Kansas City, Mo. (June 22, 2006) – Ho Yi Mak, Ph.D. — currently a postdoctoral fellow in the lab of Gary Ruvkun, Ph.D. at Harvard Medical School — has accepted an appointment at the Stowers Institute for Medical Research as an Assistant Investigator. He will begin his research at the Institute later this summer.

     This appointment brings the Stowers Institute to a total of 20 independent research programs in cellular and molecular biology complemented by three technology centers devoted to bioinformatics, imaging, and proteomics.

     Dr. Mak’s research will focus on genetic factors that regulate how cells metabolize and store fat, a subject with implications for obesity-related disorders such as type-2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and other chronic illnesses. His previous research, using the nematode C. elegans, demonstrated that an ancient signaling axis linking food sensation and lipid metabolism may be conserved from nematodes to humans.

     “The Stowers Institute is pleased to appoint Ho Yi Mak as an Assistant Investigator,” said William B. Neaves, President and CEO of the Stowers Institute. “Despite the prevalence of obesity, there is still a great deal we don’t understand about its genetic origins. We believe Dr. Mak’s work will provide new perspectives on a serious threat to human health.”

     “Dr. Mak’s efforts to learn about the mechanisms of communication between neurons and fat storage cells will provide valuable information for understanding obesity-related disorders,” said Robb Krumlauf, Ph.D., Scientific Director. “This is a new area of research for the Institute, and we are eager to see where it may lead.”

     Dr. Mak earned a B.A. in Biochemistry from the University of Cambridge and a Ph.D. in Molecular Pathology from the Imperial Cancer Research Fund and the University College London. He was awarded a postdoctoral fellowship from the Massachusetts General Hospital Fund for Medical Discovery and a postdoctoral fellowship from the Human Frontier Science Program.

About the Stowers Institute
     Housed in a 600,000 square-foot state-of-the-art facility on a 10-acre campus in the heart of Kansas City, Missouri, the Stowers Institute for Medical Research conducts basic research on fundamental processes of cellular life. Through its commitment to collaborative research and the use of cutting-edge technology, the Institute seeks more effective means of preventing and curing disease. The Institute was founded by Jim and Virginia Stowers, two cancer survivors who have created combined endowments of $2 billion in support of basic research of the highest quality.