Gao Fu (; born 15 November 1961), also known as George Fu Gao, is a Chinese
virologist
Virology is the scientific study of biological viruses. It is a subfield of microbiology that focuses on their detection, structure, classification and evolution, their methods of infection and exploitation of host cells for reproduction, their ...
and
immunologist. He has served as Director of the
Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention
The Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CCDC; ) is an institution directly under the National Health Commission, based in Changping District, Beijing, China.
Established in 1983, it works to protect public health and safety ...
from August 2017 to July 2022
and Dean of the Savaid Medical School of the
University of Chinese Academy of Sciences since 2015.
Gao is an academician of the
Chinese Academy of Sciences and
The World Academy of Sciences
The World Academy of Sciences (TWAS) is a merit-based science academy established for developing countries, uniting 1,000 scientists in some 70 countries. Its principal aim is to promote scientific capacity and excellence for sustainable devel ...
, as well as a foreign associate of the US
National Academy of Sciences
The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) is a United States nonprofit, non-governmental organization. NAS is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and the Nati ...
and the US
National Academy of Medicine. He was awarded the
TWAS Prize
This is a list of recipients of the TWAS Prize, awarded annually by The World Academy of Sciences (TWAS).
Summary
Agricultural Sciences
Biology
Chemistry
Earth Sciences
Engineering Sciences
Mathematics
Medical Sc ...
in Medical Science in 2012 and the
Nikkei Asia Prize The Nikkei Asia Prize (Japanese: 日経アジア賞) is an award which recognizes the achievements of people and organizations that have improved the lives of people throughout Asia. The awards were created and presented by Nikkei Inc, one of the l ...
in 2014.
Early life and education
Gao was born in
Ying County,
Shuozhou,
Shanxi
Shanxi (; ; formerly romanised as Shansi) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China and is part of the North China region. The capital and largest city of the province is Taiyuan, while its next most populated prefecture-lev ...
province in 1961. He entered
Shanxi Agricultural University
Shanxi Agricultural University (山西农业大学) is a university in Shanxi, China under the authority of the provincial government.
It is in the city of Taigu (太谷), a rural area with a population of about 40,000 people.
History
The schoo ...
and was assigned to study
veterinary medicine
Veterinary medicine is the branch of medicine that deals with the prevention, management, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, disorder, and injury in animals. Along with this, it deals with animal rearing, husbandry, breeding, research on nutri ...
even though he did not want to be a veterinarian.
After graduating in 1983, he entered the graduate school of
Beijing Agricultural University, where he earned a master's degree in
microbiology
Microbiology () is the scientific study of microorganisms, those being unicellular (single cell), multicellular (cell colony), or acellular (lacking cells). Microbiology encompasses numerous sub-disciplines including virology, bacteriology, prot ...
and
veterinary epidemiology Epizootiology, epizoology, or veterinary epidemiology is the study of disease patterns within animal populations.
See also
* Epizootic
* Epidemiology
Epidemiology is the study and analysis of the distribution (who, when, and where), patterns an ...
in 1986.
This enabled him to change his career direction to infectious disease research, and he joined the faculty of the university as a teaching assistant and later lecturer in
virology
Virology is the Scientific method, scientific study of biological viruses. It is a subfield of microbiology that focuses on their detection, structure, classification and evolution, their methods of infection and exploitation of host (biology), ...
.
Education and career abroad
In 1991, Gao went to the United Kingdom to study at
Oxford University
Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...
, where he earned his Ph.D. in biochemistry in 1994 under the supervision of David H. L. Bishop and Ernest A. Gould.
After a three-month stint at the
University of Calgary
The University of Calgary (U of C or UCalgary) is a public research university located in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The University of Calgary started in 1944 as the Calgary branch of the University of Alberta, founded in 1908, prior to being ins ...
in Canada, he returned to Oxford as a
postdoctoral researcher, working under John I. Bell,
Andrew McMichael and Bent K. Jakobsen.
