Emeritus Professor

"I was fortunate to be involved in a small way, the life sciences
initiatives at the right time at the right place. These are exciting
opportunities and I am happy to see all the success stories
now in Singapore. "


Prof HEW Choy Leong

PhD (University of British Columbia);
MSc (Simon Fraser University); BSc (Nanyang University)
Department of Biological Sciences

LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENTS

Scientific Achievements

  • Pioneer in demonstrating the presence of preproinsulin in the biosynthesis of insulin
  • Innovated the use of photo-activated labeling reagents in mapping the antigen binding sites in antibodies
  • Leading scientist in the study of fish antifreeze proteins and the development of transgenic fish technology
  • Inventor of several patents including sex-specific probes for Pacific salmon and the production of fast growing transgenic salmon
  • Outstanding contributions to the field of biological sciences with over 250 international publications and a sought after speaker at international conferences

ACADEMIC AND SERVICE ACHIEVEMENTS
  • Distinguished scholarship, able academic leadership and sustained service to the University for a decade since joining NUS in 1999
  • Played a vital role in developing the University's capabilities, research initiatives and undergraduate programme in the life sciences, as well as the graduate programme in computational and systems biology of the Singapore-MIT Alliance
  • Built up the Department of Biological Sciences' strong reputation for quality research as Head of Department, establishing it as a leading player in Asia- Pacific
  • Established a strong research programme in Structural Biology (now Biophysical Sciences) and the successful lobbying of NUS' third Research Centre of Excellence in Mechanobiology

NUS PORTFOLIO
  • Head, Department of Biological Sciences (1999 – 2008)
  • Director, Office of Life Sciences (2006 – 2009)
  • Program Leader (Structural Biology Group), Office of Life Sciences (2002 – 2005)
  • Deputy Director, Office of Life Sciences (2001 – 2003)
  • Deputy Director, Tropical Marine Science Institute (1999 – 2000)

SERVICE TO NATION AND INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY
  • Member, research grant panels of
    • - Biomedical Research Council, Singapore (2003 – 2007)
    - Research Grant Council, Hong Kong (2000 – 2006)
    - Medical Research Council, Canada (1989 – 1992)
  • Member, International Advisory Board, Shanghai Centre for Systems Biomedicine (since 2006)
  • Board member, Intellectual Property Academy, Singapore (2003 – 2005)
  • Member, Editorial Board, Journal Marine Biotechnology, Japan (since 2001)
  • Coordinator, Trilateral Research Collaboration Agreement between Tsinghua University, Xiamen University and NUS (since 2000)
  • Coordinator in Biogenetics on Reproductive Biology in Aquaculture, International Union of Biological Sciences (1991 – 1995)
  • Member, International Advisory Board, Open Laboratories, Institute of Oceanology, Academia Sinica, Tsingdao, China (since 1989)

AWARDS AND ACCOLADES
  • Alumni Achievement Award, Nanyang Technological University (2006)
  • Achievement Award, Chinese Canadian Institute of Arts and Science (1993)
  • Merit Award, Education Foundation, Federation of Chinese Canadian Professionals (1993)
  • Outstanding Achievement Award, Chinese Community Centre of Ontario Incorporated (1992)
  • APICS-Fraser Award for Most Outstanding Young Scientist in Atlantic Provinces of Canada (1980)
  • C.H. Best Fellowship, Banting and Best Department of Medical Research, University of Toronto (1972 – 1974)

FUTURE ASPIRATION
I hope to promote science education and awareness in primary and secondary schools in this region. It should be fun.

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