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Moi Meng Ling

Moi Meng Ling
Born
NationalityMalaysian
Alma materUniversiti Putra Malaysia
University of Tsukuba
Graduate School of Comprehensive Human Sciences University of TsukubaDoctor of Medicine
Known forDengue and mosquito-borne viral diseases research
AwardsYoung Scientists' Prize, Commendation for Science and Technology by the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology

Sugiura Award, Japanese Society of Virology

Japan Medical Research and Development Grand Prize, Agency for Medical Research and Development (AMED) President Prize(Ceremony at Prime Minister's Official Residence (Japan)[1]

Others
Scientific career
FieldsVirology
Tropical medicine
Infectious diseases
InstitutionsWHO
National Institute of Infectious Diseases (Japan)
Institute of Tropical Medicine, Nagasaki University
Doctoral advisorIchiro Kurane [ja]
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese梅敏苓
Simplified Chinese梅敏苓
Hanyu PinyinMéi Mǐnlíng
Pha̍k-fa-sṳMòi Mên-lìn
JyutpingMui4 Man5 Ling4
Hokkien POJMûi Bín-lêng
Tâi-lôMuî Bín-lîng

Sherry Moi Meng Ling is a Malaysian virologist, currently serving as a professor at the Graduate School of Medicine, the University of Tokyo.[2] Her research focuses on innate immune system to mosquito-borne virus infection and field epidemiology.

She is an advisor at the Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development advisory board from 2022.

She has previously worked as a researcher at the National Institute of Infectious Diseases (Japan). She received her B.Sc. (Hon) at University Putra Malaysia, M.Sc. (Medical Sciences) and Ph.D. (Medical Sciences) at Graduate School of Comprehensive Human Sciences, University of Tsukuba.

She speaks Malay, English, Chinese (Mandarin and Cantonese), and Japanese.

Career

Moi was born in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. After graduating from SMK Convent Bukit Nanas, she received her B.Sc. degree at Universiti Putra Malaysia in 2002 with first class honors. Upon receiving a full scholarship offered by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT), Japan, she furthered her graduate studies in Japan.

Having been affected by dengue fever herself, she was inspired to pursue her Ph.D. degree on the immune response to Dengue virus. After receiving her Ph.D. degree from University of Tsukuba in 2010, she continued to pursue her research on dengue as a researcher at the National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Japan, from 2010 to 2014. She was part of the research team which was involved in laboratory diagnosis and epidemiological characterization of the first dengue outbreak in Japan for the past 70 years.[3]

In 2015, she won the MEXT Young Scientist Award for her research on the ADE mechanisms during dengue virus infection, and specifically, for pioneering in vitro assays to study immune response during viral infection.[4] She was the only Malaysian who has received the MEXT Young Scientist Award in recent years.

In 2018, she was awarded the Sugiura Award by the Japanese Society of Virology and, Female Researcher Award by the Japanese Society of Tropical Medicine, for her pioneering research on developing in vitro and animal models for dengue virus infection and field epidemiology.[5][6]

Between 2016 and 2018, she organized and conducted programs with the World Health Organization (WHO) and led field epidemiological studies with collaborators in Vietnam, which was key in understanding the extent of Zika epidemic in the region. The findings led to important feedback to WHO and local health authorities for the developing control measures.[7][8][9][10] In recognition of her work, she was awarded the Japan Medical Research and Development Grand Prize (AMED President Prize), in the presence of Prime Minister of Japan Yoshihide Suga, for her epidemiological work and research on immunity against mosquito-borne viral diseases in 2020.[11][12] She was the first foreigner in Japan to receive the award.[13][14][15]

Moi was an associate professor at the Institute for Tropical Medicine, Nagasaki University between 2015 and 2020. She became a full professor in 2020, and remains at the same institute, and continues to work on molecular and epidemiological aspects of emerging and re-emerging viral diseases and the development of vaccines and therapeutics.[16][17]

She has served as the deputy director, WHO Collaboration Center for Research & Reference of Tropical Viral Diseases.[18] As a technical expert in the WHO Reference Laboratories Providing Confirmatory Testing for COVID-19 network, she also contributes to developing laboratory guidelines for COVID-19 diagnosis.[19][20] She is currently a professor at School of International Health, the University of Tokyo.

