Congratulations to Dr. Yang Cheng, Assistant Research Fellow of IBMS, being awarded for the 12th "Young Scholar Innovation Award" from The Foundation for the Advancement of Outstanding Scholarship.
Dr. Yang Cheng Receives 2024 Young Scholar Creativity Award for Contributions to Viral Immunology
In recognition of his contributions to viral immunology, Dr. Yang Cheng, Assistant Research Fellow at the Institute of Biomedical Sciences, Academia Sinica, was awarded the 2024 Young Scholar Creativity Award by the Foundation for the Advancement of Outstanding Scholarship (FAOS).
Founded by Nobel Laureate and former Academia Sinica President Prof. Yuan-Tseh Lee, FAOS is dedicated to promoting academic excellence and nurturing exceptional research talent in Taiwan. The Young Scholar Creativity Award, named to honor significant contributions to academic research, is conferred annually to rising stars in Taiwan’s academic community, supporting young scholars in pursuing high-risk, high-reward research.
Dr. Yang Cheng, an internationally recognized immunologist, has made groundbreaking contributions to our understanding of viral immunology, particularly in relation to the hepatitis B virus (HBV) and liver disease. His work over the past several years has reshaped the field through seminal discoveries.
In a series of pivotal studies, Dr. Yang Cheng uncovered the multifactorial roles of human T cells in responding to HBV at different stages of chronic infection and liver cancer. His findings redefined the conventional concept of T cell exhaustion and provided new insights into why immunotherapy targeting this pathway (e.g., anti-PD-1 blockade) has been less effective in chronic HBV infection, shifting the focus toward a yet-to-be-defined type of T cell immunity.
"It was a significant leap, as the prevailing belief focused on how to restore exhausted T cells in chronic HBV infection," he remarked.
With the resources from this award, Dr. Yang Cheng plans to apply his expertise to study how tissue-resident memory T cells respond to SARS-CoV-2 breakthrough infections across different respiratory tissues in vaccinated individuals.
Receiving this award highlights Dr. Yang Cheng’s dedication to advancing scientific knowledge and inspiring future generations of scholars. The Foundation lauds his commitment to excellence and looks forward to witnessing more groundbreaking achievements.
This prestigious honor not only celebrates individual accomplishment but also reflects FAOS’s commitment to fostering outstanding scholarship in Taiwan.
Learn more about Dr. Yang Cheng.
Learn more about the Cheng Laboratory