Okayama University: Elucidating the Mechanism of Tissue-Invasive Bacteria Destroying Tissue! ~Potential for Application in Transplant and Regenerative Medicine~
An international joint research group, including Okayama University, has elucidated the atomic-level mechanism by which tissue-invasive bacteria efficiently degrade collagen. This discovery is expected to lead to improved design of enzyme preparations crucial for transplant and regenerative medicine, with applications in various therapeutic methods.
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- 📰 Published: May 5, 2026 at 08:30
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This is a press release about the joint research findings of Okayama University, Osaka University, Ehime Prefectural University of Health Sciences, Waseda University, the University of Arkansas (USA), Hokkaido University, and Osaka Metropolitan University.
May 4, 2026 (Reiwa 8)
National University Corporation Okayama University
https://www.okayama-u.ac.jp/
◆ Key Points of the Announcement
One of the foundational technologies supporting advanced medical treatments like pancreatic islet transplantation for diabetic patients involves enzyme preparations that extract only the target cells from donor tissues. Pathogenic bacteria-derived collagenase is used to digest collagen, the scaffold for cells, and dissociate tissues.
Based on two types of enzyme genes identified and named by Professor Emeritus Osamu Matsushita of Okayama University and his colleagues in the 1990s, two types of safe recombinant enzymes were launched by a Japanese pharmaceutical company in 2016. However, the mechanism by which these enzymes efficiently digest collagen remained unclear.
This research investigated the shape and movement of the enzymes at an atomic level, clarifying how tissue-invasive bacteria continuously fragment collagen. This discovery is expected to enable improved design of recombinant enzymes, leading to applications in various transplant medicine, regenerative medicine, and treatments.
◆ Overview
An international joint research group, including Professor Emeritus Osamu Matsushita of National University Corporation Okayama University (Headquarters: Kita-ku, Okayama City; President: Yasutomo Nasu), Assistant Professor Katsuki Takebe (at the time of research; currently Lecturer at Hokkaido University) of the Academic Research Institute of Medicine, Dentistry and Pharmaceutical Sciences at Okayama University, Assistant Professor Kazuki Kawahara (at the time of research; currently Lecturer at Osaka Metropolitan University) of the Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences at Osaka University, Professor Takehiko Mima of Ehime Prefectural University of Health Sciences, Professor Takaki Koide of Waseda University, and Professor Joshua Sakon of the University of Arkansas (USA), elucidated the mechanism by which tissue-invasive bacteria continuously cleave collagen using collagenase.
These research findings were published as a Research Article in the British multidisciplinary science journal "Nature Communications" on April 2, 2026.
Collagen is a protein with a unique, elongated triple-helix structure. It is believed that bacterial collagenase takes in collagen, unwinds and cleaves the helix, and then gradually advances along the helical axis to fragment the collagen. This mechanism fundamentally differs from the way human and animal collagenases specifically cleave elongated collagen at only one point.
These research findings are an interesting discovery for considering the evolution of life and the acquisition of sophisticated infection mechanisms by pathogenic bacteria, and are also expected to be applied to various transplant and regenerative medicine through the improved design of recombinant enzymes.
◆ A word from Assistant Professor Katsuki Takebe (at the time of research)
Researchers from Osaka, Tokyo, Matsuyama, and the United States gathered at Okayama University's Shikata Campus many times for free discussions. Amidst the clashing personalities and philosophies of researchers who "see experimental results as they are" and "seek the truth revealed by experimental results with all their wisdom," I experienced the progress of the research and the shaping of the paper, which was a continuous thrill.
Those interested in the shape and function of proteins! Let's do it together!
◆ Paper Information
Title: Bacterial collagenase harnesses collagen geometry for processive cleavage.
Journal: Nature Communications
Authors: Hiroya Oki, Katsuki Takebe, Adjoa Bonsu, Kazunori Fujii, Ryo Masuda, Nicholas Henderson, Takehiko Mima, Takaki Koide, Mahmoud Moradi, Osamu Matsushita*, Joshua Sakon*, Kazuki Kawahara*
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-026-71099-3 Received March 13, 2026, Published April 2, 2026
◆ Research Funding
This research was supported by the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) KAKENHI (Grant-in-Aid for Early-Career Scientists, JP23K14519, Principal Investigator Hiroya Oki; Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C), JP23K06545, Principal Investigator Osamu Matsushita; Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C), JP24K10218, Principal Investigator Kazuki Kawahara), the Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development (AMED) "Platform for Advanced Genome and Protein Research (BINDS)" (JP22ama121003), the Lactic Acid Bacteria Research Association Grant (2023, 2024, Principal Investigator Osamu Matsushita), and the National Science Foundation (grant 2218054, Principal Investigator Joshua Sakon). The publication of this paper was also supported by the University of Arkansas Libraries.
