4 February 2014 Abcam, a global leader in the supply of innovative protein research tools, announced CRM PhD student Yali Huang as the winner of its 15 discoveries contest. Yali is part of Prof Val Wilson’s Early Embryo Development lab. The video contest recognises the most innovative and exciting scientific breakthroughs of the last 18 months supported by Abcam products. In recognition of the winning entry, Prof Val Wilson’s lab received a $15k lab research grant and $1k worth of Abcam products. Yali’s video, titled ‘In Vivo Differentiation Potential of Epiblast Stem Cells Revealed by Chimeric Embryo Formation’, was selected from over 80 global submissions by an expert panel of scientists. Illustrating the importance of the host environment on Chimera formation, the research contributes to a greater understanding of how cultured stem cells relate to the early embryo. Yali Huang said: “We’re delighted to have won the contest and would like to thank Abcam for their support in making our research project a success. At a time when budgets are under pressure the grant will be extremely beneficial to our lab, to help us further our discoveries.” Prof Val Wilson added: “I'm delighted Abcam has awarded the prize to Yali, who is a really excellent PhD student with rare micromanipulation skills and who is always up for a challenge. Her video showcases our work that demonstrates that mouse epiblast stem cells, which are similar to human pluripotent stem cells, are able to form functional embryonic cell types, like a beating heart. Winning the prize is a testament to her communication skills and also those of Dr Filip Wymeersch, a postdoc who worked with her on making the video.” This article was published on 2024-02-26
