INOUE lab. (ISSP, Univ. Tokyo)

Effects of Counter Ion Protonation on the Ultrafast Excited State Dynamics in Archaerhodopsin-3 Archaerhodopsin-3 (AR-3) and its mutants have attracted a large attention for applications in optogenetics since they display a voltage-sensitive, near-infrared fluorescence. Recent quantum chemistry ...

A new study on the excited-state dynamics of Archaerhodopsin-3 (AR3) has been published in Biophys. J.🥳Spectroscopy and calculation revealed that protonation of the retinal counterion prolongs the excited-state lifetime and enhances fluorescence✨
www.cell.com/biophysj/ful...
@biophysj.bsky.social

@maicamarinperez.bsky.social @bejalab.bsky.social

Our paper on inward H+ pumping rhodopsin, Schizorhodopsin (SzR), from Antarctic bacteria—by former member Mari, collaborated with Oded and Andrey—is now published in Biophys. J.!🎊🦠SzRs are conserved across a broad range of species 📄
cell.com/biophysj/abs...
@biophysj.bsky.social

Cryo-EM structural analysis of visual rhodopsin complexed with Megabody (Mb7) by Prof. Palczewski's group. Mb7 stabilizes photoactivated rhodopsin in a Meta-I-like conformation.
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
@pnas.org

Spectral Diversity of Vertebrate Retinal Photoisomerase RGRs Vision begins with the photoisomerization of the chromophore 11-cis-retinal (11cR) to its all-trans form in visual rhodopsins. To regenerate visual rh…

Our new paper by Nagata et al. on the diversity of retinal photoisomerase RGR of vertebrates is out in Biophys. J. (@biophysj.bsky.social)!🥳While many animals’ RGRs respond to blue light, zebrafish and other fish have two RGRs sensitive to blue and green light🐠🎊
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

Diverging pH dependence and photocycle dynamics across members of the CryoRhodopsin clade www.cell.com/biophysj/ful...

Happy New Year! 🌅🎍Last year, while we could report on several studies including UV-absorbing anion channels and carotenoid-binding rhodopsins. In 2026, we also have many exciting events including ICRP in Siena. Thank you for your continued support. We look forward to working with you this year! 🙇‍♂️

Protonation states of highly conserved carboxylic acids in NeoR www.jstage.jst.go.jp/article/biop...

Light-harvesting by antenna-containing xanthorhodopsin from an Antarctic Pseudanabaenaceae cyanobacterium www.nature.com/articles/s42...

@maicamarinperez.bsky.social @bejalab.bsky.social @miyabi-ik.bsky.social

Our new study on novel carotenoid-binding rhodopsins from Antarctic bacteria 🏔️🦠is now published in Commun. Biol.!🥳
This protein helps capture weak light in extreme environments. Interestingly, cyanobacteria also possess it. ✨
www.nature.com/articles/s42...
@commsbio.nature.com #OpenAccess

600 nm以上と、あらゆる動物において最も長波長に吸収を持つ分子を含む、シャコのロドプシンに関するPeter Hegemann先生らのご研究🦐😳
Mantis shrimp rhodopsins, including the most red-shifted ones beyond 600 nm, by Peter and his colleagues!🦐😳
biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
@biorxivpreprint.bsky.social

ロドプシングアニル酸シクラーゼと改変型 cGMP作動性 K⁺ チャネルを用いた神経抑制型オプトジェネティクス🌟
Optogenetic silencing using rhodopsin-GC and engineered cGMP-gated K+ channels🌟
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
@johvierock.bsky.social #OpenAccess

Structural insights into an inward proton pumping rhodopsin Two phylogenetically distinct groups of microbial rhodopsins show light-induced inward proton transport activity, xenorhodopsins (XeRs) and schizorhodopsins (SzRs). However, structural insights into i...

The X-ray crystal structure of inward proton-pumping Antarctic rhodopsin by Oliver, Leonid, and their colleagues! Congratulations!!🥳✨
www.cell.com/biophysj/abs...
@BiophysJ

Sensing a rainbow of colors: algal photoreceptors🦠The diversity of microalgae and their rhodopsins🧬
frontiersin.org/journals/pla...
#OpenAccess

Protonation-Enhanced Energy Transfer in Xanthorhodopsin Kin4B8 Microbial rhodopsins are key light-harvesting proteins for energy conversion in aquatic environments. While typically reliant on retinal, xanthorhodopsins (XRs) also employ carotenoids as antenna pigm...

