POSTECH researchers have found another reason to cut down on a high-fat and cholesterol diet. Their findings show that cholesterol is crucial for Wnt signaling pathway often linked to human birth defects, cancer, and other diseases. Research groups of Prof. Jin-Kwan Han in the Department of Life Sciences at POSTECH and Prof. Wonhwa Cho from the University of Illinois at Chicago performed this study. Their research was published in the July edition of Nature Communications. Wnt signaling processes biological functions through ‘canonical’ and ‘non-canonical’ pathways..

Professor Yoon-Seok Chang (School of Environmental Science and Engineering), a worldwide authority on dioxin, has been selected as a first prize winner of the academic research award by the Korean Society of Environmental Engineers. An awards ceremony was held at the Kimdaejung Convention Center on August 21st. Over the past 30 years, Professor Chang has published nearly 200 SCI papers and studies which include analyses of toxic substances such as dioxins and other endocrine on human health. His study of the environmental risks of bio-nanomaterials has recently received academic attention.