Prof Nieng Yan 顏寧教授

Award

Doctor of Science, honoris causa 榮譽理學博士

Year of Award

2024

Biography

Prof Nieng Yan is a well-known structural biologist whose seminal research has revolutionised our understanding of membrane protein structures and mechanisms. Born in Shandong Province in 1977, she completed her undergraduate studies at Tsinghua University in 2000, then pursued a doctoral degree at Princeton University.

Rising rapidly in academia Prof Yan became the youngest doctoral supervisor at Tsinghua University at the age of 30, and her appointment as the Shirley M. Tilghman Professor at Princeton University in 2017 marked a significant milestone as she is the first scientist to hold this august position. In 2019, she was elected a foreign associate of the US National Academy of Sciences, and, in 2023, to the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

Prof Yan's scientific contributions are both important and invaluable. Her laboratory was the first to elucidate the atomic structures of several critical membrane proteins, and these discoveries have advanced our fundamental understanding of cellular processes and provided crucial insights for drug development. Prof Yan’s work has twice been selected as one of the top ten scientific breakthroughs by Science magazine, and published in authoritative journals including Nature, Science, and Cell. The impact of her research extends to practical applications in medicine, and particularly in understanding disease mechanisms and developing new therapeutic approaches.

Prof Yan's recent return to China to set up and lead the Shenzhen Medical Academy of Research and Translation demonstrates her commitment to advancing life sciences research and education in her homeland. Her philosophy that "being a female scientist can be challenging, but not to the extent that anyone should be stopped. So, be brave, be yourself" has inspired countless young scientific researchers, particularly women. Receiving the 2024 L'Oréal-UNESCO For Women in Science International Award further underscores her position as a global leader in scientific research.

She was awarded Doctor of Science, honoris causa.