Shan Gao awarded prize in China
Shan Gao receives the prize for his significant academic contribution to odontology at The First Global Congress of Chinese Dentists.
Senior Scientist Shan Gao from the Department of Molecular Biology, Aarhus University, has just returned from The First Global Congress of Chinese Dentists, held in Xiamen, China, where he received the award as Outstanding Overseas Chinese Scholar in Dental Science.
2010.12.16 |
Presentation of Dr Gao's academic contributions to the 10,000 participants at the congress from 40 different countries.
All the prize winners - Dr Gao is no. 5 from the left. Click the photos for enlargement
Dr Gao was awarded the prize for his scientific research work regarding molecular mechanisms in oral carcinomas, for his participation in mapping the genetics of the hereditary disease dentinogenesis imperfecta Shields type II (published in Nature Genetics) – a disease that causes teeth to discolour, become transparent and worn down – and for actively organising and participating in Sino-Danish academic activities in the dental field.
It was the first time this prize was awarded, and it went to a total of nine scientists for their significant academic contribution to dental science. Seven of the prize winners work in the USA, one in Australia and Dr Gao in Denmark.
The congress was organised by the Chinese Dental Association and had about 10,000 participants from more than 40 different countries. Dr Gao was also invited as a speaker at the congress.
Career
Shan Gao was born in 1965 and has a Master’s degree in dental science from the Hunan Medical University in China. From 1990 to 2000, he worked as an assistant professor and associate professor at the Dental Hospital, Tianjin Medical University, China.
In 2001, he came to Denmark as a PhD student, and was supervised by Professor Erik Dabelsteen at the Dental School, University of Copenhagen, where he completed his PhD degree in 2003.
In 2004, Dr Gao was appointed postdoctoral scholar at the Department of Molecular Biology, Aarhus University, in Professor Peter Andreasen’s research group. Here he studied the role of DNA methylation on the regulation of the plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 (PAI-1) gene – an enzyme inhibitor that plays a significant role in the spread of cancer. These studies were done to explain the mechanism of up-regulation of PAI-1 in human cancers based on epigenetic alterations, and his work was the first demonstration that the PAI-1 expression level in cancer cells is inversely correlated with the methylation status of the PAI-1 promoter.
In 2007, he was appointed postdoctoral scholar and subsequently senior scientist in Professor Jørgen Kjem’s research group, where he continues his studies in so-called siRNA delivery in vivo and miRNA regulation in human cancers, in order to develop nucleic acid-based drugs for therapeutic application in oral carcinomas.
Further information
Senior Scientist Shan Gao
Department of Molecular Biology/iNANO Centre, Aarhus University, Denmark
shg@ mb.au.dk, +45 8942 2702