Singaporean Elected As 2016 Associate Member Of EMBO

Professor Ng Huck Hui, executive director at the Genome Institute of Singapore, is currently the only Singapore-based associate member of the prestigious organization.

AsianScientist (May 23, 2016) – Professor Ng Huck Hui, executive director at the Genome Institute of Singapore (GIS), has been elected an Associate Member of the prestigious European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO). Ng is currently the only Singapore-based associate member.

Ng’s lab works on different aspects of the systems biology of stem cells. Specifically, his group uses genome-wide approaches to dissect the transcriptional regulatory networks in embryonic stem cells with the aim to identify key nodes in this network. His lab also conducted the first genome-wide functional genomics studies in human embryonic stem cells.

Ng’s research work has earned him several prestigious national and international accolades, including the Singapore Youth Award in 2005 and 2010, the National Science Award 2007, the Human Genome Organization (HUGO) Chen’s New Investigator Award 2010 and the President’s Science Award 2011.

EMBO, an organization with over 1,700 leading researchers as its members, aims to promote excellence in the life sciences. The EMBO Membership consists of ordinary members, who reside or were elected while residing in an EMBC Member State, and associate members, who reside outside of the EMBC Member States.

This year, Singapore became an EMBC Associate Member State following an agreement signed by the Government of Singapore, EMBO and the European Molecular Biology Conference to strengthen scientific interaction and collaborative research between Singapore and Europe. This milestone agreement marks the first time a non-European nation has become an EMBC Associate Member State.

Candidates for EMBO Membership are exclusively nominated and elected by existing EMBO members; it is not possible to apply to become a member of EMBO.

Election to EMBO Membership is recognition of research excellence and the outstanding achievements made by a life scientist. 84 EMBO members and associate members have been awarded Nobel Prizes. The annual nominations and elections ensure that the membership remains at the forefront of life science research.

Other Asia-based researchers who have received this prestigious title include: Professor Hiroshi Hamada, director of the RIKEN Center for Developmental Biology; Professor Wu Hong, dean of the School of Life Sciences of Peking University; and Professor George Fu Gao, director of the Key Laboratory of Pathogenic Microbiology and Immunology, Institute of Microbiology at the Chinese Academy of Sciences.


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Source: A*STAR; Photo: Ng Huck Hui.
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