The University of Macau (UM) today (12\nJune) conferred a Doctor of Science honoris\ncausa<\/i> degree on the Nobel laureate in chemistry, Prof Aaron Ciechanover, in\nrecognition of his outstanding contributions to basic scientific research.\nAfter the ceremony, Prof Ciechanover gave a lecture titled \u2018The Revolution of\nPersonalised Medicine: Are We Going to Cure all Diseases and at What Cost\u2019,\nwhich attracted many experts, scholars, faculty members, researchers, and\nstudents from China and abroad.<\/p>
The\nhonorary degree was presented to Prof Ciechanover by Secretary for Social\nAffairs and Culture Tam Chon Weng in the company of UM University Council Chair\nLam Kam Seng and UM Rector Yonghua Song. In delivering the citation for Prof\nCiechanover, Faculty of Health Sciences Dean Prof Chuxia Deng said that Prof Ciechanover, who was born in Haifa, Israel, is a world-renowned\nbiochemist. At that time, the scientific community in general did not see the\nneed for an in-depth study of protein degradation, but Prof Ciechanover had a\nfirm belief in and great enthusiasm for this research direction. After\novercoming many difficulties in his research, he finally discovered the\nubiquitin-protease system that regulates protein degradation and the recycling\nin the cell. His ground-breaking research clearly shows that the\nubiquitin-mediated proteolysis plays an important role in numerous biochemical\nprocesses, thereby improving the medical treatment and saving countless lives. <\/p>
In his speech, Song said that Prof Ciechanover\u2019s work has made significant contributions\nto the medical community, and has improved medical treatment, which has in turn\nled to an improved quality of life for mankind. For his ground-breaking\ndiscovery and successful research study of the ubiquitin-protease system, Prof\nCiechanover was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry, together with two other\nscientists, in 2004. The system has become an important platform for drug\ndevelopment, laying the foundation for personalised medicine. Song added that\nhe believed the audience would learn a great deal from Prof Ciechanover\u2019s\ninsightful views and would gain a better understanding of how proteins control\nchemical phenomena in the human body at the molecular level.<\/p>
During the lecture, Prof Ciechanover explained that ubiquitin\nexists in many different tissues and organs, and has the function of labeling\nproteins which are to be degraded in the proteasome. The ubiquitin-protease\nsystem not only removes the incorrect proteins, but also plays an important\nrole in cell growth cycle, DNA repair, and chromosome structure. Any aberrations\nin the ubiquitin-proteasome system can contribute to diseases such as cancer\nand neurodegenerative disorders. Prof Ciechanover has been studying the\nrelationship between the occurrence of major human diseases and the metabolic\nmechanism that regulates proteins in the human body. His research has been\napplied to the development and production of the world\u2019s first drug as\nproteasome inhibitor for the treatment of multiple myeloma and mantle cell\nlymphoma, and has been successfully commercialised, laying the foundation for\npersonalised medicine.<\/p>
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The talk attracted many experts,\nscholars, faculty members, researchers, and students from China and abroad. Prof\nCiechanover also participated in\nthe Sixth Macau Symposium on Biomedical Sciences and exchanged ideas with biomedical\nscientists from around the world.<\/p>
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Source: Faculty of Health Sciences<\/p>
Media Contact Information:Communications Office, University of Macau<\/p>
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Albee Lei Tel\uff1a(853) 88228004Kelvin U Tel\uff1a(853) 88224322Email\uff1aprs.media@um.edu.moUM Website\uff1awww.um.edu.mo<\/p>
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The University of Macau (UM) today (12 June) conferred a Doctor of Science honoris causa degree on the Nobel laureate in chemistry, Prof Aaron Ciechanover, in recognition of his outstanding…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":37822,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[60],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-37821","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-press-release"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n