In 1999, Gao moved to
Harvard Medical School
Harvard Medical School (HMS) is the graduate medical school of Harvard University and is located in the Longwood Medical Area of Boston, Massachusetts. Founded in 1782, HMS is one of the oldest medical schools in the United States and is consi ...
as a Wellcome Trust International Travelling Fellow and conducted research under
Don Craig Wiley
Don, don or DON and variants may refer to:
Places
*County Donegal, Ireland, Chapman code DON
*Don (river), a river in European Russia
*Don River (disambiguation), several other rivers with the name
*Don, Benin, a town in Benin
*Don, Dang, a vill ...
and
Stephen C. Harrison
Stephen C. Harrison is professor of biological chemistry and molecular pharmacology, professor of pediatrics, and director of the Center for Molecular and Cellular Dynamics of Harvard Medical School, head of the Laboratory of Molecular Medicine ...
until 2001. From 2001 to 2004, Gao taught at Oxford University, serving as a lecturer, doctoral supervisor, and group leader.
Career in China
After 13 years abroad, Gao returned to China in 2004 to serve as Professor and Director of the Institute of Microbiology,
Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS).
In 2008 he was appointed Vice President of Beijing Institutes of Life Science and Director of the National Key Laboratory of Pathogenic Microorganism and Immunology of the CAS. He has also been an
adjunct professor
An adjunct professor is a type of academic appointment in higher education who does not work at the establishment full-time. The terms of this appointment and
the job security of the tenure vary in different parts of the world, however the genera ...
at Oxford since 2010.
Gao was appointed Deputy Director of the
Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention
The Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CCDC; ) is an institution directly under the National Health Commission, based in Changping District, Beijing, China.
Established in 1983, it works to protect public health and safety ...
in April 2011. He was promoted to Director in August 2017, succeeding Wang Yu (王宇).
In 2015, Gao was appointed Dean of the Savaid Medical School of the
University of Chinese Academy of Sciences. He also serves as Vice President of the
National Natural Science Foundation of China
The National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC; ) is an organization directly affiliated to China's State Council for the management of the National Natural Science Fund.
History
NSFC was founded in February 1986 by theoretical chemist Tan ...
.
In 2020, Gao contributed to research on
SARS-CoV-2
Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‑CoV‑2) is a strain of coronavirus that causes COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019), the respiratory illness responsible for the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The virus previously had a ...
.
Other activities
*
Foundation for Innovative New Diagnostics
The Foundation for Innovative New Diagnostics (FIND) is a global health non-profit based in Geneva, Switzerland. FIND functions as a product development partnership, engaging in active collaboration with over 150 partners to facilitate the develo ...
(FIND), Member of the Board of Directors
*
National Natural Science Foundation of China
The National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC; ) is an organization directly affiliated to China's State Council for the management of the National Natural Science Fund.
History
NSFC was founded in February 1986 by theoretical chemist Tan ...
, Vice President
Contributions
Gao's main research focus is on the mechanism of
viral entry and release, especially the
cross-species transmission (host jump) of the
influenza virus. He also studies
viral ecology, including the ecology of the flu virus in migratory birds and poultry markets.
He was the first to describe the cross-species transmission mechanism of the
H5N1 avian flu virus.
Gao's research also involves public and global health policy. During the peak of the
2014 Ebola outbreak
Fourteen or 14 may refer to:
* 14 (number), the natural number following 13 and preceding 15
* one of the years 14 BC, AD 14, 1914, 2014
Music
* 14th (band), a British electronic music duo
* ''14'' (David Garrett album), 2013
*''14'', an unrele ...
, he spent two months leading the China Mobile Test Laboratory in
Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone,)]. officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. It is bordered by Liberia to the southeast and Guinea surrounds the northern half of the nation. Covering a total area of , Sierra ...
from September to November, playing a role that is described by the US
National Academy of Sciences
The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) is a United States nonprofit, non-governmental organization. NAS is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and the Nati ...
as "heroic" in fighting the epidemic.
