
2025
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Young-Ho Lee*, Tomohide Saio*, Mai Watabe, Motonori Matsusaki, Shingo Kanemura, Yuxi Lin, Taro Mannen, Tsubura Kuramochi, Yuka Kamada, Katsuya Iuchi, Michiko Tajiri, Kotono Suzuki, Yan Li, Yunseok Heo, Kotone Ishii, Kenta Arai, Kazunori Ban, Mayuko Hashimoto, Shuichiro Oshita, Satoshi Ninagawa, Yoshikazu Hattori, Hiroyuki Kumeta, Airu Takeuchi, Shinji Kajimoto, Hiroya Abe, Eiichiro Mori, Takahiro Muraoka, Takakazu Nakabayashi, Satoko Akashi, Tsukasa Okiyoneda, Michele Vendruscolo, Kenji Inaba & Masaki Okumura*, Ca2+-driven PDIA6 biomolecular condensation ensures proinsulin folding, Nat. Cell. Biol., 27, 2025, 1952–1964.
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Keita Mori*, Tsubura Kuramochi, Motonori Matsusaki, Yuki Hashiguchi, Masaki Okumura, Tomohide Saio, Yoshiaki Furukawa, Kenta Arai, Takahiro Muraoka*, Metal-Responsive Up-Regulation of Bifunctional Disulfides for Suppressing Protein Misfolding and Promoting Oxidative Folding, Angew. Chem. Int Ed., 2025, in press. (DOI: 10.1002/anie.202502187)
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Rumi Mikami, Yuhei Sato, Shingo Kanemura, Takahiro Muraoka, Masaki Okumura, Kenta Arai*, Ca -triggered allosteric catalysts crosstalk with cellular redox system through their foldase- and reductase-like activities, Commun. Chem., 2025, 8, 74. (DOI: 10.1038/s42004-025-01466-6)
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Rumi Mikami, Yuya Nishizawa, Yuki Iwata, Shingo Kanemura, Masaki Okumura*, Kenta Arai*, ER Oxidoreductin 1-Like Activity of Cyclic Diselenides Drives Protein Disulfide Isomerase in an Electron Relay System, ChemBioChem, 2025, 26, e202400739. (DOI: 10.1002/cbic.202400739)
2024
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Tsubura Kuramochi, Yukino Yamashita, Kenta Arai, Shingo Kanemura, Takahiro Muraoka* and Masaki Okumura*, Boosting the enzymatic activity of CxxC motif-containing PDI family members, Chem. Commun., 2024, (DOI:10.1039D4CC01712A)
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三神瑠美、荒井堅太,(総説)生体酵素が指し示す酸化的フォールディング触媒の設計指針。東海大学先進生命科学研究所2023年度紀要, 2024, 8, 26-31.
2023
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Kenta Arai,*† Masaki Okumura,† Young-Ho Lee,† Hidekazu Katayama, Kenji Mizutani, Yuxi Lin, Sam-Yong Park, Kaichiro Sawada, Masao Toyoda, Hironobu Hojo, Kenji Inaba, Michio Iwaoka*, Diselenide-bond replacement of the external disulfide bond of insulin increases its oligomerization leading to sustained activity, Commun. Chem., 2023, 6, Article number: 258 (†equal contribution) (DOI: 10.1038/s42004-023-01056-4)
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Yuya Nishizawa,† Yuri Satoh,† Osamu Kanie and Kenta Arai*, Resin-supported cyclic telluride as a heterogeneous promoter of disulfide formation under solid–liquid biphasic conditions, New J. Chem. 2023, accepted (†equal contribution) (Selected as front cover picture).
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Shunsuke Okada,† Yosuke Matsumoto,† Rikana Takahashi, Kenta Arai, Shingo Kanemura, Masaki Okumura*, Takahiro Muraoka*, Semi-enzymatic acceleration of oxidative protein folding by N-methylated heteroaromatic thiols, Chem. Sci. 2023, accepted (†equal contribution).
