Koh Fujinaga, PhD
Associate Professor
Medicine
School of Medicine

Since transcriptional regulation plays a central role in most biological pathways and diseases, I began to study the mechanisms of transcriptional regulation and misregulation in various diseases including cardiac hypertrophy, cancers such as breast cancer, leukemia and lymphoma, and autoimmune and inflammatory diseases.

• Reversible phosphorylation of cyclin T1 promotes assembly and stability of P-TEFb.
  eLife 2021 Huang F, Nguyen TT, Echeverria I, Rakesh R, Cary DC, Paculova H, Sali A, Weiss A, Peterlin BM, Fujinaga K
• Experimental Systems for Measuring HIV Latency and Reactivation.
  Viruses 2020 Fujinaga K, Cary DC
• Nucleolar protein NOP2/NSUN1 suppresses HIV-1 transcription and promotes viral latency by competing with Tat for TAR binding and methylation.
  PLoS pathogens 2020 Kong W, Biswas A, Zhou D, Fiches G, Fujinaga K, Santoso N, Zhu J
• P-TEFb as A Promising Therapeutic Target.
  Molecules (Basel, Switzerland) 2020 Fujinaga K
• Fused in sarcoma silences HIV gene transcription and maintains viral latency through suppressing AFF4 gene activation.
  Retrovirology 2019 Krasnopolsky S, Marom L, Victor RA, Kuzmina A, Schwartz JC, Fujinaga K, Taube R
• P-TEFb Activation by RBM7 Shapes a Pro-survival Transcriptional Response to Genotoxic Stress.
  Molecular cell 2019 Bugai A, Quaresma AJC, Friedel CC, Lenasi T, Düster R, Sibley CR, Fujinaga K, Kukanja P, Hennig T, Blasius M, Geyer M, Ule J, Dölken L, Barboric M
• HEXIM1-Tat chimera inhibits HIV-1 replication.
  PLoS pathogens 2018 Leoz M, Kukanja P, Luo Z, Huang F, Cary DC, Peterlin BM, Fujinaga K
• HIV Tat/P-TEFb Interaction: A Potential Target for Novel Anti-HIV Therapies.
  Molecules (Basel, Switzerland) 2018 Asamitsu K, Fujinaga K, Okamoto T
• Bromodomain-containing protein 4-independent transcriptional activation by autoimmune regulator (AIRE) and NF-κB.
  The Journal of biological chemistry 2018 Huang F, Shao W, Fujinaga K, Peterlin BM
• Susceptibility of Human Endogenous Retrovirus Type K to Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitors.
  Journal of virology 2017 Contreras-Galindo R, Dube D, Fujinaga K, Kaplan MH, Markovitz DM
• Hili Inhibits HIV Replication in Activated T Cells.
  Journal of virology 2017 Peterlin BM, Liu P, Wang X, Cary D, Shao W, Leoz M, Hong T, Pan T, Fujinaga K
• Euphorbia Kansui Reactivates Latent HIV.
  PloS one 2016 Cary DC, Fujinaga K, Peterlin BM
• FBXO3 Protein Promotes Ubiquitylation and Transcriptional Activity of AIRE (Autoimmune Regulator).
  The Journal of biological chemistry 2016 Shao W, Zumer K, Fujinaga K, Peterlin BM
• Stress from Nucleotide Depletion Activates the Transcriptional Regulator HEXIM1 to Suppress Melanoma.
  Molecular cell 2016 Tan JL, Fogley RD, Flynn RA, Ablain J, Yang S, Saint-André V, Fan ZP, Do BT, Laga AC, Fujinaga K, Santoriello C, Greer CB, Kim YJ, Clohessy JG, Bothmer A, Pandell N, Avagyan S, Brogie JE, van Rooijen …
• The two sides of Tat.
  eLife 2016 Barboric M, Fujinaga K
• Molecular mechanisms of HIV latency.
  The Journal of clinical investigation 2016 Cary DC, Fujinaga K, Peterlin BM
• CDK11 in TREX/THOC Regulates HIV mRNA 3' End Processing.
