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Creation of Synthetic Antibodies: Professor Hak Seong Kim
Synthetics antibodies which can replace antibodies from humans used as ingredients of medicines have been developed. It can increase the costs to 1/100 of the current costs and is much easier to develop. It is expected that the development period will be shortened from 10 years to 5.
Prof. Hak Seong Kim from the Biology department of KAIST conducted a joint research with Prof. Dong Seob Kim to reconstruct proteins and has succeeded.
The synthetic antibody displays much strength in terms of its productivity, structural formation, and bonding capability, and is thus regarded as an ideal protein. It can replace the antigens that are currently in use. It is expected that Korea will therefore be able to lead the world market for protein medicines which is a 192trillion won industry.
The original antibody has been used for not only treating diseases, but also for various other applications in the fields of medical sciences and biology. However, it is produced through a very complex process involving the incubation of animal cells, and is therefore very expensive. Also, most antibodies are already patented by more developed countries, so a high royalty fee must be paid.
Because of this, many countries including Korea has been concentrating on developing biosimilars copying the antibody medicines for which the patents have already expired. This causes Korea to be behind in the development of antibody protein pharmaceuticals.
Prof. Kim’s research team has focused on the face that the protein existing in some eels are not antibodies but functions as one, and has been successful in developing a synthetic antibody.
The synthetic antibody can be mass produced from the colon bacillus, which allows it to be produced at 1/100 the original cost. It is in a module structure which allows the structuring of the antibody into the desired structure, enabling it to be developed into a protein-based medicine within 5 years.
Together with this, the coherence with the important antigens can be easily controlled, thus allowing for highly effective treatments, less side-effects, high security regarding heat and pH, and the immunogen levels being negligeable. This suggests a very high rate of the antibody being converted into a protein based medication.
The synthetic antibody technology has been tested as a sample for the cure for lung diseases and rheumatism and has been proven to be appropriate. Animal testing will be conducted soon.
Prof Kim said “The original antibodies had a small area allowing the bonding with antibodies, creating barriers for raising bonding strength and structuring. The newly created antibody carries only the strengths and will become a new protein based medicine purely created by Korean technology to replace the antibodies currently used in medications.”
Furthermore, he added that, “The synthesized antibody structuring and designing technology will be widely used in the areas of detecting, diagnosing, and analyzing diseases.”
At the same time, this research result has been published in the Feb 10th issue of the PNAS, and has been supported by the future promising pioneer business program held by the Ministry of Education and Technology.
2012.04.04 View 10202 -
Paving the Way to Next Generation Display
A new type of LCD that does not require polymer orientation films has been developed by researchers within the country. This technology will enable the creation of thiner and higher definition display.
Prof. Hee Tae Jung form KAIST’s biochemical engineering department led the research and Hyun Soo Jung, Hwan Jin Jeon doctoral students (1st co-authors), Doctor Yun Ho Kim from Korea Chemistry Research Center, and Prof. Shin Woong Kang from Jeon Buk University ( co-author) have participated in this research. This research has been funded by the WCU program and middle-grade researcher support program. The results of the research has been published as the online update of ‘‘Nature Asia Materials(NPG Asia Materials)” which is a sister magazine of the world renowned academic magazine ‘Nature’.
The flat display industry is the core industry leading the 21st century’s IT industry. The LCD is the main area of research. Korea is the leader of this industry, holding more than 50% of the world market. Many technologies are combined to make the electro-optic devices of the LCD function. The most important technology, which determines the indicating element’s quality and function is the technology to align the liquid crystals in one direction.
Currently, all LCD products are created by mechanically cutting into the surface of the polymer film and orienting the liquid crystal material along these cuts. However, the creation of polymer orientation films cost much time and money, and the high temperature processes necessary to stabilize the polymers does not allow for the free selection of circuit boards, and thus does not allow for the use in flexible display.
Prof. Hee Tae Jung devised a method to orient liquid display without the use of a polymer film using ITOs. Prof. Jung’s base technology has been tested on ITOs to maintain the necessary transparency and conductivity after forming a pattern with high decomposition rates and slenderness ratios.
The technology developed by the research team can horizontally or vertically align the transparent conductors without the use of polymer orientation films. Thus, the manufacturing processes have become much shortened and the LCDs can be made in much thinner from a few micrometers to a few centimeters. Also, it has a lower functioning voltage and faster response speed, showing the prospects of a high definition ultra-fast screen display development. Furthermore, this technology can be used for any type of board, and can be adjusted to a nanometer scale. This enables for its use in LCD based flexible or multi-domain modes.