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佐藤有里、荒井堅太*. (総説)インスリンスーパーファミリーに属するヒトリラキシン-2の生理機能と応用。東海大学先進生命科学研究所2022年度紀要, 2023, 7, 1-6.
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Kenta Arai*, Haruka Toba, Nozomi Yamamoto, Mao Ito, Rumi Mikami, Modeling Type-1 Iodothyronine Deiodinase with Peptide-Based Aliphatic Diselenides: Potential Role of Highly Conserved His and Cys Residues as a General Acid Catalyst. Chem. Eur. J, 2023, 29, e202202387 (DOI: 10.1002/chem.202202387) (Selected as Hot Paper)
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Small Organoselenium Catalysts as a Potential Manipulator for Redox Homeostasis and Proteostasis. Kenta Arai, Chapter 25 in Chalcogen Chemistry: Fundamentals and Applications, edited by V. Lippolis, C. Santi, Eder J. L. and A. L. Braga. The Royal Society of Chemistry, pp. 648- 65 (DOI: 10.1039/BK9781839167386-00648).
2022
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Kenta Arai*, Rumi Mikami, Redox Chemistry of Selenols and Diselenides as Potential Manipulators for Structural Maturation of Peptides and Proteins, Metallomics Res., 2022, 2, rev1-17. (Open Access)
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Rumi Mikami, Shunsuke Tsukagoshi, Yoshiki Oda, Kenta Arai*, S-Denitrosylase-like Activity of Cyclic Diselenides Conjugated with Xaa-His Dipeptide: Role of Proline Spacer as a Key Activity Booster. ChemBioChem, 2022, e202100394. (DOI: 10.1002/cbic.202100394) (Selected as front cover picture)
2021
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Rumi Mikami, Shunsuke Tsukagoshi, Kenta Arai*, Abnormal Enhancement of Protein Disulfide Isomerase-like Activity of a Cyclic Diselenide Conjugated with a Basic Amino Acid by Inserting a Glycine Spacer. Biology, 2021, 10, 1090. (DOI: 10.3390/biology10111090)
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Kenta Arai*, Yuumi Sato, Ikumi Nakajima, Manami Saito, Moeka Sasaki, Akiko Kanamori, Michio Iwaoka, Glutathione peroxidase-like functions of 1,2-diselenane-4,5-diol and its amphiphilic derivatives: Switchable catalytic cycles depending on peroxide substrates, Bioorg. Med. Chem., 2021, 29, 115866.
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Kenta Arai, Michio Iwaoka* Flexible Folding: Disulfide-Containing Peptides and Proteins Choose the Pathway Depending on the Environments, Molecules, 2021, 26(1), 195.
Cover Gallery

Shunsuke Tsukagoshi, Rumi Mikami, Kenta Arai*, Basic amino acid conjugates of 1,2‐diselenan‐4‐amine with protein disulfide isomerase‐like functions as a manipulator of protein quality control, Chem Asian J. 2020, 15, pp. 2646–2652. (Selected as Very Important Paper and front cover picture)

Rumi Mikami, Shunsuke Tsukagoshi, Yoshiki Oda, Kenta Arai*, S-Denitrosylase-like Activity of Cyclic Diselenides Conjugated with Xaa-His Dipeptide: Role of Proline Spacer as a Key Activity Booster. ChemBioChem, 2022, e202100394. in press. (DOI: 10.1002/cbic.202100394) (Selected as front cover picture)
Yuya Nishizawa,† Yuri Satoh,† Osamu Kanie and Kenta Arai*, Resin-supported cyclic telluride as a heterogeneous promoter of disulfide formation under solid–liquid biphasic conditions, New J. Chem. 2023, 47, 18537-18546 (†equal contribution) (DOI: 10.1039/D3NJ02646A) (Selected as front cover picture).
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