Sam-Yong Park

My group uses protein crystallography to study the structure and mechanism of viral proteins and large, light-activated enzyme complexes. I collaborate with several major groups in Japan on viral proteins of medical importance, and more recently have begun studies of bacterial rhodopsins to look at the fundamental details of light activation. My publication list is available here.

Following my PhD at Osaka University in the group of Prof. Hideki Morimoto, I worked at both synchrotrons in Japan, PF and SPring-8, before joining YCU in 2001. I am the director in charge of teaching at the Graduate School in Tsurumi.

Influenza
My group solved the structure of several components of the influenza RNA polymerase in order to help efforts to derive new drugs. Pandemic influenza remains a world-wide risk, and current vaccines and medications are unlikely to be of much use in preventing large loss of life. The viral RNA polymerase carries out several essential functions for viral replication The crystal structure of the PA-PB1 complex can found at PDB here: 2ZNL. The Nature paper describing the crystallographic analysis can be found via Pubmed here.

Light-activating enzymes
My group has solved the structure of a novel cyclic ATPase that is strongly activated by light. The crystal structure 4YUS shows that the dimeric protein has both a standard cAMPase structure, connected to a BLUF (blue light activated flavin-binding) domain. Details of the structure are described in a PNAS paper that can be found here.

If you would like to contact me or my group, please find the relevant information on the Contact page.

Latest Updates

September, 2019: Our new post-doc Jin is arriving from Korea to continue work with GPCRs.