Hee-sup Shin (born 1950) is a South Korean

neuroscientist A neuroscientist (or neurobiologist) is a scientist specializing in neuroscience that deals with the anatomy and function of neurons, Biological neural network, neural circuits, and glia, and their Behavior, behavioral, biological, and psycholo ...

whose work focuses on brain research of genetically engineered mice via

gene knockout Gene knockouts (also known as gene deletion or gene inactivation) are a widely used genetic engineering technique that involves the gene targeting, targeted removal or inactivation of a specific gene within an organism's genome. This can be done t ...

in order to better understand the human brain. His research resulted in him being named a National Scientist by the Korean Ministry of Science and Technology. He is a former co-director of the Center for Cognition and Sociality leading the Social Neuroscience Group in the

Institute for Basic Science The Institute for Basic Science (IBS; ) is a Korean government-funded research institute that conducts basic science research and relevant pure basic research. Comprising approximately 30 research centers with more than 60 research groups ac ...

(IBS) located at

Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology KAIST (originally the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology) is a national university, national research university located in Daedeok Innopolis, Daejeon, South Korea. KAIST was established by the Korean government in 1971 as the ...

(KAIST).

Education

Shin received his M.D. in immunology from the College of Medicine of

Seoul National University Seoul National University (SNU; ) is a public university, public research university in Seoul, South Korea. It is one of the SKY (universities), SKY universities and a part of the Flagship Korean National Universities. The university's main c ...

in 1974. In 1983, he obtained a Ph.D. in

genetics Genetics is the study of genes, genetic variation, and heredity in organisms.Hartl D, Jones E (2005) It is an important branch in biology because heredity is vital to organisms' evolution. Gregor Mendel, a Moravian Augustinians, Augustinian ...

and

cell biology Cell biology (also cellular biology or cytology) is a branch of biology that studies the structure, function, and behavior of cells. All living organisms are made of cells. A cell is the basic unit of life that is responsible for the living an ...

from

Cornell University Cornell University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university based in Ithaca, New York, United States. The university was co-founded by American philanthropist Ezra Cornell and historian and educator Andrew Dickson W ...

. During his Ph.D. studies, he worked for several years as a postdoc in immunology at the

Sloan-Kettering Institute for Cancer Research Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK or MSKCC) is a cancer treatment and research institution in Manhattan in New York City. MSKCC is one of 72 National Cancer Institute– designated Comprehensive Cancer Centers. Its main campus is ...

Career

Upon graduating from Cornell, Shin worked as a research associate in genetics at the Sloan-Kettering Institute for Cancer Research until 1985. He then moved to Massachusetts where he held a dual position as an associate professor in the Department of Biology at

MIT The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1861, MIT has played a significant role in the development of many areas of modern technology and sc ...

and as an associate member of the

Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research Whitehead may refer to: * Whitehead (comedo), a blocked sweat/sebaceous duct of the skin * Whitehead (bird), a small species of passerine bird, endemic to New Zealand * Whitehead building, heritage listed residence of the principal of the Univer ...

. In 1991, he returned to Korea to work as an associate professor and later professor in the Department of Life Science in

POSTECH Pohang University of Science and Technology (POSTECH, ) is a private university, private research university in Pohang, South Korea. History Pohang University of Science and Technology was established on December 3, 1986, by POSCO, a South Ko ...

where he stayed for a decade. During this time, he also was director of the Biotechnology Research Center in POSTECH and director of the National CRI Center for Calcium and Learning. He was the first researcher within Korea to apply genetics to brain science research and received overseas attention in 1997 upon his discovery of the genes PLC-β1 and PLC-β4, which are related to

epilepsy Epilepsy is a group of Non-communicable disease, non-communicable Neurological disorder, neurological disorders characterized by a tendency for recurrent, unprovoked Seizure, seizures. A seizure is a sudden burst of abnormal electrical activit ...

and

paralysis Paralysis (: paralyses; also known as plegia) is a loss of Motor skill, motor function in one or more Skeletal muscle, muscles. Paralysis can also be accompanied by a loss of feeling (sensory loss) in the affected area if there is sensory d ...

