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Research Team Led by Prof. Lee Sang-Hyuk at Department of Life Science Publishes Findings in Nucleic Acids Research
The research team led by Professor Lee Sang-Hyuk from the Department of Life Science in the Ewha College of Natural Sciences developed the world's largest CRISPR screening database and published its research findings in the top-rated international academic journal Nucleic Acids Research (impact factor of 11.501, top 4 percent) on Monday, November 2. The research is expected to enable the development of innovative treatments and new drugs based on the iCSDB, an integrated database of screening data based on characteristics of human cells and CRISPR-Cas9 genetic scissors. The study was conducted by Dr. Choi Ah Young, a member of Professor Lee Sang-Hyuk's research team, as the lead author in a joint study with the Korean Bioinformation Center (co-corresponding author Lee Byung-wook). CRISPR-Cas9, which is being referred to as third-generation genetic scissors, is a gene-editing technology that can selectively remove or edit specific genes through the high-precision manipulation of the DNA of various living organisms. Compared to previous technologies, CRISPR-Cas9 has the advantage of allowing easier and more accurate editing of specific genes, which is introducing a revolutionary impact on the advancement of life science and medicine. In addition, a library-based screening technique that applies CRISPR-Cas technology to all human genes is currently seeing widespread usage in discovering targets for new drug development and conducting various molecular science research. The iCSDB, developed by the Ewha research team, is an integrated database that combines DepMap Portal that includes three large-scale CRISPR screening projects and BioGRID ORCS that provides CRISPR screening sources for genes. Through the iCSDB, 1,375 pieces of CRISPR screening data were collected for 976 human cell lines including CRISPR gene editing results for up to 70 cancer types, thereby constituting the world’s largest data collection of its kind. On top of that, the research team established a user-friendly web environment to allow users to easily access information on any cell line they are interested in, and implemented various means including infographics to promote easy understanding of the effects of gene editing, all of which are expected to offer significant help to researchers in related fields around the world. Professor Lee remarked, "We expect the iCSDB developed in our research to help identify the causes of treatment resistance for various carcinomas and subsequently the development of new treatments that can overcome treatment resistance. In the future, we plan to develop innovative new drug targets or new treatments through drug screening and integrated analysis of transcriptome data for the same cell lines."
Ewha Holds “1st Ewha-Hyunwoo Women and Peace Prize” Ceremony and Commemorative Exhibition
A longstanding leader of women’s studies in Korea, Ewha Womans University has launched the Ewha-Hyunwoo Women and Peace Prize to further solidify the academic standing of women's studies with a focus on the keywords of “women” and “peace” and to build upon its history of leading the field. On Tuesday, November 10, the Korean Women's Institute of Ewha Womans University held the ceremony for the 1st Ewha-Hyunwoo Women and Peace Prize, which was established with the support of the Hyunwoo Culture Foundation. The institute, which has been leading women's studies in Korea for half a century since the launch of Korea’s first women’s studies course in 1977, now plans to commend and encourage scholars in related fields who have studied and devoted themselves to Korean women’s issues, through the establishment of the Ewha-Hyunwoo Women and Peace Prize. Photo: Online special lecture by Prof. Kim Eunjung, the winner of the 1st Ewha-Hyunwoo Women and Peace Prize (middle) To prevent the spread of COVID-19, the award was broadcast live on Facebook with a minimum number of in-person participants, including President Kim Heisook of Ewha Womans University and Director Choi Cheong-gyu of Hyunwoo Culture Foundation. President Kim Heisook commented, “It is one of the missions of Ewha Womans University to present a vision that can pioneer peace and the future of the Korean Peninsula. I hope that, through the establishment of the Ewha-Hyunwoo Women and Peace Prize, the Women's Research Institute will take the lead in creating a society where women can enjoy and lead peace.” Professor Kim Eunjeong at Syracuse University, who received the 1st Ewha-Hyunwoo Women and Peace Prize on the day of the ceremony, is an expert in the research on disability, gender, and sexuality. For her book Curative Violence, she received the Alison Piepmeier Book Prize from the National Women’s Studies Association (U.S.) and the James B. Palais Book Prize (2019) from the Association for Asian Studies (U.S.). Professor Kim was selected as the prizewinner in recognition of her contributions to women’s studies and disability studies by expanding the horizon of the said fields in her books and papers, which analyze the treatment of disability in Korean culture and reveal hidden violence behind the ideology of “healing and rehabilitation” in Korean society. Meanwhile, in order to reflect upon the meaning of the prize, a commemorative exhibition titled “A Larger Mind: The Spaces of Women We Have Passed By” was held at ECC Daesan Gallery from Monday, November 9 to Wednesday, November 18. This exhibition featured various works of Korean women artists and artworks addressing women’s issues, such as those of Professor Kang Ae-ran, who is an installation artist and the president of the Korean Women's Institute, as well as Kwon Hye-won, Park Seong-yeon, Park Young-sook, Yoon Seok-nam, Jung Jeong-yeop, Cheon Min-jeong, and the Pandora Photo Team of the Magdalena Community.
