Academia Sinica Logo

The seventh lecture of Academia Sinica’s TAIWAN BRIDGES program took place yesterday (2), featuring Dr. Sir Gregory P. Winter, Fellow of Trinity College, University of Cambridge, and recipient of the 2018 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. Speaking on the theme “The Antibody Revolution”, Sir Gregory elaborated on how antibody drugs evolve from fundamental scientific research through engineered innovation toward clinical application, and provide an outlook on the future trajectory of the antibody field.

In his opening remarks, Academia Sinica President James C. Liao noted that the research concept of “using evolution as a tool” has become a key foundation of contemporary biomedical research. When antibodies are no longer viewed merely as natural products of the immune system, but as molecules that can be deliberately designed and evolved through artificial means, biomedical research moves beyond a discovery-driven approach and further advances into a new stage of engineering-oriented development.

Sir Gregory Winter shared the 2018 Nobel Prize in Chemistry with George P. Smith for the development of phage display technology, while Frances H. Arnold received the same honor for her work on the directed evolution of enzymes. The lecture moderator, Dr. Han-Chung Wu, Distinguished Research Fellow at the Institute of Cellular and Organismic Biology at Academia Sinica, noted that phage display enables scientists to rapidly screen vast libraries of antibody genes to identify antibody molecules with high specificity and affinity. This technology has significantly improved both the efficiency and controllability of antibody development, becoming one of the key technological foundations for the development of therapeutic antibodies.

Sir Gregory Winter reviewed the developmental history of antibody engineering, tracing how it has gradually become a cornerstone of modern medicine through advances in molecular engineering and clinical validation. In recent years, monoclonal antibodies have emerged as a key category among the world’s most important pharmaceuticals. However, challenges remain to be overcome: antibodies are inherently large molecules, which limits their ability to penetrate tissues, and they are also typically administered by injection and involve relatively high manufacturing costs. To overcome these limitations, Sir Gregory has in recent years devoted his efforts to the development of bicyclic peptides. These small molecules can mimic the high specificity of antibodies while offering improved tissue penetration and greater chemical stability.

The TAIWAN BRIDGES Program is a joint initiative led by Academia Sinica in collaboration with 11 domestic academic and research institutions and the International Peace Foundation. It is dedicated to fostering in-depth intellectual exchanges between Taiwan and top global scholars. Starting from November 2025, Academia Sinica will host more than ten Nobel Laureates over the course of one year, spanning the fields of peace, physics, chemistry, biomedicine, and literature. This program underscores Academia Sinica's continued commitment to strengthen international academic collaboration and advancing frontier research.

On March 27, Academia Sinica will also host Dr. Edvard I. Moser, recipient of the 2014 Nobel Prize in Medicine, for a lecture titled “The brain’s GPS: How we know where we are”. The public is warmly invited to register and attend.

Registration link：https://forms.gle/WCcDYFRwzDnFSDuq8