【Biomedical Engineering Chemistry】Developed a New Technology to Capture Protein Networks Across Cell Membranes: Identifying Intra- and Extracellular Receptor-Proximal Proteins in the Living Brain
A Kyoto University team led by Professor Itaru Hamachi, Associate Professor Tomonori Tamura, and doctoral student Fátima Yuri Tanimura Valor of the Biomedical Engineering Chemistry domain has developed "transmembrane PhoxID" (tmPhoxID), a novel technology that simultaneously labels proteins in close proximity to both the intra- and extracellular domains of membrane proteins. This technique utilizes singlet oxygen (¹O₂), which can cross the cell membrane, generated from a photosensitizer fixed on the extracellular side.
Applying tmPhoxID to neurotransmitter receptors (GluD2, GABAAR, and mGlu1) in the living mouse brain, the team successfully identified groups of proteins existing around each receptor. Furthermore, they discovered molecular networks connecting neurons via synapses and a previously unknown interaction between GABAAR and CAMKV. This technology is expected to be applied to a wide range of life science research, including neuroscience, as a new research platform for comprehensively analyzing the intra- and extracellular molecular networks of membrane proteins.
This research was published online in the international journal Nature Communications on October 5, 2026.
Bibliographic Information
| Title | Transmembrane PhoxID: Photoproximity labelling across the plasma membrane in vivo |
| Authors | Fátima Yuri Tanimura Valor, Mikiko Takato, Ayane Araki, Kiyoshi Sakamoto, Tomonori Tamura, Itaru Hamachi |
| Journal | Nature Communications |
| DOI | 10.1038/s41467-026-78135-2 |
| KURENAI |