Dr. Kazuaki Ishihara, a professor at the Nagoya University Graduate School of Engineering, has been awarded the 21st IBM Japan Science Prize in the field of chemistry.
The IBM Japan Science Prize was established by IBM Japan in 1987 to promote academic research in science, and to help foster young researchers. Prizes are awarded to researchers under the age of 45 working at Japanese universities and public research institutes for outstanding fundamental research in the fields of physics, chemistry, computer science (including bioinformatics) and electronics (including bioelectronics). This year, five researchers were selected from among 112 applicants.
Professor Ishihara was chosen for his work in establishing a new direction in organic synthetic chemistry research, and significantly contributing to fundamental research by developing a straightforward catalyst design strategy modeled on the functional mechanisms of enzymes and utilizing the position-specific placement of acids and bases and the uptake function of reactive substrates.
The award ceremony will be held on Tuesday, November 20th at the Chiyoda Broadcasting Hall in Tokyo. The recipients will each give presentations on their research.
Ishihara Lab homepage