Wen-Hsiung Li

Wen-Hsiung Li
Born Wen Hsiung Li
(1942-09-22) September 22, 1942
Pingtung, Taiwan
Citizenship Taiwanese-American
Nationality Taiwanese
Fields Mathematics
Genetics
Evolutionary Biology
Genomics
Institutions University of Chicago
Academia Sinica
University of Texas
University of Wisconsin-Madison
Alma mater Brown University, Providence, RI, USA
National Central University, Taiwan
Chung-Yuang College of Science and Engineering, Taiwan
Thesis Mathematical Studies On Mutational Damages In Finite Populations (1972)
Doctoral advisor Wendell Fleming
Other academic advisors Masatoshi Nei
Known for Male-Driven Evolution[1][2][3]
Molecular clock[4]
Genomics[5]
Notable awards Balzan Prize for Genetics and Evolution (2003)[6]
Mendel Medal (2009)[7]
Website
Li Laboratory at University of Chicago
Wen Hsiung Li Profile at Academia Sinica

Wen-Hsiung Li (Traditional Chinese:李文雄, 1942-) is a Taiwanese American scientist working in the fields of molecular evolution, population genetics, and genomics. He is currently the James Watson Professor of Ecology and Evolution at the University of Chicago and a Principal Investigator at the Institute of Information Science and Genomics Research Center, Academia Sinica, Taiwan.

Biography

Li was born in 1942 in Taiwan. In 1968 he received a M.S. in geophysics from National Central University. In 1972 he received his Ph.D in applied mathematics at Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island. From 1972 to 1973 he was a post-doctoral researcher at the University of Wisconsin Madison (genetics), working with James F. Crow. In 1973 he moved to the University of Texas, where he was appointed as a professor in 1984. Since 1998 he has been a professor at The University of Chicago.

Scientific contributions

Professor Li is best known for his studies on the molecular clock (i.e. rates and patterns of DNA sequence evolution) and on the patterns and consequences of gene duplication.

In 2003, he received the international Balzan Prize for his contribution to genetics and evolutionary biology, and was elected to the National Academy of Sciences, who cited his role in "establishing theoretical foundations for molecular phylogenetics and evolutionary genomics". He is the author of the first texts in the field of molecular evolution, Molecular Evolution and Fundamentals of Molecular Evolution (co-authored with Dan Graur), and an author on more than 200 peer-reviewed publications.

Honors

Selected publications

Selected books

References

  1. Shimmin, L. C.; Chang, B. H. J.; Li, W. H. (1993). "Male-driven evolution of DNA sequences". Nature. 362 (6422): 745–7. doi:10.1038/362745a0. PMID 8469284.
  2. Makova, K. D.; Li, W. H. (2002). "Strong male-driven evolution of DNA sequences in humans and apes". Nature. 416 (6881): 624–6. doi:10.1038/416624a. PMID 11948348.
  3. "Males' DNA propels evolution, study says". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved June 1, 2014.
  4. Lewin, R. (1985). "Molecular clocks scrutinized". Science. 228 (4699): 571. doi:10.1126/science.3983640.
  5. Li, W. H.; Gu, Z.; Wang, H.; Nekrutenko, A. (2001). "Evolutionary analyses of the human genome". Nature. 409 (6822): 847–9. doi:10.1038/35057039. PMID 11237007.
  6. "Balzan Prize for Genetics and Evolution". International Balzan Prize Foundation website. International Balzan Prize Foundation. Retrieved February 8, 2014.
  7. "Mendel Medal". The Genetics Society website. The Genetics Society. Retrieved February 8, 2014.
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