura Award is given to female researchers who are engaged inoutstanding research and education activities and contributing to the promotionof gender equality. This award aims to encourage female researchers tocontinue research activities and produce the next-generation of excellent female
researchers.

Professor Tomoko Yoshida (front, second from left),
doctoral research fellow Isil TULUM (third from left)

OCU Tenure Track Study Conference
The OCU Tenure Track Study Conference was held at
Tanaka Memorial Hall on December 4, 2017. The conference
was organized and administered by tenure-track instructors.
After the opening speech and the explanation of the tenuretrack project by OCU vice-president Hiroyuki Sakuragi, OCU
president Tetsuo Arakawa delivered a lecture.
Following the lecture, a concert by the members of Otoasobino-kai (music enjoyment group) and Otoasobi Kobo (music
enjoyment studio) was held, and three tenure-track instructors
gave presentations. Fuminori Kato, assistant professor of Hiroshima University and Norihide Nakada, assistant professor of Kyoto
University provided questions and suggestions for the presentations as guest commentators. Many questions were asked by
students and instructors participating in the conference, and a lively discussion ensued.

OCARINA Seminars
OCARINA seminars are held to provide opportunities for the members of OCARINA to talk with domestic and foreign
researchers and give presentations on their research results. In addition to seminars inviting leading scientists from inside andoutside of the country, a wide variety of activities such as study tours and PR activities are also held.

34th

Date

Feb. 17, 2017

Guest

Isao Suetake (Associate Professor, Institute for Protein Research, Osaka University)

Venue

Faculty of Science, Lecture Room 10

Theme &ODULÀFDWLRQRIWKHPROHFXODUPHFKDQLVPRI Heredity without change in base sequence

35th
36th
37th
38th
39th

Date

Apr. 24, 2017

Guest

Satoshi Awata (Associate Professor, Graduate School of Science, OCU)

Venue

Faculty of Science, Lecture Room 10

Theme

Diversity and evolution of reproduction-related traits in mating/non-mating species of marine sculpin

Date

Apr. 26, 2017

Guest

Taro Fuchikawa (Associate Professor, Graduate School of Science, OCU)

Venue

Faculty of Science, Lecture Room 4

ThemeSocial entrainment and biological clock of circadian rhythm in bees with a breeding role

Date

Sep. 15, 2017

Guest

Bob Robinson（Professor, National University of Singapore, Okayama University）

Venue

Faculty of Science, Lecture Room 10

Theme

The Evolution of Actin Filament Systems

Date

Dec. 15, 2017

Guest

Toshiaki Arata (Specially-appointed Professor, Cell Function Lab, Graduate School of Science, OCU)

Venue

Faculty of Science, Lecture Room 9

ThemeProtein structure and motion detected by electron spin resonance = reaction × motion ÷ electrons

Date

Dec. 19, 2017

Guest

Ken-ichi Sano (Professor, Faculty of Engineering, Nippon Institute of Technology)

Theme

1DQRELRWHFKQRORJ\EDVHGRQOLYLQJRUJDQLVPVDQGPDWHULDOVWKHFUHDWLRQRI''6FDUULHUVLQKLJKO\HIÀFLHQWFHOOV

Venue

Faculty of Science, Lecture Room 9

The OCU Advance Research Institute for Natural Science and Tech

14

OCARINA Communication 7

What is OCARINA?
The mission of OCARINA (OCU Advanced Research Institute for Natural Scienceand Technology) is to find solutions for global-level energy and environmental issues
and complex and advanced research subjects, and contribute to the establishment ofa sustainable society. As an urban-type university that promotes multidisciplinary
research, we set up research projects across the graduate schools.
Since its foundation in 2010, OCARINA has been carrying out large-scale projects withcompetitive research funds, while promoting globalization, integration of different fields,
training of young researchers, and recruitment of female researchers.
Currently, we have seven big projects at the four OCU research departments ofGraduate School of Science, Graduate School of Engineering, Graduate School of Life
Science and Graduate School of Medicine. The most distinguishing feature of OCARINA
is the integration of different fields, which is conducted by a small number of selected
researchers. With the major city of Osaka as our base, we will continue to promote
original research, including collaborative research related to medicine.

History of the Osaka City University Advanced Research Institute for
Natural Science and Tehnology
2008 March
Founding Anniversary International Symposium held
April
The OCU strategic key research project (2008-2011) started
December International Workshop held on the eﬃcient use of sunlight energy
2010 March
Enforcement of oﬃcial regulations(start of activities as an oﬃcial bureau)
March
1st International symposium held
October 2nd International symposium held
November Building 2 renovated for research ﬂoors of OCARINA
December Opening symposium for building 2 of OCARINA held
2011 March
3rd International symposium, “Kakuno memorial,” held
2012 MarchAnnual meeting and the OCU strategic key research project(2008-2011) debrieﬁng held
April
The OCU strategic key research project (2012-2014) started
July
School of Science Building C completed, partial occupation2013 March
4th International symposium heldApril
2 new full-time staﬀ members appointed
April
New projects started

June2014 February
February
March
March
April
April
2015 March
April
April
2016 March
April
April
April
2017 March
April
AugustResearch Center of Artiﬁcial Photosynthesis opened
Partial occupation for the new School of Science Building
One new full-time tenure track staﬀ member appointed
One new full-time tenure track staﬀ member appointed
5th International symposium held
One new full-time tenure track staﬀ member appointed
The OCU strategic key research project (2014-2015) started
6th International Symposium held
One new full-time staﬀ member appointed
Three new project started
7th International Symposium held
The OCU strategic key research project (2016-2017) started
ReCAP authorized as a Joint Usage/Research Center by Ministry of
Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT)
One new project started
8th International Symposium held
One new project started
One new project started There are currently seven projects being promoted

Osaka City University Advanced Research Institutefor Natural Science and Technology
3-3-138 Sugimoto, Sumiyoshi-ku,
Osaka 558-8585, Japan
http://www.ocarina.osaka-cu.ac.jp/
The OCU Advance Research Institute for Natural Science and Tech