As all of us know, and to our regret, Dr. Sakabe retired our University on last March, and concomitantly, we must transfer the representative of the Sakabe project to other person who is still a member of the staffs of University of Tsukuba. So I was designated to succeed it. However, the real, representative works on this project still depend completely on Dr. Sakabe. I can play only a tiny role but want to contribute to the project as much as possible.

l hear that almost all of crystallographic studies on proteins in our country have been performed for these more than ten years by using the instrument constructed in the PF by the creative efforts due to Dr. Sakabe. Further, many foreign researchers have also been utilizing it. It is our great pleasure and fortune to have been able to invite such a great scientist as Dr. Sakabe to our University. Now the Sakabe project has become a representative one in TARA consisting of so many as 145 members from companies, national institutes, and universities. University of Tsukuba has created TARA in order to enhance scientific activities of this science city as well as our University. University of Tsukuba also expects herself to win or keep fame of a first-class university in the world. I really recognize, however, that this project is supported by many peoples outside our University. Tsukuba takes a great advantage of its location as the only scientific city in our country where many primary institutes are concentrated. So Dr. Sakabe really hope that his project will develope to establish here, in Tsukuba, a structural biology center.

Structural biology has become a major field of life science, which is easily known from the fact that many papers in this field recently appear in top-class scientific journals such as nature, Science, and Cell. So the Sakabe project can/must play a significant role and would be a center of structural biology in our country. Collaborations between researchers in different fields have been becoming more important. Most of the members in Univ. Tsukuba are biologists or biochemists. So we cannot do crystallography but can provide interesting materials. I expect that such collaborations will occur and enhance the activity of this project.

It is also my great fortunate to be able to join the Sakabe project. We, the members in Univ. Tsukuba are supported greatly by Dr. Sakabe. He says that our only duty is to advance our own research. However, I desire to have every eftort to support Dr. Sakabe although my contribution may be small. I would like to be very grateful if you would show or instruct me how to develope the Sakabe project.