Journal to Publish Korean Bio Papers

The work of two female Korean researchers will be published on the cover page and feature section of a leading bioscience journal, according to a magazine announcement yesterday.

Cell Metabolism, an international journal in the field of biological sciences, announced on April 5 that it will publish the papers of Dr. Yoo Young-jae (41) of the University of Texas Medical Center and Dr. Han Sung-a (37) of the Columbia University Medical Center in its April issue.

Yoo has discovered the hunger mechanism in the digestive system of the nematode. It has commonly been known that when food is ingested, neurochemical acetylcholine is produced, thus creating the contraction and relaxation movements of the digestive system.

Yoo discovered that acetylcholine is produced even when the digestive organs are empty, thus making it possible to give the feeling of hunger by stimulating organs.

She said, “These results have provided a neurophysiological explanation as to why we crave food when we feel hungry,” and added, “By controlling the amount of acetylcholine and thus controlling the feeling of hunger, we can look for ways to treat obesity.”

Han discovered the reasons why diabetes patients experience aggravation of arteriosclerosis.

As one of the complications of diabetes, arteriosclerosis is one of the leading causes of death for diabetes patients.

Dr. Han discovered that the macrophages in diabetic mice that are injected with more insulin die off earlier.

She said, “The dead macrophage that is accumulated in the blood vessels exacerbate arteriosclerosis,” and added, “Injecting an excessive amount of insulin in the body could lead to deadly complications.”

The two researchers matriculated into the undergraduate level in the 80’s and started research late in their careers, and it was due to their husbands, who were biologists, that they were able to pursue their research.

Dr. Yoo entered college in 1984 and completed the undergraduate and graduate level in the department of Biology at Yonsei University. She halted her career for 10 years after graduation, but with the encouragement of her husband Kim Jung-ho, a professor of biology at Inha University, she left for the U.S. where she received a doctorate degree at the University of Texas’ School of Medicine. Her husband is a co-author of her paper.

Having entered Kyunghee University in 1987, Dr. Han’s initial area of expertise was not in diabetes or arteriosclerosis, but in agriculture. After moving to the U.S. in 1994, she changed her field of study to genetic engineering, and is currently working as a research assistant professor at Columbia University.

Her husband Dr. Jin Ik-sung is also a neurologist at Columbia University, specializing in learning and memory.

Dr. Yoo has a 15-year-old daughter in the 8th grade, while Dr. Han has a 1-year-old son.

kunta@donga.com