  Cell host & microbe 2015 Pak V, Eifler TT, Jäger S, Krogan NJ, Fujinaga K, Peterlin BM
• An In-Depth Comparison of Latency-Reversing Agent Combinations in Various In Vitro and Ex Vivo HIV-1 Latency Models Identified Bryostatin-1+JQ1 and Ingenol-B+JQ1 to Potently Reactivate Viral Gene Expression.
  PLoS pathogens 2015 Darcis G, Kula A, Bouchat S, Fujinaga K, Corazza F, Ait-Ammar A, Delacourt N, Melard A, Kabeya K, Vanhulle C, Van Driessche B, Gatot JS, Cherrier T, Pianowski LF, Gama L, Schwartz C, Vila J, Burny A, …
• Visualization of positive transcription elongation factor b (P-TEFb) activation in living cells.
  The Journal of biological chemistry 2014 Fujinaga K, Luo Z, Schaufele F, Peterlin BM
• Cyclin-dependent kinase 12 increases 3' end processing of growth factor-induced c-FOS transcripts.
  Molecular and cellular biology 2014 Eifler TT, Shao W, Bartholomeeusen K, Fujinaga K, Jäger S, Johnson JR, Luo Z, Krogan NJ, Peterlin BM
• Genetic analysis of the structure and function of 7SK small nuclear ribonucleoprotein (snRNP) in cells.
  The Journal of biological chemistry 2014 Fujinaga K, Luo Z, Peterlin BM
• Negative elongation factor is required for the maintenance of proviral latency but does not induce promoter-proximal pausing of RNA polymerase II on the HIV long terminal repeat.
  Molecular and cellular biology 2014 Jadlowsky JK, Wong JY, Graham AC, Dobrowolski C, Devor RL, Adams MD, Fujinaga K, Karn J
• Release of positive transcription elongation factor b (P-TEFb) from 7SK small nuclear ribonucleoprotein (snRNP) activates hexamethylene bisacetamide-inducible protein (HEXIM1) transcription.
  The Journal of biological chemistry 2014 Liu P, Xiang Y, Fujinaga K, Bartholomeeusen K, Nilson KA, Price DH, Peterlin BM
• Bromodomain and extra-terminal (BET) bromodomain inhibition activate transcription via transient release of positive transcription elongation factor b (P-TEFb) from 7SK small nuclear ribonucleoprotein.
  Journal of Biological Chemistry 2013 Koen Bartholomeeusen, Yanhui Xiang, Koh Fujinaga, B. Matija Peterlin
• Histone deacetylase inhibitors (HDACis) that release the positive transcription elongation factor b (P-TEFb) from its inhibitory complex also activate HIV transcription.
  The Journal of biological chemistry 2013 Bartholomeeusen K, Fujinaga K, Xiang Y, Peterlin BM
• Bromodomain and extra-terminal (BET) bromodomain inhibition activate transcription via transient release of positive transcription elongation factor b (P-TEFb) from 7SK small nuclear ribonucleoprotein.
  The Journal of biological chemistry 2012 Bartholomeeusen K, Xiang Y, Fujinaga K, Peterlin BM
• PKC phosphorylates HEXIM1 and regulates P-TEFb activity.
  Nucleic acids research 2012 Fujinaga K, Barboric M, Li Q, Luo Z, Price DH, Peterlin BM
• Functional characterization of a human cyclin T1 mutant reveals a different binding surface for Tat and HEXIM1.
  Virology 2012 Kuzmina A, Hadad U, Fujinaga K, Taube R
• Activation of P-TEFb at sites of dual HIV/TB infection, and inhibition of MTB-induced HIV transcriptional activation by the inhibitor of CDK9, Indirubin-3'-monoxime.
  AIDS research and human retroviruses 2011 Toossi Z, Wu M, Hirsch CS, Mayanja-Kizza H, Baseke J, Aung H, Canaday DH, Fujinaga K
• HIV-1 inhibits autophagy in bystander macrophage/monocytic cells through Src-Akt and STAT3.
  PloS one 2010 Van Grol J, Subauste C, Andrade RM, Fujinaga K, Nelson J, Subauste CS
• Cyclin T1 stabilizes expression levels of HIV-1 Tat in cells.
  The FEBS journal 2009 Imai K, Asamitsu K, Victoriano AF, Cueno ME, Fujinaga K, Okamoto T
• Dominant negative mutant cyclin T1 proteins that inhibit HIV transcription by forming a kinase inactive complex with Tat.
