Richard Winyu Tsien (born 3 March 1945), is a Chinese-born American electrical engineer and
neurobiologist. He is the Druckenmiller Professor of Neuroscience, Chair of the Department of Physiology and Neuroscience, and Director of the NYU Neuroscience Institute at
New York University Medical Center
NYU Langone Health is an academic medical center located in New York City, New York, United States. The health system consists of NYU Grossman School of Medicine and NYU Long Island School of Medicine, both part of New York University (NYU), and m ...
, and also an emeritus faculty member of
Stanford University School of Medicine.
Early life and education
Tsien was born in
Tating
Tating is a municipality in the district of Nordfriesland, in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after ...
,
Kweichow,
China and is a
descendant of King of
Wuyue Tsien Liu. Soon after his birth, Tsien's family moved to the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
. Tsien received his
Bachelor of Science
A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years.
The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University o ...
degree in 1965 and
Master of Science
A Master of Science ( la, Magisterii Scientiae; abbreviated MS, M.S., MSc, M.Sc., SM, S.M., ScM or Sc.M.) is a master's degree in the field of science awarded by universities in many countries or a person holding such a degree. In contrast t ...
degree in 1966, both in
electrical engineering from the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private land-grant research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Established in 1861, MIT has played a key role in the development of modern technology and science, and is one of the ...
. Tsien then won a
Rhodes Scholarship and went to study in the
UK at
Wadham College, Oxford
Wadham College () is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. It is located in the centre of Oxford, at the intersection of Broad Street and Parks Road.
Wadham College was founded in 1610 by Dorothy W ...
, from 1966 to 1969. Tsien obtained a
Doctor of Philosophy
A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is ...
(DPhil) degree in
biophysics
Biophysics is an interdisciplinary science that applies approaches and methods traditionally used in physics to study biological phenomena. Biophysics covers all scales of biological organization, from molecular to organismic and populations. ...
from the
University of Oxford
, mottoeng = The Lord is my light
, established =
, endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019)
, budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20)
, chancellor ...
in 1970.
Career and research
From 1968 to 1970, Tsien was a Weir Junior Research Fellow at
University College, Oxford
University College (in full The College of the Great Hall of the University of Oxford, colloquially referred to as "Univ") is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. It has a claim to being the oldest college of the unive ...
. From 1969 to 1970, Tsien was a teaching fellow at
Balliol College, Oxford.
In 1970, Tsien went back to the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
, and became an
assistant professor
Assistant Professor is an academic rank just below the rank of an associate professor used in universities or colleges, mainly in the United States and Canada.
Overview
This position is generally taken after earning a doctoral degree
A docto ...
in the Department of Physiology at
Yale University School of Medicine
The Yale School of Medicine is the graduate medical school at Yale University, a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. It was founded in 1810 as the Medical Institution of Yale College and formally opened in 1813.
The primary te ...
from 1970 to 1974. From 1974 to 1979, Tsien was an associate professor in the same department, and was promoted to full professor in 1979.
In 1988, Tsien went to Stanford and founded the Stanford University Department of Molecular and Cellular Physiology, where he also served as the first
chairman. From 1991 to 2001, Tsien was the Silvio Conte Director - National Institutes of Mental Health Center for Neuroscience Research. From 1988 to 2011, Tsien was the George D. Smith Professor at the Department of Molecular and Cellular Physiology. From 2000 to 2011, Tsien served as Co-Director for the Stanford Brain Research Center.
Tsien did important work on
calcium channels, their mechanisms and roles in
cell signaling
In biology, cell signaling (cell signalling in British English) or cell communication is the ability of a cell to receive, process, and transmit signals with its environment and with itself. Cell signaling is a fundamental property of all cellula ...
pathways. Tsien's research also helps us understand the long-term plasticity of
synapses.
From 1987 to 1988, Tsien served as president of the
Society of General Physiologists
The Society of General Physiologists (SGP) is a scientific organization whose purpose is to promote and disseminate knowledge in the field of general physiology, and otherwise to advance understanding and interest in the subject of general physio ...
. In August 2000, Tsien also served the Section Chair of Neurobiology of the
United States 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 ...
.
Selected honors & awards
* 1985, Kenneth S. Cole Award (for contributions to
membrane biophysics)
* 1991, 1995, 1999, Kaiser Award for Outstanding and Innovative Teaching, from Stanford University
* 1993, Magnes Prize, from
Hebrew University
The Hebrew University of Jerusalem (HUJI; he, הַאוּנִיבֶרְסִיטָה הַעִבְרִית בִּירוּשָׁלַיִם) is a public research university based in Jerusalem, Israel. Co-founded by Albert Einstein and Dr. Chaim Weiz ...
,
Jerusalem
Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...
* 1994, elected to the United States
Institute of Medicine
* 1996, awardee "Perspectives in Physiology: Walter B. Cannon Memorial Lecture", from the
American Physiological Society
The American Physiological Society is a non-profit professional society for physiologists. It has nearly 10,000 members, most of whom hold doctoral degrees in medicine, physiology or other health professions. Its mission is to support research an ...
* 1996, elected to the
Academia Sinica
* 1997, elected a member of the United States
National Academy of Sciences (NAS)
* 1998, elected to the
American Academy of Arts and Sciences
The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (abbreviation: AAA&S) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, a ...
* 2000, elected Fellow of the
Biophysical Society
* 2014 Bard Lecture, Johns Hopkins University
Personal life
Tsien's youngest brother
Roger Y. Tsien, a
biochemist, won the 2008
Nobel Prize in Chemistry
)
, image = Nobel Prize.png
, alt = A golden medallion with an embossed image of a bearded man facing left in profile. To the left of the man is the text "ALFR•" then "NOBEL", and on the right, the text (smaller) "NAT•" then "M ...
.
[Nobelprize.or]
2008 Nobel Prize Laureate in Chemistry - Roger Y. Tsien
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References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tsien, Winyu Richard
1943 births
Living people
20th-century American biologists
20th-century American engineers
21st-century American biologists
21st-century American engineers
Alumni of Wadham College, Oxford
American electrical engineers
American neuroscientists
American Rhodes Scholars
Chinese emigrants to the United States
Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
MIT School of Engineering alumni
Members of Academia Sinica
Members of the United States National Academy of Sciences
Scientists from Guizhou
Stanford University School of Medicine faculty
Tsien family
Yale School of Medicine faculty
Yale University faculty
Members of the National Academy of Medicine