Dr Takashi Ochi

Profile

I graduated from the Department of Physics at Keio University, Japan, where I also completed my master's degree and studied biophysics and protein crystallography. I then undertook my PhD degree under the supervision of Prof. Sir Tom Blundell's group at the Department of Biochemistry, University of Cambridge and studied structures of DNA ligase IV/XRCC4 complex, which works in non-homologous end joining (NHEJ) for DNA double-strand break repair. I stayed in Prof. Blundell's group as a postdoc, and during this time, I determined the crystal structure of the catalytic core of human DNA ligase IV in complex with Artemis nuclease and also discovered an NHEJ factor PAXX for the first time. I then worked with Dr Mark van Breugel as his postdoc at MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Cambridge and studied structures of centrosomes and cilia using cryo-EM, X-ray crystallography, biochemistry, biophysics and cell biology.

Research interests

The mission of my research group is to understand biology at the atomic scale by observing the structures of molecules. We are currently studying the structures of:

1. The dynamic protein complexes involved in DNA double-strand break repair to unravel their function in plants

2. The stable protein complexes involved in microtubule organisation, particularly centrioles, to understand their roles in the cellular structures and processes.

To achieve these goals, we primarily use structural biology techiniques (X-ray crystallography and cryo-electron microscopy). Our research is to elucidate the fundamental biological mechanisms, with the ultimate goal of enhancing the health of living organisms.

• The molecular mechanism of DNA double strand break repair in plants
• The molecular mechanism of DNA double strand break repair in plants

Qualifications

• PhD, University of Cambridge
• MSc, Keio University
• BSc, Keio University

Professional memberships

• Biochemical Society
• British Society for Cell Biology

Research groups and institutes

• Structural Biology
• Cancer
• Cell and Organismal Biology
• Macromolecular Complexes
• Membranes, Organelles and Cytoskeleton
• Plant Science