Wilson Wong receives Young Investigator Award
By Liz Sheeley
Assistant Professor Wilson Wong (BME) is the 2018 recipient of the ACS Synthetic Biology Young Investigator Award. The award recognizes the contributions of scientists who have made a major impact on the field of synthetic biology, early on in their careers.
Assistant Professor Mary Dunlop (BME) was the recipient of the award in 2017; her research focuses on systems and synthetic biology with a focus on feedback in gene regulatory networks.
“Past winners, such as our own Dr. Dunlop, are all highly accomplished synthetic biologists that I admire and respect,” says Wong. “I am honored to receive this award.”
Wong joined the faculty at BU in 2012 after completing his postdoctoral position at the University of California, San Francisco and earning his PhD in chemical engineering from the University of California, Los Angeles. Wong’s research is in the development of mammalian synthetic biology for cancer immunotherapy and other medical applications. His most recent paper introduced a new, potentially safer and more effective form of CAR-T therapy, which re-engineers the body’s immune system to fight cancer. In recognition of his innovative research, Wong received the BU College of Engineering Early Career Excellence Award in 2018, the National Institutes of Health Director’s New Innovator Award 2013 and National Science Foundation Faculty Early Career Development Program (CAREER) Award in 2016.