. Leaving POSTECH in 2001, he went to the

Korea Institute of Science and Technology The Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST; ) is a multi-disciplinary research institute located in Seoul, South Korea. Founded in 1966, it was the first multi-disciplinary scientific research institute in Korea and has contributed si ...

(KIST) to be a principal research scientist, a position he held for a decade. In 2005, he became the director of KIST's Center for Neural Science and then director-general of their Brain Science Institute. In 2012, he moved to Daejeon to become founding director of the IBS Center for Cognition and Sociality located at

KAIST KAIST (originally the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology) is a national university, national research university located in Daedeok Innopolis, Daejeon, South Korea. KAIST was established by the Korean government in 1971 as the ...

. The center expanded when Changjoon Justin Lee became a co-director of the center in 2018. Lee leads the Cognitive Glioscience Group while Shin led the Social Neuroscience Group until his retirement in 2020. After his retirement as co-director, he continued research at the center as Research Fellow Emeritus.

Research

Hee-Sup Shin neuroscientist giving speech at Keystone in Korea

Shin's work is aimed at understanding how changes in calcium dynamics in

nerve cells A neuron (American English), neurone (British English), or nerve cell, is an excitable cell that fires electric signals called action potentials across a neural network in the nervous system. They are located in the nervous system and help to ...

regulate brain functions. He has been defining the

physiological Physiology (; ) is the science, scientific study of function (biology), functions and mechanism (biology), mechanisms in a life, living system. As a branches of science, subdiscipline of biology, physiology focuses on how organisms, organ syst ...

roles that a group of genes play

in vivo Studies that are ''in vivo'' (Latin for "within the living"; often not italicized in English) are those in which the effects of various biological entities are tested on whole, living organisms or cells, usually animals, including humans, an ...

, whose functions are known to be critical for regulation of

intracellular This glossary of biology terms is a list of definitions of fundamental terms and concepts used in biology, the study of life and of living organisms. It is intended as introductory material for novices; for more specific and technical definitions ...

calcium dynamics. Shin first generates a

transgenic mouse A genetically modified mouse, genetically engineered mouse model (GEMM) or transgenic mouse is a mouse (''Mus musculus'') that has had its genome altered through the use of genetic engineering techniques. Genetically modified mice are commonly use ...

for a given gene, and then analyzes the mouse at the

molecular A molecule is a group of two or more atoms that are held together by attractive forces known as chemical bonds; depending on context, the term may or may not include ions that satisfy this criterion. In quantum physics, organic chemistry, ...

, cellular,

, and behavioral levels. Shin has been particularly interested in defining the functions of voltage gated

calcium Calcium is a chemical element; it has symbol Ca and atomic number 20. As an alkaline earth metal, calcium is a reactive metal that forms a dark oxide-nitride layer when exposed to air. Its physical and chemical properties are most similar to it ...

channels in normal as well as

pathological Pathology is the study of disease. The word ''pathology'' also refers to the study of disease in general, incorporating a wide range of biology research fields and medical practices. However, when used in the context of modern medical treatme ...

states of the brain. In particular, his work on the mutant mouse for a1G T-type calcium channels has provided conclusive evidence that T-type channels in the

thalamus The thalamus (: thalami; from Greek language, Greek Wikt:θάλαμος, θάλαμος, "chamber") is a large mass of gray matter on the lateral wall of the third ventricle forming the wikt:dorsal, dorsal part of the diencephalon (a division of ...

of the brain function to block sensory information derived from the body to be delivered to the

cerebral cortex The cerebral cortex, also known as the cerebral mantle, is the outer layer of neural tissue of the cerebrum of the brain in humans and other mammals. It is the largest site of Neuron, neural integration in the central nervous system, and plays ...