Our study with Profs. Yanai and Fujimoto (ITbM) on energy transfer from carotenoid to retinal in H⁺-pumping rhodopsin, Kin4B8, is out in J. Phys. Chem. Lett.! 🥳 We investigated how retinal’s electronic state governs transfer efficiency 🙌✨
pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/...
@acs.org #OpenAccess

Cryo-EM Structures of Methanogenic Schizorhodopsins Reveal Divergent Strategies for Proton Transport and Thermal Adaptation www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

The bacterial schizorhodopsins: novel light-driven inward proton pumps from Antarctic Minisyncoccota (Patescibacteria) and cyanobacteria, with implications for the proton-pumping mechanism www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

First study from the lab is out! We describe ApuRs, a new family of microbial rhodopsins unique from apusomonads. ApuRs represent the first anion-conducting rhodopsin channels that can be controlled by UV light, offering potential as new optogenetic tools. #protistsonsky
doi.org/10.1101/2025...
👇

Photodynamics of Microbial Rhodopsin Mimic M1-L121E: Insights from Computational Modeling Understanding the photodynamics of rhodopsin is crucial for elucidating light-induced biological processes. This study investigates the excited-state properties and isomerization dynamics of the microbial rhodopsin mimic protein, focusing on its all-trans (AT) and 13-cis (13C) conformations. By scanning the C13═C14 dihedral angle, we revealed distinct isomerization pathways for the two conformations. In the all-trans conformation, the crossing of S1 and S2 energy levels results in significant electronic state mixing, slowing the isomerization rate and extending the excited-state lifetime. Furthermore, the interaction between the chromophore and the protein varies markedly between the conformations, it is attractive in the 13-cis conformations, but repulsive near the mutation site in the all-trans conformations. These findings suggest that the repulsive force in the all-trans conformations may influence ground-state stability, indirectly affecting the excited-state isomerization process.

Photodynamics of Microbial Rhodopsin Mimic M1-L121E: Insights from Computational Modeling pubs.acs.org/doi/full/10....

Apusomonad rhodopsins: A new family of ultraviolet to blue light–absorbing rhodopsin channels | PNAS Apusomonads are sediment-dwelling bacterivorous protists that are sister to all Opisthokonta. They have been found to show a negative phototactic r...

Online now!!! Apusomonad rhodopsins: A new family of ultraviolet to blue light–absorbing rhodopsin channels www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

This work is a collaboration with Dr. Galindo (@luisjagago.bsky.social), Dr. Béjà (@bejalab.bsky.social), and Dr. Rozenberg!
We're deeply grateful for this wonderful collaboration! 🥳

Our paper on the first UV-sensitive rhodopsin channel, the Apusomonad rhodopsin, has been published in PNAS! 🎉
This is a new family distinct from canonical ChRs with a novel transport mechanism🦠—paving the way for future multi-wavelength optogenetics! 🔬
www.pnas.org/doi/full/10....
#OpenAccess

Harnessing light the retinal way - Nature Chemistry Yasuhisa Mizutani marvels at how effectively nature utilizes the π-conjugated system of retinal in proteins.

A new article on retinal chemistry in rhodopsins by Prof. Mizutani in Nat. Chem.!🎉
www.nature.com/articles/s41...

A new heliorhodopsin (V2HeR) from a giant virus by the Prof. Kandori lab🧬 Congratulations!🎉
www.jstage.jst.go.jp/article/biop...
@bejalab.bsky.social

21st International Conference on Retinal Proteins (ICRP2026) will be held in Siena, Italy, from September 14 to 19, 2026
Chair- Massimo Olivucci,
Co-Chair- Kwang-Hwang Jung
www.congressi.unisi.it/retinalprote...

Happy to share our new preprint on the red-shifted channelrhodopsin ChR024, recently discovered by Inoue Lab (biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
), highlighting its long-wavelength absorption and ion conductance:
biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

Many thanks to our wonderful lab members and collaborators!

Structural basis for color tuning and passive ion conductance in red-shifted pump-fold channelrhodopsin ChR024 www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

A preprint on a newly discovered long-wavelength-absorbing rhodopsin channel has been released. This molecule was identified based on machine-learning predictions that we have been developing with Prof. Ichiro Takeuchi’s group at Nagoya University🧬
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

Excited to share our latest paper - now out in @science.org - we showed how oxytocin modulates maternally-directed behavior in young mice (P15).