Also, the transparent conductor patterning technology devised by the research team can be used not only for displays, but also for touch panels with highly increased sensitivity.
Prof. Jung said, “It was a long desire of the industry and academia to find a way to replace the polymer orientation film. This new technology does not need any polymer orientation films, and we can still use the original boards used for LCDs. This mean a lot to the industry. Also, this technology will increase the sensitivity of the touch panels for tablet PCs and smart phones. It can be used in many areas of future electronics base technology.”
2012.04.04 View 9819
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Undergraduate Research Program, Putting Wings on Undergraduate"s Dreams
KAIST held the 2011 URP Research Result Presentation in the Creative Learning Center on the 17th. Four students Jae Gyung Seo, Tran An Tu, Gun Sik Ahn, and Gyung Ryul Bong have been chosen as the grand prize winners.
The grand prize winners receive 3.5million won to allow them to participate in an international academic conference. The URP program is the first of its kind in Korea and has been benchmarked from MIT’s UROP(Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program).
The school selects 60 individual and 20 team research projects for undergraduates twice a year and provides mentorship as well as financial support.
Students signing up for the URP are to submit research plans and are then chosen through looking at these documents. Students receive 6 months of research funds and are to work under a professor and TA in groups of 2 to 3 or individually.
The URP program which is funded by the Ministry of Science and Technology has settled in successfully and has been expanded to the entire country.
The head of the R&D team, Yong Jae Sung, stated, “The number of research plans have been 154 in 2008, 189 in 2009, 220 and 251 respectively in 2010 and 2011. It’s continuously rising. And over 80% of responses on satisfaction surveys have replied that students were satisfied. It is very popular among undergraduates.“
Student Sang Yeon Cho has also said, “I was able to research on everything that I wanted under funding of the school and the guidance of renowned professors thanks to the URP program.”
To Seul Gi Lee, a graduate student for the electrical engineering department who has developed the wearable sleeping pattern analysis system, URP is an especially special program.
She said, “I successfully researched in the wearable health care field as my URP research material in 2006 when I was in my junior year. I made second place. After this, I have continued my research in this field on SoC(System on Chip) for wearable healthcare in graduate school and will be receiving my doctorate degree on the 24h.”
Doctor Seul Gi Lee has been recognized in the field of wearable healthcare for her research and has been hired as a researcher in the Holst Centre which is a national research center funded by the Netherlands’ government. She will continue to research on measuring and analyzing biological readings.
2012.04.04 View 9713
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NPKI Launch Workshop Held
Molecular Physics Department Expected to Have ‘NPKI’ Launch Workshop
- Numerous physicists tracking the god-particle ‘Higgs’ attending-
The NPKI: New Physics at Korea Institute which was launched a six day workshop in Shinla Hotel, Seoul with 50 physicists from in and out of the country.
The event started with Professor Gi Woon Choi’s welcoming speech. A heated debate with the theme ‘Top physics and electroweak symmetry breaking in the LHC era’ took place in the event.
NPKI was created this year to search into the most fundamental workings of nature, research the meaning of such mechanisms, and share this knowledge with not only the general public, but also with the teenagers who wish to someday become physicists.
Professor Gi Woon Choi from KAIST, Professors Byoung Wong Ko and Eung Jin Jeon from the Advanced Science Institute, and more are participated in this workshop from Korea.
From abroad, world renowned professors such as Prof. Csaba Csaki from Cornell, Prof. Christophe Grojean from CERN, Prof. Erez Etzion from Tel Aviv University of Israel, and Prof. Zoltan Ligeti from UC Berkley participated in this event.
The ‘Seeds Program’ took place. This is a program where 20 high school and middle school students aspiring to become physicists were able to attend the work shop without any due fee to experience the world of physicists.
The students chosen for the program were able to attend the conference to watch debates of real physicists as well as experience the academic lives of physicists. They were also able to attend the lecture conducted by Prof. Gilad Perez from CERN and were granted question and answer sessions as well.
The workshop was hosted by NPKI, and sponsored by Shinla Hotel, BK21 KAIST Physics, department of physics of KAIST, department of physics in Seoul National University, the Advanced Science Institute, and the Center for Quantum Spacetime
2012.04.04 View 11839
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University World News, EU and South Korea agree to deepen research cooperation, April 1, 2012
The University World News, an online news site that focuses on the news and analysis, developments, and events and announcements of global higher education, published an article on the latest agreement made between South Korea and the European Union for the research collaboration of the universities in the two nations. For the article, please go to http://www.universityworldnews.com/article.php?story=2012040108141720.