  The Journal of general virology 2008 Jadlowsky JK, Nojima M, Okamoto T, Fujinaga K
• HEXIM1 regulates 17beta-estradiol/estrogen receptor-alpha-mediated expression of cyclin D1 in mammary cells via modulation of P-TEFb.
  Cancer research 2008 Ogba N, Chaplin LJ, Doughman YQ, Fujinaga K, Montano MM
• The positive transcription elongation factor b is an essential cofactor for the activation of transcription by myocyte enhancer factor 2.
  Journal of molecular biology 2008 Nojima M, Huang Y, Tyagi M, Kao HY, Fujinaga K
• Dominant negative mutant cyclin T1 proteins inhibit HIV transcription by specifically degrading Tat.
  Retrovirology 2008 Jadlowsky JK, Nojima M, Schulte A, Geyer M, Okamoto T, Fujinaga K
• Cyclin box structure of the P-TEFb subunit cyclin T1 derived from a fusion complex with EIAV tat.
  Journal of molecular biology 2007 Anand K, Schulte A, Fujinaga K, Scheffzek K, Geyer M
• The breast cell growth inhibitor, estrogen down regulated gene 1, modulates a novel functional interaction between estrogen receptor alpha and transcriptional elongation factor cyclin T1.
  Oncogene 2005 Wittmann BM, Fujinaga K, Deng H, Ogba N, Montano MM
• Dynamics of human immunodeficiency virus transcription: P-TEFb phosphorylates RD and dissociates negative effectors from the transactivation response element.
  Molecular and cellular biology 2004 Fujinaga K, Irwin D, Huang Y, Taube R, Kurosu T, Peterlin BM
• P-TEFb containing cyclin K and Cdk9 can activate transcription via RNA.
  The Journal of biological chemistry 2002 Lin X, Taube R, Fujinaga K, Peterlin BM
• Structure-based computational database screening, in vitro assay, and NMR assessment of compounds that target TAR RNA.
  Chemistry & biology 2002 Lind KE, Du Z, Fujinaga K, Peterlin BM, James TL
• Interaction between P-TEFb and the C-terminal domain of RNA polymerase II activates transcriptional elongation from sites upstream or downstream of target genes.
  Molecular and cellular biology 2002 Taube R, Lin X, Irwin D, Fujinaga K, Peterlin BM
• Binding of Tat to TAR and recruitment of positive transcription elongation factor b occur independently in bovine immunodeficiency virus.
  Journal of virology 2000 Barboric M, Taube R, Nekrep N, Fujinaga K, Peterlin BM
• Interactions between equine cyclin T1, Tat, and TAR are disrupted by a leucine-to-valine substitution found in human cyclin T1.
  Journal of virology 2000 Taube R, Fujinaga K, Irwin D, Wimmer J, Geyer M, Peterlin BM
• Tat transactivation: a model for the regulation of eukaryotic transcriptional elongation.
  Virology 1999 Taube R, Fujinaga K, Wimmer J, Barboric M, Peterlin BM
• Interactions between Tat and TAR and human immunodeficiency virus replication are facilitated by human cyclin T1 but not cyclins T2a or T2b.
  Virology 1999 Wimmer J, Fujinaga K, Taube R, Cujec TP, Zhu Y, Peng J, Price DH, Peterlin BM
• Interactions between human cyclin T, Tat, and the transactivation response element (TAR) are disrupted by a cysteine to tyrosine substitution found in mouse cyclin T.
  Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 1999 Fujinaga K, Taube R, Wimmer J, Cujec TP, Peterlin BM
• The ability of positive transcription elongation factor B to transactivate human immunodeficiency virus transcription depends on a functional kinase domain, cyclin T1, and Tat.
  Journal of virology 1998 Fujinaga K, Cujec TP, Peng J, Garriga J, Price DH, Graña X, Peterlin BM
• The HIV transactivator TAT binds to the CDK-activating kinase and activates the phosphorylation of the carboxy-terminal domain of RNA polymerase II.
  Genes & development 1997 Cujec TP, Okamoto H, Fujinaga K, Meyer J, Chamberlin H, Morgan DO, Peterlin BM