​▲​ At the Doosan Yonkang Academic Award ceremony, Doosan Yonkang Foundation Chairman Park Yong-hyun (far right) and the awardees are taking a commemorative photo. From the left in the photo: Youth Doctors Newspaper Publisher Lee Wang-jun, awardees Genome Insight Research Institute Kim Ryul, and Park Seong-yeol.

On the 19th, Doosan Yonkang Foundation (Chairman Yong-Hyun Park) held the ‘2022 Doosan Yonkang Academic Award Medical Paper Category’ ceremony at Lotte Hotel in Sogong-dong, Seoul. The winners were Kim Ryul and Park Seong-yeol, medical science researchers at Genome Insight Research Institute specializing in whole-genome genomes, and were awarded a total of 30 million won (15 million won each) in prize money and a plaque.

The paper co-authored by Kim Ryul and Park Seong-yeol was titled ‘Clonal dynamics in early human embryogenesis inferred from somatic mutation’, which was published in the international academic journal ‘Nature’ in 2021.

The paper contained the results of a study that extracted some cells from donated corpses and performed whole-genome analysis* to track human development. It received high marks for demonstrating the broad potential and excellence of medical research utilizing science rather than clinical practice.

*The whole genome refers to the entire DNA base that stores the genetic information of a species, and the technique of analyzing this to comprehensively study genetic factors for diseases and drug reactions is called ‘whole genome analysis.’

In order to support the growth of young medical scientists and contribute to the development of Korean medicine, the Doosan Yonkang Foundation has established and awarded the ‘Doosan Yonkang Academic Award Medical Paper Category’ since 2006. This year marks the 17th anniversary.