University World News
EU and South Korea agree to deepen research cooperation
By David Howarth, April 1, 2012
2012.04.02 View 9415
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The Australian: Asia more than competition, March 30, 2012
The Australian, the largest-selling newspaper in Australia, carried an article titled, “Asia more than competition,” an interview with Dr. Simon Marginson who is Professor of Higher Education in the Center for the Study of Higher Education at the University of Melbourne. Professor Marginson talks about the recent rise of universities in Asia, predicting that the Asian universities will eventually take up as much an equal share of importance as universities in Northwestern Europe in leading the world’s higher education within the next five to ten years. For the article, please follow the link below:
The Australian
Asia more than competition: Simon Marginson
by: John Ross
March 30, 2012 12:00AM
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/higher-education/asia-more-than-competition-marginson/story-e6frgcjx-1226309922402
2012.03.30 View 7072
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KAIST Confers Honorary Degree to CMU President Cohon
By DongJae Lee
The KAIST Herald Staff Reporter
On February 24, Dr. Jared L. Cohon, President of Carnegie Mellon University (CMU), visited KAIST to receive an honorary degree in science and technology and gave a lecture to the university’s students. Dr. Cohon is the eighth president of CMU and has held numerous other public and university positions. During his presidency, CMU has expanded globally and now takes part in joint programs around the world, including those with universities in Korea, Australia, India and Qatar. KAIST and CMU have been collaborating since 2005 in research projects, student and faculty exchange and dual degree programs. Before the 2012 Commencement Ceremony, Dr. Cohon met with The KAIST Herald and other news agencies for an interview.
The interview started with Dr. Cohon giving a brief introduction of CMU. Like KAIST, CMU has a small but special composition and is dedicated to science and technology as well as business and the fine arts. CMU, founded in 1900, is also relatively young by US standards but has nonetheless grown into a world-class university. The power behind this rapid growth can be expressed by four key values: innovation and change, problem-solving, interdisciplinary cooperation, and hard work. The slogan “My heart is in the work” clearly expresses the values of CMU.
One interesting aspect of CMU is its fine arts and business fields. While CMU is dedicated to science and technology, it also has many respected alumni in the aforementioned fields including Andy Warhol, a leading figure in pop art, and Randy Pausch, the author of The Last Lecture. CMU alumni have together won 6 Academy Awards, 22 Emmy Awards, over 100 Tony Awards and 20 Nobel Prizes.
Regarding CMU’s joint projects with KAIST, as well as student and faculty exchanges, Dr. Cohon mentioned joint Ph.D. programs in Civil and Environmental Engineering and Mechanical Engineering and a joint Master’s program in Software Engineering. Currently, the Civil and Environmental Engineering joint Ph.D. program has one participant and the Software Technology Institute joint Master of Software Engineering program has 6 participants.
Dr. Cohon mentioned that receiving an honorary degree in KAIST is a tremendous honor and that he is grateful to be recognized by such a wonderful university like KAIST.
2012.03.23 View 9880 -
KAIST placed the 5th in top 50 global universities for international patent applications
New York Times released an article, dated March 19, 2012, on the statistics of international patent applications filed by global universities during 2011, and with 103 applications published, KAIST was listed the fifth among the top 50 universities, right behind four US universities: University of California (277), the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (179), the University of Texas System (127), and Johns Hopkins University (111). A total of seven Korean universities including KAIST made the top 50 list. For the article, please check the link below:
New York Times, March 19, 2012
“U.S. Universities Retain Lead in Patent Applications”
By Christopher F. Schuetze
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/19/world/asia/us-universities-retain-lead-in-patent-applications.html
In addition, for the press release by the World Intellectual Property Organization, the UN agency responsible for the Patent Cooperation Treaty, on international patent filings in 2011, please click the following link:
“International Patent Filings Set new Record in 2011”
http://www.wipo.int/pressroom/en/articles/2012/article_0001.html
2012.03.21 View 9049
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2012 Reputation Rankings of World Universities by Times Higher Education--KAIST in 81-90
KAIST listed among the world’s most reputable 100 universities
Ranked in the 81st to 90th
The Times Higher Education (THE), a weekly magazine headquartered in London reporting news and issues related to higher education and publishing annually its “World University Rankings,” released on March 15, 2012 the rankings of global universities’ academic reputation, called “2012 World Reputation Rankings.”
KAIST was listed the 81st-90th group, moving up from the 91st to 100th last year. From Korea, only two universities, KAIST and Seoul National University (SNU), were included in the 100 most reputable universities in the world. SNU was in the 51st to 60th band of the list.
