Events

17 Sep 2013

7:00pm

Lecture Theatre, Hong Kong Central Library

Prof. Samuel Sun

Sun received his BSc cum laude from The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) in 1966, his BSc Special Honour and MSc from the University of Hong Kong in 1968 and 1970 respectively, and his PhD from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, USA in 1974.  While conducting research at the University of Wisconsin from 1975 to 1980, he cloned the first plant gene and discovered plant gene introns.  He joined the ARCO Plant Cell Research Institute in California (1980–1987) as senior scientist, principal scientist and Director of Molecular Biology. There he demonstrated for the first time that an essential amino acid can be increased in plants through biotechnology.

Sun was Professor at the University of Hawaii (1987-1995) before returning to the CUHK as Professor of Biology and Department Chair in 1996. He is now Research Professor of Biology, Director of the Institute of Plant Molecular Biology and Agricultural Biotechnology and the State Key Laboratory of Agrobiotechnology (CUHK), honorary and adjunct professor of 12 universities in China including Tsinghua University, China Agricultural University, and Zhejiang University, and Master of the S.H. Ho College at CUHK.

Since returning to Hong Kong, Sun has been working on rice improvement, including on the yield and nutritional quality of hybrid rice; plants as bioreactor; and engineering nutrient-rich rice as a member of the international ProVitaMin Rice Consortium supported by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

Sun received ARCO Distinguished Research Award in 1984, Friendship Medal from the State Government of China in 1996, Greatwall Friendship Award from the Beijing Municipal Government in 2000, Leader of the Year Award in Education/Research in Hong Kong in 2005, Distinguished Alumnus Award of Science Faculty at the University of Hong Kong in 2009, and Honorary Fellowship of The Chinese University of Hong Kong in 2010.  He was elected a member of the Chinese Academy of Engineering in 2003 and the Eurasian Academy of Sciences in 2008.

A group of plant scientists from different universities in Hong Kong formed a team in 2000 and succeeded in establishing an Area of Excellence in Plant Biotechnology with the support of the University Grants Committee (UGC). The team, through basic and applied research and the application of molecular and biotechnological approaches, focuses on rice and soybean research. In 2006, the team’s outstanding achievements received concluding assessment as world class by the international monitoring panel of UGC and secured further sustained funding support. The team was later approved by the Ministry of Science and Technology of China with the status of State Key Laboratory of Agrobiotechnology in 2008. It has been 14 years since the formation of the team, what bonds these plant scientists together and sustains their efforts? What motivates them? What is the springhead of their innovations? Why they select hybrid rice and soybean to work on? What have they achieved? And in final analysis, what is their common dream in this joint endeavor? Prof. Samuel S.M. Sun will share with the audience the dream of Hong Kong Plant Scientists in the lecture.

To view the programme schedule of the 50^th Anniversary Fair, please click here.