Mutational activation of the Ras oncogene products (H-Ras, K-Ras, and N-Ras) is frequently observed in human cancers, making them promising anticancer drug targets. Nonetheless, no effective strategy has been available for the development of Ras inhibitors, partly owing to the absence of well-defined surface pockets suitable for drug binding. Only recently, such pockets have been found in the crystal structures of a unique conformation of Ras⋅GTP. Here we report the successful development of small-molecule Ras inhibitors by an in silico screen targeting a pocket found in the crystal structure of M-Ras⋅GTP carrying an H-Ras–type substitution P40D. The selected compound Kobe0065 and its analog Kobe2602 exhibit inhibitory activity toward H-Ras⋅GTP-c-Raf-1 binding both in vivo and in vitro. They effectively inhibit both anchorage-dependent and -independent growth and induce apoptosis of H- ras G12V –transformed NIH 3T3 cells, which is accompanied by down-regulation of downstream molecules such as MEK/ERK, Akt, and RalA as well as an upstream molecule, Son of sevenless. Moreover, they exhibit antitumor activity on a xenograft of human colon carcinoma SW480 cells carrying the K-ras G12V gene by oral administration. The NMR structure of a complex of the compound with H-Ras⋅GTP T35S , exclusively adopting the unique conformation, confirms its insertion into one of the surface pockets and provides a molecular basis for binding inhibition toward multiple Ras⋅GTP-interacting molecules. This study proves the effectiveness of our strategy for structure-based drug design to target Ras⋅GTP, and the resulting Kobe0065-family compounds may serve as a scaffold for the development of Ras inhibitors with higher potency and specificity.

Transient grating (TG) spectroscopy has been applied to the photoinduced hydrogen-abstraction reaction of benzophenone (BP) in various kinds of room temperature ionic liquids (RTILs). After the photoexcitation of BP in RTILs, the formation of a benzophenone ketyl radical (BPK) was confirmed by the transient absorption method, and the TG signal was analyzed to determine the diffusion coefficients of BPK and BP. For comparison, diffusion coefficients of carbon monoxide (CO), diphenylacetylene (DPA), and diphenylcyclopropenone (DPCP) in various RTILs were determined by the TG method using the photodissociation reaction of DPCP. While the diffusion coefficients of the stable molecules BP, DPA, and DPCP were always larger than those predicted by the Stokes-Einstein (SE) relation in RTILs, that of BPK was much smaller than those of the stable molecules and relatively close to that predicted by the SE relation in all solvents. For the smallest molecule CO, the deviation from the SE relation was evident. The diffusion coefficients of stable molecules are better represented by a power law of the inverse of the viscosity when the exponent was less than unity. The ratios of the diffusion coefficient of BP to that of BPK were larger in RTILs (2.7-4.0) than those (1.4-2.3) in conventional organic solvents. The slow diffusion of BPK in RTILs was discussed in terms of the fluctuation of the local electric field produced by the surrounding solvent ions.

Background: Ki67 is a widely used cell proliferation marker whose cellular functions, however, remain elusive. Results: Ki67 interacts with protein phosphatase 1␥ (PP1␥) and modulates its localization in anaphase. Conclusion: Ki67 is a novel regulator of PP1␥ localization. Significance: This study shows a novel example of spatial and temporal control of dephosphorylation events on anaphase chromosomes.

Kinesin-1 is an ATP-driven molecular motor that "walks" along a microtubule by working two heads in a "hand-over-hand" fashion. The stepping motion is well-coordinated by intermolecular interactions between the kinesin head and microtubule, and is sensitively changed by applied forces. We demonstrate that hydrostatic pressure works as an inhibitory action on kinesin motility. We developed a high-pressure microscope that enables the application of hydrostatic pressures of up to 200 MPa (2000 bar). Under high-pressure conditions, taxol-stabilized microtubules were shortened from both ends at the same speed. The sliding velocity of kinesin motors was reversibly changed by pressure, and reached half-maximal value at approximately 100 MPa. The pressure-velocity relationship was very close to the force-velocity relationship of single kinesin molecules, suggesting a similar inhibitory mechanism on kinesin motility. Further analysis showed that the pressure mainly affects the stepping motion, but not the ATP binding reaction. The application of pressure is thought to enhance the structural fluctuation and/or association of water molecules with the exposed regions of the kinesin head and microtubule. These pressure-induced effects could prevent kinesin motors from completing the stepping motion.

We applied time-resolved near-field optical microscopic measurements with ultrashort light pulses of ~16 fs duration to observe plasmon dephasing processes in single gold nanorods. The correlation widths of the time-resolved signals obtained at each position on the nanorods were broadened compared with the auto-correlation width of the pulse because of the plasmon lifetime.The correlation width maps of the rods showed spatially oscillating patterns that look similar to the plasmon mode structures observed in the static near-field optical images. The spatial variation of the correlation widths was explained as arising from the position dependent contribution of the resonant plasmon excitation in the time-resolved signals relative to that of the non-resonant excitation. This finding indicates that the dephasing times of the resonant plasmon modes were constant regardless of the excitation position. This result is understood to be a consequence of the spatial coherence of the plasmon mode that causes the local excitation to be immediately delocalized across the rod after irradiation. A comparison between the timeresolved signals of the inner parts and the outer parts of the nanorods suggests that the nonresonant contribution to the time-resolved signals may be driven by the lower-order plasmon modes having resonances in a much longer wavelength region.