The World Reputation Rankings are based on the results of an academic reputation survey carried out by Thompson Reuters. 17,554 respondents from the global academic community from 137 countries participated in the survey of “2012 World Reputation Rankings” that was distributed in April –May 2011.
For the full list of the Times Higher Education World Reputation Rankings 2012, please visit the link, http://bit.ly/thewur.
2012.03.20 View 9581
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Distinguished Professor Sang-Yeop Lee gave keynote speech in '2011 China Bio-Refinery Summit'
Distinguished Professor Sang-Yeop Lee gave keynote speech in ‘2011 China Bio-Refinery Summit’ held in Chang’an, Beijing
Professor Lee gave a lecture on the vitalization strategy of ‘Bio-Refinery’, which is ‘A bio-based chemical industry to replace fossil fuel-based petro chemistry.
Professor Lee, insisted that for the successful construction of ‘Bio-Refinery’, there should be innovation in all value chain of biomass; biomass producer, bio-refinery business, consumer, government, etc. ▲Securement and distribution of Biomass ▲Development of strain and process for fermentation separation to effectively change biomass into chemical substance and fuel ▲Optimization of transportation and marketing.
During this summit, high-ranking government officials in politics and economics, executives of multicultural and Chinese business participated. From Korea, Do-Young Seung of Manager of technology research of GS and Hang-Deok Roh of laboratory chief of SK Chemical participated as panelist.
World Economy Forum, the gathering of leaders and experts in politics, economics, and policy created a ‘Global Agenda Council’ to find solutions on the issue of ‘sustainable growth of environment of the Earth and humanity’. Professor Lee is the chairperson of ‘Emerging Technologies Global Agenda Council (GAC)’ of Word Economy Forum.
Professor Lee, founder of ‘Systems Metabolic Engineering’, has made remarkable achievements world-wide, including a technology that manipulates metabolic circuit of microorganisms to purify various crude-originated chemical substances into environmentally friendly substances.
Currently, he is working on Systems biology research business in Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, Global Frontier Biomass business, Global Frontier Intelligent Bio-system construction and composition, to make progress in metabolic engineering which is essential for the bio-chemical industry.
2012.03.06 View 10818
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Professor Sang-Min Bae appears on EBS Global Theme Travel.
"We want to present "hope" by designing schools and homes for the third-world countries, while considering the culture of the nation.”
Professor Bae and his team went to Ethiopia, Africa, for "Design for Social Donation and Design Research for isolated third-world nations".
Professor Bae commented that, "We have visited for preparatory investigation, experiencing and investigating the life and cultures of the third-world nations in order to design schools and homes."
He continued, "From this visit, we want to develop adequate technology catered for the locals and create a design guideline." He added "We also want to propose a new model using design and technology that contributes to social welfare".
Meanwhile, EBS team accompanied to cover the report and was broadcasted through "EBS Global Theme Travel.
2012.03.06 View 7857
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Creating a Happy Campus Exhibiting Creativity
Nam-Pyo Seo, president of KAIST, had breakfast meeting with twenty students in the school hall.
- Two hundred people were provided with food in school cafeteria, a meeting to encourage the members, emphasizing organizational culture
The president said “the year 2012 is the year for KAIST to broaden our horizons and jump out to the world” and that we should “encourage and cooperate with each other so that the school can be a base for maximizing student talent and creativity.”
The president had the meeting with twenty students insisting that collectively we should, “build an ethical culture of KAIST, and dedicate ourselves on doing what’s right.
President Seo, recalled year 2011 as “A year that took a toll on all of the members”. He evaluated that “Despite the hardship, it was a meaningful year as the school took another step towards reaching the World Class University status, with reinforcement of the school and visualization of the technology developments like the improvement of papers and research, Online Electronic Car and Mobile Harbor.”
He continued, “We will strive for the not only the advanced education and improved lab environment, but also strive to construct a hub for student culture like the ‘Cutting edge central library’.
Students participated in the meeting braced themselves with an iron will for 2012, sharing their worries and expectations of the year.
Min-Gi Kim, a senior in mechanical engineering, “The reason I participated is, that the last four years of innovative changes of KAIST, such as the changes in the interview for examination, were reasonable and thought that it was worth discussing with the colleagues.”
The day’s meeting was prepared to comfort the students who spend the year-end and New Years in the school. Through the online school community ‘Portal’, students who have volunteered for the meeting of the president were selected in order and had meeting in the hall for two hours.
Meanwhile, on twelfth last month, the president had lunch meeting with thirty student councils of 2012, emphasized the importance on the partnership among the members, “Let’s bring our hearts together, with the culture of ‘communication’, let’s create a World Class university, and a happy campus,”
2012.03.06 View 7558