List of awards and honors

  • Dean's Award for Excellent Research, Graduate School of Comprehensive Human Sciences, University of Tsukuba (2010)
  • Best Poster Award, Malaysia-Japan Academic Conference (2013)
  • Best Talk Award, Science Cafe, National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Japan (2014)
  • Ishibashi Lecture, International Medical Society of Japan (2014)
  • International Travel Award, Kato Memorial Bioscience Foundation (2014)
  • Grants for Female Researchers, MSD Life Science Foundation (2015)
  • Young Scientists' Prize, Commendation for Science and Technology by the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (a first for Nagasaki University)(2016)
  • Best Research Award, Grants for Female Researchers, MSD Life Science Foundation (a first for Nagasaki University, first foreigner to receive the award)(2016)
  • Best Paper Award, Doumonkai, Institute of Tropical Medicine, Nagasaki University (2018)
  • Female Researcher Award, Nagasaki University (2018)
  • Sugiura Award, Japanese Society of Virology (a first for Nagasaki University, first foreigner to receive the award)(2018)
  • Female Researcher Award, Japanese Society of Tropical Medicine (2019)
  • Japan Medical Research and Development Grand Prize, Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development(AMED) President Prize (a first for Nagasaki University, first foreigner to receive the award)(2020)

References

  1. ^ "Japan Medical Research and Development Award Ceremony". Prime Minister of Japan and His Cabinet Official Homepage. 2020-12-24. Retrieved 2020-12-24.
  2. ^ The University of Tokyo. "Graduate School of Medicine and Faculty of Medicine, The University of Tokyo". The University of Tokyo. Retrieved 2021-10-15.
  3. ^ Kutsuna, Satoshi; Kato, Yasuyuki; Moi, Meng Ling; Kotaki, Akira; Ota, Masayuki; Shinohara, Koh; Kobayashi, Tetsuro; Yamamoto, Kei; Fujiya, Yoshihiro; Mawatari, Momoko; Sato, Tastuya (2015). "Autochthonous Dengue Fever, Tokyo, Japan, 2014 - Volume 21, Number 3—March 2015 - Emerging Infectious Diseases journal - CDC". Emerging Infectious Diseases. 21 (3): 517–520. doi:10.3201/eid2103.141662. PMC 4344289. PMID 25695200.
  4. ^ 日経バイオテクONLINE. "長崎大マレーシア人准教授がデング熱研究で若手科学者賞を受賞". 日経バイオテクONLINE (in Japanese). Retrieved 2021-01-26.
  5. ^ "熱帯医学研究所のモイ・メンリン准教授が日本ウイルス学会杉浦奨励賞を受賞". 長崎大学 (in Japanese). Retrieved 2021-01-26.
  6. ^ "日本熱帯医学会研究奨励賞受賞者記録|学会賞・相川正道賞・研究奨励賞・女性賞|日本熱帯医学会". www.tm.nagasaki-u.ac.jp. Retrieved 2021-01-26.
  7. ^ "東南アで流行の感染症 ジカ熱「小頭症と関連確認」 長崎大などが研究成果発表". 西日本新聞ニュース (in Japanese). Retrieved 2021-01-26.
  8. ^ "ベトナムで流行するジカウイルス流行実態調査の成果を活用し、ジカ熱流行地域における対策の提言へ | 国立研究開発法人日本医療研究開発機構". www.amed.go.jp. Retrieved 2021-01-26.
  9. ^ "ベトナムの小頭症、ジカ熱が原因 東南アジアで初の確認:朝日新聞デジタル". 朝日新聞デジタル (in Japanese). Retrieved 2021-01-26.
  10. ^ "ベトナムでのジカ熱流行と小頭症の関連性を確認、長崎大学など [日系] - VIETJOベトナムニュース". www.viet-jo.com. Retrieved 2021-01-26.
  11. ^ "【長崎】長崎大学の就職内定率は例年水準に回復(長崎文化放送)". Yahoo!ニュース (in Japanese). Retrieved 2021-01-26.
  12. ^ "第4回日本医療研究開発大賞 日本医療研究開発機構(AMED)理事長賞について | 国立研究開発法人日本医療研究開発機構". www.amed.go.jp. Retrieved 2021-01-26.
  13. ^ "Japan awards Malaysian scientist | The Star". www.thestar.com.my. Retrieved 2021-01-26.
  14. ^ BERNAMA (2020-12-25). "Important to develop safe dengue vaccine, says Malaysian researcher based in Japan". BERNAMA. Retrieved 2021-01-26.
  15. ^ ""测试寨卡蚊症疫苗"梅敏苓:盼尽快供应有需求国家". www.sinchew.com.my. Retrieved 2021-01-26.
  16. ^ "Professor Moi Meng Ling". Nagasaki University School of Tropical Medicine and Global Health / 熱帯医学・グローバルヘルス研究科. 2019-10-24. Retrieved 2021-01-26.
  17. ^ "新型コロナウイルス感染予防のためのナノ粒子型蛋白ワクチンの開発:国立研究開発法人日本医療研究開発機構(AMED)と医療研究開発革新基盤創成事業(CiCLE)にかかる委託研究開発契約を締結:時事ドットコム". 時事ドットコム (in Japanese). Retrieved 2021-01-26.
  18. ^ "WHOCC - WHO Collaborating Centres". apps.who.int. Retrieved 2021-01-26.
  19. ^ "WHO reference laboratories providing confirmatory testing for COVID-19". www.who.int. Retrieved 2021-01-26.
  20. ^ "Genomic sequencing of SARS-CoV-2: a guide to implementation for maximum impact on public health". www.who.int. Retrieved 2021-01-26.