Hwang Woo-suk

In this Korean name, the family name is Hwang.
Hwang Woo-suk
Born (1953-01-29) January 29, 1953 (age 71)
Buyeo County, South Chungcheong Province, South Korea
Korean name
Hangul
황우석
Hanja
黃禹錫
Revised RomanizationHwang Useok
McCune–ReischauerHwang Usŏk

Hwang Woo-suk (Korean: 황우석, born January 29, 1953)[1] is a South Korean veterinarian and researcher. He was a professor of theriogenology and biotechnology at Seoul National University until he was dismissed on March 20, 2006. He was considered a pioneering expert in stem cell research and even called the "Pride of Korea".[2][3] However, he became infamous around November 2005 for fabricating a series of stem cell experiments that were published in high-profile journals, the case known as the Hwang affair.

Hwang was best known for two articles published in the journal Science in 2004 and 2005, where he reported he had succeeded in creating human embryonic stem cells by cloning. However, soon after the first paper was released, an article in the journal Nature accused Hwang of having committed ethical violations by using eggs from his graduate students and from the black market.[4] Although he denied the charges at first, Hwang admitted the allegations were true in November 2005.[5] Shortly after this, data from his human cloning experiments was revealed to have been falsified.

On May 12, 2006, Hwang was charged with embezzlement and bioethics law violations after it emerged much of his stem cell research had been faked.[6] The Korea Times reported on June 10, 2007, that Seoul National University fired him, and the South Korean government canceled his financial support and barred him from engaging in stem cell research.[7] Hwang was sentenced to a two years suspended prison sentence at the Seoul Central District Court on 26 October 2009, after being found guilty of embezzlement and bioethical violations but cleared of fraud.[8][9] On the same day, CNN reported that the scientist in 2006 had admitted faking his findings after questions of impropriety had emerged.[10] He had his conviction upheld but his suspended sentence reduced by 6 months on 15 December 2010 by an appeals court in South Korea.[11] In 2014, the South Korean Supreme Court upheld its 2010 ruling.[12]

Since the controversy, Hwang has maintained a relatively low profile, but continues to work in scientific fields. As of September 2020, he worked at the Sooam Bioengineering Research Institute in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, leading research efforts into creating cloned pig embryos and embryonic stem cell lines.[13] In February 2011, Hwang visited Libya as part of a US$133 million project in the North African country to build a stem cell research center and transfer relevant technology. The project was canceled due to the 2011 Libyan civil war.[14] In November 2015, a Chinese biotech company Boyalife Group announced that it would partner with Hwang's laboratory, Sooam Biotech, to open the world's largest animal cloning factory in Tianjin. The factory would aim to produce up to one million cattle embryos per year to meet the increasing demand for quality beef in China.[15]

  1. ^ Sources disagree on the birthdate due to confusion between different calendar systems. Hwang was born on January 29, 1953, in the Gregorian calendar. However, older Koreans often list their birthdate in the lunisolar Korean calendar, which in this case is December 15, 1952. This date is sometimes repeated in English-language media without specifying that it is in the Korean calendar, causing further confusion when the Gregorian year and Korean calendar month and day are used together to produce an incorrect birthdate of December 15, 1953. Sources specifying a December 15, 1952 birthdate include the Los Angeles Times and Channel News Asia. The Encyclopædia Britannica (via New York Times) and "The Korean Academy of Sciences and Technology". Archived from the original on 2007-05-19. Retrieved 2006-01-04.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link). The Korea Times states the birthdate is January 29, 1953.
  2. ^ Scanlon, Charles (13 January 2006). "Korea's national shock at scandal". BBC. Archived from the original on 2009-02-06.
  3. ^ "Researcher Faked Evidence of Human Cloning, Koreans Report". The New York Times. January 10, 2006. Archived from the original on 2014-05-03.
  4. ^ Cyranoski, David (6 May 2004). "Korea's stem-cell stars dogged by suspicions of ethical breach". Nature. 429 (6987): 3. Bibcode:2004Natur.429....3C. doi:10.1038/429003a. PMID 15129239.
  5. ^ Cyranoski, David and Erika Check (1 December 2005). "Clone star admits lies over eggs". Nature. 438 (7068): 536–7. Bibcode:2005Natur.438..536C. doi:10.1038/438536a. PMID 16319847.
  6. ^ "Disgraced Korean Cloning Scientist Indicted". New York Times. Associated Press. May 12, 2006. Archived from the original on 2013-06-29.
  7. ^ Cho Jin-seo (June 10, 2007). "Hwang Woo-suk to Resume Cell Cloning Abroad". The Korea Times. Archived from the original on 2009-02-10.
  8. ^ Cyranoski, David (26 October 2009). "Woo Suk Hwang convicted, but not of fraud". Nature News. 461 (1181): 1181. doi:10.1038/4611181a. PMID 19865133.
  9. ^ Normile, Denis (30 October 2009) Hwang Convicted But Dodges Jail; Stem Cell Research Has Moved On Science Vol. 326. no. 5953, pp. 650 – 651 doi:10.1126/science.326_650a
  10. ^ "Disgraced cloning researcher convicted in South Korea". CNN. October 26, 2009. Archived from the original on 2014-01-07.
  11. ^ Vogel, Gretchen (December 16, 2010). "South Korean Court Reduces Hwang's Sentence". Science. Archived from the original on 2014-01-07.
  12. ^ "The wages of scientific fraud". The Hindu. 2014-03-14. Archived from the original on 2014-03-14. Retrieved March 14, 2014.
  13. ^ Kim Tong-hyung (May 15, 2009). "Hwang Claims to Have Cloned Pig Stem Cells". The Korea Times. Archived from the original on 2011-04-25.
  14. ^ "Disgraced Cloning Scientist Had High Hopes for Libya Contract". The Chosun Ilbo. February 28, 2011. Archived from the original on 2011-03-03.
  15. ^ Chang May Choon (30 November 2015). "Disgraced clone expert set for big comeback". The Straits Times. Retrieved 6 March 2016.