Masayoshi Yamaguchi, PhD, IOM, FAOE

Masayoshi Yamaguchi, PhD, IOM, FAOE

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Associate Member, Cancer Biology Program, University of Hawaiʻi Cancer Center

Academic Appointment(s):
Professor (Researcher), University of Hawaiʻi Cancer Center, University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa

Degree(s):
1976 – PhD, Shizuoka College of Pharmacy, Shizuoka, Japan
1973 – MS, Shizuoka College of Pharmacy, Shizuoka, Japan – 1986 – reorganized in the University of Shizuoka, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Shizuoka, Japan

Certifications

1971 – Pharmacist license (Japan, Registered No. 354325)
1971 – Clinical Inspector license (Japan, Registered No. 141855)

Honors

2021 – Advisory Board Members, The USERN (Universal Scientific Education and Research Network)
2021 – Member, The EU Academy of Sciences
2021 – Co-Editors, Current Cancer Drug Target
2021 – Editorial Board Member, Translational Oncology
2021 – Editorial Board Member, Nutraceuticals
2020 – Editorial Board Member, Cancers
2020 – Section Editor, Current Nutraceuticals
2019 – Editorial Board Member, Current Molecular Medicine
2017 – The 2017 Albert Nelson Marquis Lifetime Achievement Award, (Marquis Who's Who, USA)

Research Focus

In 1975, Dr. Yamaguchi elucidated the role of liver in the regulation of blood calcium homeostasis and proposed that the liver is a novel target organ of calcitonin, a calcium-regulating hormone. This finding was originally published in Endocrinology (USA). In the process of this research, in 1978, Dr. Yamaguchi discovered a novel protein (gene), which locates on the X chromosome, and is named “Regucalcin (gene symbol; rgn in PubMed)”. Regucalcin was demonstrated to play a multifunctional role in various types of cells and tissues and a pathophysiological role in various diseases, including diabetes, osteoporosis, Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s diseases, and malignancies in human subjects. In 2001, furthermore, in the process of studying transcriptional regulation of regucalcin gene expression, Dr. Yamaguchi et al. discovered a novel protein, named RGPR-p117 (regucalcin gene promoter region related protein; gene symbol; rgpr-p117 in PubMed), which binds to the promoter region of the regucalcin gene.

Since 2013, Dr. Yamaguchi has focused on cancer research to elucidate a potential role of regucalcin as a suppressor in cell growth and carcinogenesis in human subjects. Of note, many studies with proteomics and multiple gene expression profiles demonstrated that the regucalcin gene expression was uniquely downregulated in the tumor tissues of various types of human cancer patients, and that survival was prolonged with high expression of regucalcin in the tumor tissues of patients. Our translational studies demonstrated that overexpressed regucalcin prevented cancer cell growth. Regucalcin was proposed to play a crucial role as a novel suppressor in various types of human malignancies, providing a new strategy with the gene delivery system for cancer therapy. Recently, Dr. Yamaguchi has focused on the involvement of RGPR-p117 in implicating regucalcin gene expression in human cancer.

Moreover, Dr. Yamaguchi engages in research of the role of medical food factors (nutraceuticals) in the treatment of cancer. Currently, therapeutic agents for bone metastasis and bone lesion are poorly developed. Thus far, Dr. Yamaguchi et al. found that the botanical factor curcumin and p-hydroxycinnamic acid inhibited cancer bone metastasis and related bone lesion in vitro and in vivo. These molecules are proposed to be a useful tool as a lead compound in the development of novel anticancer drugs for treatment of metastatic bone cancer.

Selected Publications

Yamaguchi M, Osuka S, Murata T, Ramos JW. (2021). Progression-free survival of prostate cancer patients is prolonged with a higher regucalcin expression in the tumor tissues: Overexpressed regucalcin suppresses the growth and bone activity in human prostate cancer cells. Transl Oncol;14:100955. PMID: 33232921.Doi.10.1016/j.tranon.2020.100955.

Yamaguchi M, Murata T, Ramos JW. (2021). The botanical component p-hydroxycinnamic acid suppresses the growth and bone metastatic activity of human prostate cancer PC-3 cells in vitro. J Can Res Clin Oncol;147:339-350. PMID: 33001270. Doi: 10.1007/s00432-020-03405-5.

Yamaguchi M, Osuka S, Hankinson O, Murata T. (2019). Prolonged survival of renal cancer patients is concomitant with a higher regucalcin gene expression in the tumor tissues: Overexpression of regucalcin depresses the growth of human renal cell carcinoma cells in vitro. Int J Oncol; 54:188-198. PMID: 30387835. Doi: 10.3892/ijo.2018.4611. Epub 2018 Oct 30.

Yamaguchi M. (2013). Suppressive role of regucalcin in liver cell proliferation: Involvement in carcinogenesis. Cell Prolif;46:243-253 (2013). [Review]. PMID:23692083. PMCID: PMC6496855. Doi:10.1111/cpr.12036.

Yamaguchi M. (2017). The Role of Regucalcin in Cell Homeostasis and Disorder. New York, USA, Nova Science Publishers, Inc. Chapters 1-18, p.1-275. [Book]. ISBN: 978-1536105117; ISBN: 1536105112.

Publication list via Google Scholar

Publication list via NIH my Bibliography (PubMed)