Dr. Kung-Tsung Wang, Academician of Academia Sinica, passed away on December 19, 2010 at age 82. Dr. Wang was a Corresponding Research Fellow of the Institute of Biochemistry at Academia Sinica.

         Academician Wang was a pioneer in Taiwan’s bioorganic chemistry research. Before 1968, Dr. Wang’s research focused exclusively on analytical chemistry. At the end of the same year, however, under the guidance of Academician Choh Hao Li, Dr. Wang commenced his research on protein synthesis, thus launching his career in biochemistry. Dr. Wang not only published 150 articles in internationally acclaimed journals but also dedicated himself to nurturing young research talents. Dr. Chi-Huey Wong, currently President of Academia Sinica, became one of those outstanding talents in industry and academia to emerge from Dr. Wang’s laboratory.

        In order to enable more domestic scholars and students to have face-to-face conversations with world-class scientists, Dr. Wang established The KT Wang Foundation in October 2000. Each year, the foundation presents the Bioorganic Chemistry Award to a famous scholar dedicated to this field. Awardees hold lectures on their research experiences at the annual KT Wang Bioorganic Chemistry Lectureship.

        Academician Wang served as Director of Academia Sinica’s Institute of Biochemistry from 1980 to 1986. In 1993, the Ministry of Education awarded him with the Outstanding Academic Award. Dr. Wang became Academician in 1994.

For more information on Academician Kung-Tsung Wang’s life, please go to The KT Wang Foundation website:

http://www.bc.sinica.edu.tw/WangFoun/KTWang_e.htm