Academician Kuan Wang, a Distinguished Research Fellow of the Institute of Biological Chemistry and the Institute of Physics at Academia Sinica, will give a lecture in honor of Former President Ta-You Wu on September 11, 2010. In the lecture entitled “Nanomedicine: One Small Step for Technology, One Giant Leap for Medicine”, Academician Wang will present a general survey of recent advances in nanomedicine including drug delivery, drug discovery, diagnostics, in vivo imaging and, in particular, the role of mechanics in stem-cell differentiation and regenerative medicine. The lecture will be in Chinese. Media and the public are welcome to attend.
     Nanomedicine is an emerging discipline that applies nanotechnology to medicine. It involves the design and fabrication of tiny bio-compatible materials and devices on the nanometer scale. Successful fusion of nanotechnology and medicine offers promise for reshaping the field of medicine and is essential for translational and personalized medicine. In this lecture, Academician Kuan Wang will discuss how nanotechnology helps tackle the task of molding materials and devices into small, full-featured “body friendly” ones, a major challenge in innovating medical applications. He will also highlight the necessity of a highly interdisciplinary and interactive scientific team of biologists, chemists, physicists, mathematicians, engineers and physicians for success in the field.

Academician Wang was recently appointed as a Distinguished Research Fellow of the Institute of Biological Chemistry and the Institute of Physics at Academia Sinica. He has spent the past 13 years at the US National Institutes of Health (NIH), working as the lab chief of the Laboratory of Muscle Biology and the section head of the Muscle Proteomics and Nanotechnology at the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases. He has served as a member of the NIH Nanomedicine Roadmap Implementation Team since its inception. Before arriving at the NIH, Academician Wang was a Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry at the University of Texas at Austin for 20 years. He received his Ph.D. in molecular biochemistry and biophysics from Yale University in 1974.

Academician Wang is the recipient of the Established Investigator Award of the American Heart Association and the highly selective MERIT Award from the NIH. He was elected an Academician of Academia Sinica in 2004.

Academician Wang’s research focuses on the nanomechanics of contractile proteins and the application of proteomics, nanotechnology and a broad range of interdisciplinary approaches in exploring how cardiac and skeletal muscles generate force and respond to stress. He directs an interdisciplinary team of biologists, chemists, engineers and physicists, to advance nanobiotechnology to address a variety of bodily dysfunctions at the molecular level. 

Every year a lecture is held in honor of each of the late presidents of Academia Sinica. Dr. Ta-You Wu was President of Academia Sinica from 1983 to 1994.

Event: 2010 Lecture in Honor of Former President Ta-You Wu— 
          Nanomedicine: One Small Step for Technology, One Giant Leap for Medicine
Time: 14:00-16:00
Date: Saturday, September 11, 2010
Venue: Conference Room 1, 2F, Center for Academic Activities, Academia Sinica, No.128, Sec.2, Academia Road, Nangang District,   Taipei                
Speaker: Academician Kuan Wang
             Director, Nanomedicine Program, Academia Sinica
             Distinguished Research Fellow, Institute of Biological Chemistry  and Institute of Physics, Academia Sinica

Moderator: Academician Andrew H.-J. Wang, Vice President, Academia Sinica