. The thalamus is the gateway through which all the somatic sensory information from the periphery must pass through to reach the

, where perception is achieved. Thus, the T-type channel mutant mouse lacking this block showed an enhanced response to

visceral In a multicellular organism, an organ is a collection of Tissue (biology), tissues joined in a structural unit to serve a common function. In the biological organization, hierarchy of life, an organ lies between Tissue (biology), tissue and an o ...

pain. Shin has also shown that the same mutant mouse was resistant to

absence epilepsy Absence seizures are one of several kinds of generalized seizures. Absence seizures are characterized by a brief loss and return of consciousness, generally not followed by a period of lethargy (i.e. without a notable postictal state). Absence s ...

, a disease characterized by a brief loss of consciousness accompanied by abnormal

EEG Electroencephalography (EEG) is a method to record an electrogram of the spontaneous electrical activity of the brain. The bio signals detected by EEG have been shown to represent the postsynaptic potentials of pyramidal neurons in the neoc ...

findings. Together, these results indicate that the thalamus is the brain center, controlling the state of consciousness by gating the sensory information from the outside world to reach the cortex, and that T-type calcium channels are the key element in this gating function.

Honors and awards

* 1983 Frank Lappin Horsfall Jr. Award, Cornell University Graduate School of Medical Science * 1994

Korean Academy of Science and Technology The Korean Academy of Science and Technology (KAST) is South Korea's highest academy of science and serves as an integrated think-tank for the country's science and technology. It contributes to national development by promoting science and tech ...

, Member * 1997 Kumho Science Award, Kumho Foundation * 1997 Hantan Life Science Award, Hantan Foundation * 1998 Award for Excellent Research Paper in Science & Technology, Ministry of Science and Technology * 2000 Hamchun Medical Science Award, Hamchun Foundation * 2003 Person of the Month,

(KIST) * 2004 Scientist-of-the-month Award, Ministry of Science and Technology * 2004 Dupont Prize, Dupont Foundation * 2004 Grand Prize, Korea Institute of Science and Technology * 2004 Ho-Am Prize, Hoam Foundation * 2004 Order of Civil Merit, President of South Korea * 2004 AHF Lectureship Award, Calgary University, Canada * 2005:

Top Scientist and Technologist Award of Korea Top Scientist and Technologist Award of Korea () is one of two annual awards given in South Korea by the with the other being a government award for contribution to science and technology promotion. The Top Scientist and Technologist Award of Ko ...

* 2005 President, International Behavioural and Neural Genetics Society * 2006 National Scientist of the Republic of Korea, Ministry of Education, Science and Technology * 2008 Distinguished Alumni Award, Cornell University * 2009 National Academy of Sciences of the United States, Foreign Associate * 2010

National Academy of Sciences The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) is a United States nonprofit, NGO, non-governmental organization. NAS is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and the ...

(NAS), South Korea, Member * 2013 Star Professor Award, University of Science & Technology * 2015 Hotchkiss Brain Institute Lectureship Award, University of Calgary * 2018 Fellow of

American Association for the Advancement of Science The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) is a United States–based international nonprofit with the stated mission of promoting cooperation among scientists, defending scientific freedom, encouraging scientific responsib ...

* 2020 Francine Shapiro Award, EMDR-Europe Society * 2021 Fellow, IUPS Academy of Physiologists,

International Union of Physiological Sciences The International Union of Physiological Sciences, abbreviated IUPS, is the global umbrella organization for physiology. IUPS aims to facilitate initiatives that strengthen the discipline of physiology. IUPS is a scientific union member of the ...

References

External links

Center for Cognition and Sociality - Social Neuroscience Group
{{DEFAULTSORT:Shin, Hee-Sup 1950 births Living people Cornell University alumni Seoul National University alumni Massachusetts Institute of Technology School of Science faculty Academic staff of Pohang University of Science and Technology South Korean neuroscientists Institute for Basic Science Foreign associates of the National Academy of Sciences Recipients of the Ho-Am Prize in Science National Scientist of the Republic of Korea People from Uiwang