As of 2019, Gao has published 20 books or book chapters and over 500 peer-reviewed research papers,
including those on newly discovered pathogenic viruses such as the
SARS virus and the
H7N9
Influenza A virus subtype H7N9 (A/H7N9) is a bird flu strain of the species Influenza virus A (avian influenza virus or bird flu virus). Avian influenza A H7 viruses normally circulate amongst avian populations with some variants known to occ ...
avian flu virus.
Honours and recognition
*
TWAS Prize
This is a list of recipients of the TWAS Prize, awarded annually by The World Academy of Sciences (TWAS).
Summary
Agricultural Sciences
Biology
Chemistry
Earth Sciences
Engineering Sciences
Mathematics
Medical Sc ...
in Medical Science, 2012
*Academician of the
Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), December 2013
*Fellow of
The World Academy of Sciences
The World Academy of Sciences (TWAS) is a merit-based science academy established for developing countries, uniting 1,000 scientists in some 70 countries. Its principal aim is to promote scientific capacity and excellence for sustainable devel ...
(TWAS), 2014
*
Nikkei Asia Prize The Nikkei Asia Prize (Japanese: 日経アジア賞) is an award which recognizes the achievements of people and organizations that have improved the lives of people throughout Asia. The awards were created and presented by Nikkei Inc, one of the l ...
, 2014
*Fellow of the
American Academy of Microbiology (AAM), 2015
*Foreign member of the
European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO), 2016
*Fellow of the
American Association for the Advancement of Science
The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) is an American international non-profit organization with the stated goals of promoting cooperation among scientists, defending scientific freedom, encouraging scientific respons ...
(AAAS), 2016
*National Award for Distinguished Scientist, 2016
*
State Science and Technology Progress Award, 2017
*National Innovation Award, 2017
*Fellow of the
Royal Society of Edinburgh
The Royal Society of Edinburgh is Scotland's national academy of science and letters. It is a registered charity that operates on a wholly independent and non-partisan basis and provides public benefit throughout Scotland. It was established i ...
(RSE), 2017
*Fellow of the
African Academy of Sciences
The African Academy of Sciences (AAS) is a non-aligned, non-political, not-for-profit, pan-African learned society formed in 1985.
The AAS elects fellows ( FAAS) and affiliates. The AAS also awards the Obasanjo Prize for Scientific Discovery and ...
(AAS), 2017
*Academician of the
International Eurasian Academy of Sciences, 2018
*Foreign associate of the US
National Academy of Sciences
The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) is a United States nonprofit, non-governmental organization. NAS is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and the Nati ...
, 2019
*Foreign associate of the US
National Academy of Medicine, October 2019
*Member of the
German Academy of Sciences Leopoldina
The German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina (german: Deutsche Akademie der Naturforscher Leopoldina – Nationale Akademie der Wissenschaften), short Leopoldina, is the national academy of Germany, and is located in Halle (Saale). Founded ...
, 2020
References
External links
Biography of George Fu Gao
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gao, George Fu
1961 births
Living people
Academics of the University of Oxford
Alumni of the University of Oxford
Biologists from Shanxi
China Agricultural University alumni
Chinese expatriates in England
Chinese expatriates in the United States
Chinese immunologists
Chinese virologists
Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh
Foreign associates of the National Academy of Sciences
Harvard Medical School faculty
Members of the Chinese Academy of Sciences
Members of the National Academy of Medicine
People from Ying County
Shanxi Agricultural University alumni
TWAS fellows
TWAS laureates
Members of the European Molecular Biology Organization
Coronavirus researchers
Winners of the Nikkei Asia Prize
Members of the German Academy of Sciences Leopoldina
Fellows of the African Academy of Sciences
Associate Fellows of the African Academy of Sciences