University Awards 2009



OUTSTANDING PARTNER IN RESEARCH AWARD

“ One of the pleasures of being involved in biological
research is that it invariably provides new and interesting
perspectives by which we perceive and view living systems. ”



Prof William Chia

PhD (Imperial College London); MSc (University of Wisconsin);
BSc (Hons) (California Institute of Technology)
Temasek Senior Investigator and Professor,
Temasek Life Sciences Laboratory Adjunct Professor,
Department of Biological Sciences

RESEARCH INTERESTS
  • Neural development
  • Asymmetric cell division
  • Myoblast fusion

RESEARCH ACHIEVEMENTS
  • Engaged in high impact research over two decades, advancing knowledge frontiers in neural development and asymmetric cell division
  • Findings have had important implications for stem cell biology and neural disorders
  • Consistently secured generous funding from governments, foundations and universities
  • Outstanding ability to nurture high caliber researchers, some of whom have become principal investigators in various laboratories across Singapore

RESEARCH STRENGTHS
  • Collaborates closely with an international network of industries, national labs and universities from around the world
  • Excellent teamwork with group members

PUBLICATION CREDITS
  • Contributed over 100 papers, many of which appeared in high impact journals such as Cell, Nature and Genes and Development

INTERNATIONAL STANDING
  • Served on editorial boards of several international journals as well as the scientific advisory boards of research institutes
  • Ad hoc reviewer for top international journals such as Cell, Nature, Science and Nature Cell Biology
  • Invited to numerous established and prestigious international conferences, such as the Cold Spring Harbor Symposia on Quantitative Biology, the Nobel Conference, Gordon Research Conferences, Keystone Symposia and the International Congress on Developmental Biology.

AWARDS AND ACCOLADES
  • Honorary Doctorate, University of Sheffield (2006)
  • Honorary Professorship, King’s College London (since 2004)
  • National Science Award (2001)
  • Wellcome Trust Principal Research Fellow (2000 – 2004)
  • Medical Research Council Post-doctoral Training Fellowship, University of Cambridge (1981 – 1984)

RESEARCH ASPIRATION
My hope for the future is that the students and post-doctoral fellows that I have worked with over the years will continue to pursue their interests with passion, inspiring others in their turn and that their endeavours will contribute towards a better understanding and application of the biological sciences.
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