Keywords:
May 4, 2026 (Reiwa 8)
National University Corporation Okayama University
https://www.okayama-u.ac.jp/
◆ Key Points of the Announcement
One of the foundational technologies supporting advanced medical treatments like pancreatic islet transplantation for diabetic patients involves enzyme preparations that extract only the target cells from donor tissues. Pathogenic bacteria-derived collagenase is used to digest collagen, the scaffold for cells, and dissociate tissues.
Based on two types of enzyme genes identified and named by Professor Emeritus Osamu Matsushita of Okayama University and his colleagues in the 1990s, two types of safe recombinant enzymes were launched by a Japanese pharmaceutical company in 2016. However, the mechanism by which these enzymes efficiently digest collagen remained unclear.
This research investigated the shape and movement of the enzymes at an atomic level, clarifying how tissue-invasive bacteria continuously fragment collagen. This discovery is expected to enable improved design of recombinant enzymes, leading to applications in various transplant medicine, regenerative medicine, and treatments.
◆ Overview
An international joint research group, including Professor Emeritus Osamu Matsushita of National University Corporation Okayama University (Headquarters: Kita-ku, Okayama City; President: Yasutomo Nasu), Assistant Professor Katsuki Takebe (at the time of research; currently Lecturer at Hokkaido University) of the Academic Research Institute of Medicine, Dentistry and Pharmaceutical Sciences at Okayama University, Assistant Professor Kazuki Kawahara (at the time of research; currently Lecturer at Osaka Metropolitan University) of the Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences at Osaka University, Professor Takehiko Mima of Ehime Prefectural University of Health Sciences, Professor Takaki Koide of Waseda University, and Professor Joshua Sakon of the University of Arkansas (USA), elucidated the mechanism by which tissue-invasive bacteria continuously cleave collagen using collagenase.
These research findings were published as a Research Article in the British multidisciplinary science journal "Nature Communications" on April 2, 2026.
Collagen is a protein with a unique, elongated triple-helix structure. It is believed that bacterial collagenase takes in collagen, unwinds and cleaves the helix, and then gradually advances along the helical axis to fragment the collagen. This mechanism fundamentally differs from the way human and animal collagenases specifically cleave elongated collagen at only one point.
These research findings are an interesting discovery for considering the evolution of life and the acquisition of sophisticated infection mechanisms by pathogenic bacteria, and are also expected to be applied to various transplant and regenerative medicine through the improved design of recombinant enzymes.
◆ A word from Assistant Professor Katsuki Takebe (at the time of research)
Researchers from Osaka, Tokyo, Matsuyama, and the United States gathered at Okayama University's Shikata Campus many times for free discussions. Amidst the clashing personalities and philosophies of researchers who "see experimental results as they are" and "seek the truth revealed by experimental results with all their wisdom," I experienced the progress of the research and the shaping of the paper, which was a continuous thrill.
Those interested in the shape and function of proteins! Let's do it together!
◆ Paper Information
Title: Bacterial collagenase harnesses collagen geometry for processive cleavage.
Journal: Nature Communications
Authors: Hiroya Oki, Katsuki Takebe, Adjoa Bonsu, Kazunori Fujii, Ryo Masuda, Nicholas Henderson, Takehiko Mima, Takaki Koide, Mahmoud Moradi, Osamu Matsushita*, Joshua Sakon*, Kazuki Kawahara*
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-026-71099-3 Received March 13, 2026, Published April 2, 2026
◆ Research Funding
This research was supported by the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) KAKENHI (Grant-in-Aid for Early-Career Scientists, JP23K14519, Principal Investigator Hiroya Oki; Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C), JP23K06545, Principal Investigator Osamu Matsushita; Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C), JP24K10218, Principal Investigator Kazuki Kawahara), the Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development (AMED) "Platform for Advanced Genome and Protein Research (BINDS)" (JP22ama121003), the Lactic Acid Bacteria Research Association Grant (2023, 2024, Principal Investigator Osamu Matsushita), and the National Science Foundation (grant 2218054, Principal Investigator Joshua Sakon). The publication of this paper was also supported by the University of Arkansas Libraries.
Keywords: