From kampung boy to scientist
Perak-born is working with China scientists on cell biology in space.
PETALING JAYA: A kampung boy-turned-scientist will be carrying out experiments in the next frontier – all the way in space!
What had started out as a teenage fascination with how life forms worked grew into a passion, and subsequently a career in science, for Perak-born Prof Dr Kee Keh Hooi.
A former student of Foon Yew High School – one of the elite Chinese independent schools in Johor – Dr Kee, 44, is today part of a team attached with the prestigious Tsinghua University, Beijing, that is conducting ground-breaking research on human stem cell and germ cell biology.
On Thursday, his experiment to induce the differentiation of human embryonic stem cells into germ cells was launched into space on China’s first cargo spacecraft Tianzhou-1.
“The moment we saw the rocket rising, it was like a dream come true for me.
“The experiment is a culmination of our efforts for the past four years,” Dr Kee told The Star yesterday before boarding a plane back to Beijing from Hainan province, where the launch took place.
According to China state media Xinhua, the unprecedented mission will study the basic development and maturation of germ cells in the micro-gravity environment, and the developmental potential of human embryonic stem cells.
“It’s an important experiment because it is the first step towards directly understanding human reproduction during space explo- ration,” he said.
Dr Kee’s journey to becoming a scientist started with his enrolment into the Iowa State University in the United States, in which he graduated with a bachelor’s degree and later a master’s in science, majoring in biochemistry.
“It was a five-year honours degree which gave me plenty of opportunities to do independent research. I got my master’s degree at the same university.
“When it came to PhD, I decided to switch to molecular cellular biology and genetics at Weill Cornell Medical College (also in the US),” he said during a phone interview.
Upon graduating, Dr Kee worked first at University of California, San Francisco, as a post-doctoral fellow in 2004, followed by a three-year stint as a research associate at Stanford University.
He began working for Tsinghua University at 2010, and is now a tenured assistant professor at its school of life sciences.
Dr Kee is married and has an eight-year-old daughter.
Asked if he has plans to motivate his daughter to become a renowned scientist, Dr Kee chuckled and said: “She has interest but I do not want to influence her too much. Let her choose what she wants to do for her career.”
The moment we saw the rocket rising, it was like a dream come true for me. The experiment is a culmination of our efforts for the past four years. Prof Dr Kee Keh Hooi