Yasutomi Nishizuka | |
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| Born | (1932-07-12)July 12, 1932 |
| Died | November 4, 2004(2004-11-04) (aged 72) |
| Nationality |  Japan |
| Alma mater | Kyoto University |
| Known for | Protein kinase C |
| Awards | Gairdner Award(1988) Lasker Award(1989) Kyoto Prize(1992) Wolf Prize(1994/95) |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Biochemistry |
| Institutions | Kobe University Kyoto University Rockefeller University |
| Doctoral advisor | Osamu Hayaishi |
| Other academic advisors | Fritz Lipmann |
Yasutomi Nishizuka,MJA,ForMemRS (西塚 泰美,Nishizuka Yasutomi, July 12, 1932 – November 4, 2004)[1] was a prominentJapanesebiochemist and made important contributions to the understanding of molecular mechanism ofsignal transduction across thecell membrane.[2] In 1977, he discoveredprotein kinase C, which plays significant roles in a variety of intracellular signal transduction processes.[3]
He was elected as a foreign member of theRoyal Society (ForMemRS) in 1990 and as a member of theJapan Academy (MJA) in 1991.
Nishizuka was born in 1932 atAshiya-city inJapan. He obtained his medical degree in 1957 from the Faculty of Medicine,Kyoto University. Then, he completed his PhD in Medical Chemistry in 1962 from the same university under the supervision ofOsamu Hayaishi who was a famous medical researcher in Japan at that time.
After completing his studies in Japan, he spent one year as a postdoctoral fellow inFritz Lipmann's laboratory at theRockefeller University.
Nishizuka was a research associate from 1962 to 1964, and an associate professor from 1964 to 1968 at Department of Medical Chemistry, Faculty of Medicine,Kyoto University.
From 1969 to 2001, he was the Professor and Chairman of the Department of Biochemistry, School of Medicine,Kobe University. He also served as the 11th president of the same university from 1995 to 2001. He led several medical students who later became leading figures in medical sciences, includingShinya Yamanaka,the 2012 Nobel Laureate, who developedinduced pluripotent stem cells.
Nishizuka is well known for the construction of the fundamental concepts of the intracellularsignal transduction cascade through his discovery ofprotein kinase C, also known as C kinase, and his analysis of its function, which revealed a new intracellular signal transduction system and elucidated the regulatory mechanisms involved in many biological phenomena, including cancer cell growth.
Nishizuka received several awards and honors in his life. The major awards received by him are theAlbert Lasker Basic Medical Research Award and theWolf Prize in Medicine.
He won theAlbert Lasker Basic Medical Research Award in 1989 for "his profound contributions to the understanding of signal transduction in cells, and for his discovery that carcinogens trigger cell growth by activating protein kinase C".[4]
He won theWolf Prize in Medicine along withMichael J. Berridge of theUniversity of Cambridge for "their discoveries concerning cellular transmembrane signalling involving phospholipids and calcium".[5]
The other major awards and honors received by Nishizuka are:
He was also elected as a member of several national academies, including theGerman Academy of Sciences Leopoldina.
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