Global InformationTamio Yamakawa information
Tamio Yamakawa | |
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山川 民夫; やまかわ たみお | |
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| Born | 12 October 1921 Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture |
| Died | 12 October 2018 (aged 97) |
| Nationality | Japanese |
| Alma mater | University of Tokyo |
| Known for | Glycolipids |
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| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Biochemistry |
| Institutions | University of Tokyo |
Tamio Yamakawa (Japanese: 山川 民夫; やまかわ たみお; 12 October 1921 - 7 October 2018) was a Japanese biochemist, the first to report the presence of glycosphingolipids on cell membranes. Yamakawa graduated from the University of Tokyo, was an emeritus professor at Tokyo University of Pharmacy and Life Sciences, and a member of the Japanese Academy of Sciences. The molecule was found on horse red blood cells and first called Hematoside.[1] Further testing by Yamakawa led to the discovery that ABO blood group antigens are glycosphingolipids located in the erythrocytes.
Yamakawa was born in Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture to Shintaro Yamakawa and Kunio Yamakawa. In 1944 he Graduated from Tokyo Imperial University Medical School, and received a doctorate at the University of Tokyo. In 1952 he was a Professor of the Institute of Infectious Diseases at The University of Tokyo, later Professor of Medicine and Director of Tokyo Metropolitan Organization Medical Research Institute. He was Professor Emeritus of Tokyo Pharmaceutical University. From 2002 to 2011 he was the Chairman of the Institute for Microbiological Chemistry.
- ^ Suzuki A1. Tamio Yamakawa: Dawn of glycobiology J Biochem. 2009 Aug;146(2):149-56. doi: 10.1093/jb/mvp103. Accessed 4 March 2019