| Press Release | 29 March 2001 |
Y H Wong Made Croucher Senior Research Fellow
Dr Yung-Hou Wong, a molecular pharmacologist and Associate Professor of Biochemistry at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST), has been awarded a Croucher Senior Research Fellowship for his contribution to the advancement of biomedical research.
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Dr Wong received the award from Mrs Fanny Law, Secretary for Education and Manpower of the HKSAR Government, at a presentation ceremony held by the Croucher Foundation today.
Dr Wong's research interests focus on the delineation of the mechanism of cell signaling, particularly with regard to the G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) that serve as drug targets for many therapeutic agents in use today. As a large number of uncharacterized GPCRs has been revealed by the Human Genome Project, there is a pressing need to identify the function of these new drug targets. Dr Wong has successfully constructed a series of chimeric G proteins for the detection of GPCRs. By changing the structures of the G proteins, he has developed G protein adapters that can interact with virtually any GPCR. He has incorporated these G protein adapters into high-throughput drug screening platforms, a drug discovery research program awarded to him by the Innovation and Technology Commission.
Another area of Dr Wong's research interests is the molecular actions of opiate receptors. Opiate drugs such as morphine are commonly used as analgesics for the management of severe pain. However, frequent or repeated use will lead to tolerance and dependence, commonly known as drug addiction. Studies from Dr Wong's laboratory have contributed toward understanding the molecular actions of opiate receptors in relieving pain and triggering addiction. Such knowledge could help design treatment regimes for drug addicts and devise better clinical procedures for opiate usage.
A recipient of Croucher Foundation Scholarship (1985-88), Dr Wong received his PhD in pharmacology from the University of Cambridge in 1988. He then worked as a postdoctoral fellow at the University of California, San Francisco in 1989 before joining HKUST in 1992 as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Biology. Promoted to Associate Professor in 1997, he is also the Associate Director of HKUST's Biotechnology Research Institute. He has published over 70 articles in international scientific journals.
In 1998, Dr Wong was elected as one of the first members of the Asia Pacific International Molecular Biology Network. He is also an invited member of the Alliance for Cellular Signaling. This US$10 million-per-year scientific consortium founded by Nobel laureate Dr Alfred Gilman, an authority on G proteins, enables top scientists around the world to pool their efforts in studying the interaction of cells via the Internet.
The Croucher Senior Research Fellowship scheme was established in 1997 to recognize research achievements made by local scientists. Award recipients are released from teaching and administrative duties for a year to concentrate on research. Six distinguished scientists from local universities are awarded Fellowships this year.
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