Academician Tung-bin Lo passed away in Taipei on May 13, 2019. He was 93 years old.

Dr. Lo was a pioneer in the field of chemical research on proteins in Taiwan, introducing the most advanced approaches in Western scholarship to Taiwan during the 1960’s. In the course of his distinguished academic career, Dr. Lo made major contributions in areas such as the chemical analysis of proteins in snake venom plus the isolation, purification and characterization of active ingredients, as well as the use of hormones in fish farming. In addition to devoting his life to academic research, Dr. Lo shouldered responsibility for reforming our nation’s education system. In 1992, as the President of the College Entrance Examination Center, he not only promoted new channels for higher education, but also provided advice for education in the sciences, thereby exerting profound influence on the development of higher learning in modern-day Taiwan.

Dr. Lo received his Doctor of Science at Tohoku University, Japan. In 1972, upon the invitation of Shih-Liang Chien, then President of Academia Sinica, he participated in the founding of the Institute of Biological Chemistry, which was initially established at the Institute of Biochemical Sciences, National Taiwan University. Dr. Lo believed that doing so could help these two institutes complement each other in terms of teaching and basic research, which marked a major milestone in Taiwan’s biochemical research.

From 1972 to 1980, Dr. Lo served at Academia Sinica as Research Fellow and Director of the Preparatory Office of the Institute of Biological Chemistry, later heading the Institute when it was formally established. In addition, he served as the Vice President of Academia Sinica from 1993 to 1996, and was elected as a Member of Academia Sinica Council several times, making enormous contributions in areas such as the election of Academicians, the promotion of integrated research projects, and a wide range of organizational adjustments.

Dr. Lo worked as an Associate Research Fellow at UC Berkeley, while at National Taiwan University he served as Professor and Dean of the College of Sciences, as well as Dean of Academic Affairs. He also served as the President of the College Entrance Examination Center. Dr. Lo was elected as Academia Sinica Academician in 1986.