생화학분자생물학회

Daniel Fox

Monash University and the University of Melbourne

daniel.fox@monash.edu

I was incredibly privileged to have been awarded a Young Scientist Program Fellowship and ASBMB Fellowship to attend the 31st FAOBMB International Conference and associated Young Scientist Program (YSP). The YSP was held prior to the conference at Prestige Biopharma Innovative Discovery Center (IDC), a new state-of-the-art Biotech hub for new drug discovery and development located in Busan, South Korea. The YSP was attended by roughly 60 PhD students and ECRs from 16 countries including South Korea, the Philippines, Vietnam, Japan, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Iran, Bangladesh, China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Pakistan, India, New Zealand, and Australia. We were able to present both an oral presentation and poster presentation at the YSP, which I found personally beneficial given we could present our work in more detail during our talks and then have more informal discussions at our posters afterwards, which I think helped with engagement and interest in our work. These informal sessions were also such an invaluable opportunity as it allowed us to expand our networks more, especially with those from other countries or in other disciplines. A key highlight from the YSP in particular were guest lectures from Professor Marcia Haigis (Harvard University) and Professor Kazutoshi Mori (Kyoto University), both of whom where plenary speakers in the main conference and who are preeminent experts in the fields of metabolic reprogramming in cancer and the unfolded protein response, respectively. It was also particularly insightful as students and ECRs to hear more about the progression of their careers as well. In addition, we were also given a behind-the-scenes tour of the IDC, went on a tour of the beautiful Songdo beach region in Busan (via Gondola) and were treated to some delicious Korean lunches and a Shabu-shabu dinner on the last night (with Soju), which were great opportunities to get to know the other attendees, share our science and make lasting international friendships. The YSP was definitely a highlight of my career thus far, and I would like to express my sincere thanks and gratitude to both the ASBMB and FAOBMB YSP for award of the prestigious Fellowships that made it possible for me to attend this amazing event. I would like to also particularly thank Associate Professor Sung-Min Ahn and Assistant Professor Kyung-Sun Heo and the rest of the YSP committee for organising such an enriching and stimulating program.