辻田 麻紀

Biography
Dr. Tsujita received her Bachelor of Science in biology from Konan University in 1984, a Master of Science in biology from Kobe University in 1989, and Ph.D. (Doctor of Medical Science) in biochemistry from Kagawa Medical School in 1993. In the same year, Dr. Tsujita became an Assistant Professor in the Department of Biochemistry, Kagawa Medical School. She took a concurrent position as a postdoctoral fellow in the Lipids and Lipoprotein Research Group at the University of Alberta, Canada. Dr. Tsujita started working as an Assistant Professor in the 1st Department of Biochemistry at Nagoya City University Graduate School of Medical Sciences in 1996. She received a Young Scientific Research Award in 1999, International Collaboration Journals Award in 2019 from Nagoya City University, and Paul Dudley White International Scholar Award in 2021 from The American Heart Association. She also received a second Ph.D. (Doctor of Science) from Konan University in 2003. Dr. Tsujita became an Associate Professor of Biochemistry in Nagoya City University Graduate School of Medical Sciences in 2008. She started her English education early in her life as an elementary school student in the USA. Her and her families were residents of Los Angeles and Irvine California from 1974 to 1976 where her father was a graduate student in computer sciences during his sabbatical. Dr. Tsujita taught medical English to students at Nagoya City University and presented her research at many international meetings. Dr. Tsujita is a member of the organizers and a scientific advisory board member of the FEBS-ABC meeting. A member of the International Committee of the Japan Atherosclerosis Society, a member of the Council of the Japan Biochemistry Society, and an International Fellow, conferred by ATVB, of the American Heart Association(FAHA).

Research Program
Dr. Tsujita has studied the molecular mechanism of nascent HDL, nanodisc HDL, generation for many years. She discovered that the drug probucol is an inhibitor of the ATP binding cassette A1 (ABCA1) transporter, revealing that ABCA1 is responsible for plasma HDL assembly. Dr. Tsujita measured HDL assembly in hepatocytes, the major tissue where most apolipoprotein A-I is synthesized. ApoA-I secretion is responsible for the initiation of the assembly of the nanodisc HDL, preb-HDL. Currently, Dr. Tsujita is interested in the function of ApoA-I, generated in the liver and small intestine, on cholesterol metabolism in humans and in mouse models. The nanodisc-HDL is the 10 nm disc that can be a carrier of hydrophobic vitamins and other compounds through the blood into tissues. Maintenance ABCA1 and ApoA-I expression provide the nanodisc HDL functionality associated with health and longevity. Dr. Tsujita is a co-inventor of oxidized probucol compound which raises plasma HDL through stabilizing ABCA1 protein for nanodisc HDL synthesis.