Yao Zhen (; a.k.a. T. Yao; 18 October 1915 – 4 November 2005) was a Chinese

biologist A biologist is a scientist who conducts research in biology. Biologists are interested in studying life on Earth, whether it is an individual cell, a multicellular organism, or a community of interacting populations. They usually specialize ...

and

oncologist Oncology is a branch of medicine that deals with the study, treatment, diagnosis and prevention of cancer. A medical professional who practices oncology is an ''oncologist''. The name's etymological origin is the Greek word ὄγκος (''ó ...

. He served the first president of Asian-Pacific Organization for Cell Biology.亚洲及太平洋地区细胞生物学组织 (Asian-Pacific Organization for Cell Biology) 简介
/ref>

Life

Yao was born in

Changshu Changshu (; Suzhounese: /d͡ʐan¹³ ʐoʔ²³/) is a county-level city under the jurisdiction of Suzhou, Jiangsu province, and is part of the Yangtze River Delta. It borders the prefecture-level city of Nantong to the northeast across the Yan ...

Jiangsu Province Jiangsu (; ; pinyin: Jiāngsū, alternatively romanized as Kiangsu or Chiangsu) is an eastern coastal province of the People's Republic of China. It is one of the leading provinces in finance, education, technology, and tourism, with its c ...

, on 18 October 1915. Yao graduated from the Department of Biology of

Zhejiang University Zhejiang University, abbreviated as ZJU or Zheda and formerly romanized as Chekiang University, is a National university, national public university, public research university based in Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China. It is a member of the prestigiou ...

in 1937. After graduation, he became a teaching assistant at the department. Yao received a scholarship from

British Council The British Council is a British organisation specialising in international cultural and educational opportunities. It works in over 100 countries: promoting a wider knowledge of the United Kingdom and the English language (and the Welsh lan ...

and went to study in UK in 1946. Yao obtained PhD from the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 1 ...

in 1949. Yao jointed the former Shanghai Institute of Experimental Biology,

Chinese Academy of Sciences The Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS); ), known by Academia Sinica in English until the 1980s, is the national academy of the People's Republic of China for natural sciences. It has historical origins in the Academia Sinica during the Republi ...

(CAS) in August 1950. He was the Vice-Director of the former CAS Shanghai Institute of Cell Biology. Yao was elected an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences in 1980. In August 1988, Yao was elected the 1st president of Asian-Pacific Organization for Cell Biology. Yao was the main founder and the first

editor-in-chief An editor-in-chief (EIC), also known as lead editor or chief editor, is a publication's editorial leader who has final responsibility for its operations and policies. The highest-ranking editor of a publication may also be titled editor, managing ...

of the scientific journal ''Cell Research''. Yao also served as the chief director of Chinese Society for Cell Biology. Yao was a senior research professor at Shanghai Institute of Biochemistry and Cell Biology (SIBCB), Chinese Academy of Sciences, which is one of the most prestigious institutes for biological research in China.Introduction: Shanghai Institute of Biochemistry of Cell Biology
/ref> When Yao was in Britain, his research mainly focused on the developmental

embryology Embryology (from Greek ἔμβρυον, ''embryon'', "the unborn, embryo"; and -λογία, '' -logia'') is the branch of animal biology that studies the prenatal development of gametes (sex cells), fertilization, and development of embr ...

drosophila ''Drosophila'' () is a genus of flies, belonging to the family Drosophilidae, whose members are often called "small fruit flies" or (less frequently) pomace flies, vinegar flies, or wine flies, a reference to the characteristic of many speci ...

. Yao made significant contributions to the researches of cell differentiation and development, and experimental cancer biology in China, thus is regarded as a pioneer in these domains in China. Yao died in

Shanghai Shanghai (; , , Standard Chinese, Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four Direct-administered municipalities of China, direct-administered municipalities of the China, People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the ...

on 4 November 2005.

Names

Yao Zhen's name is often incorrectly written as Yao Xin, because the Chinese character ''Zhen'' () is often mistaken as the more common character ''Xin'' (). His name is also romanized as T. Yao.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Yao, Zhen 1915 births 2005 deaths 20th-century Chinese physicians 20th-century Chinese scientists Academic journal editors Alumni of the University of Edinburgh Biologists from Jiangsu Chinese oncologists Members of the Chinese Academy of Sciences Physicians from Jiangsu Scientists from Suzhou Zhejiang University alumni