TAINAN -- Three scholars at National Cheng Kung University (NCKU) have won awards from Taiwan's government organizations, including one whose research is instrumental to developing drugs that can treat anxiety.

The three professors received medals from NCKU President Hwung-Hweng Hwung during a staff meeting on Oct. 26.

Po-Wu Gean, a professor from the Institute of Basic Medical Sciences, has won National Chair Professorship of the Ministry of Education.

Graduated with a doctoral degree in pharmacology at University of Texas, U.S., Gean has received numerous honors and awards, including Outstanding Research Award of National Science Council for 3 consecutive years, Distinguished Research Fellow and Academic Award of the Ministry of Education.

Gean's research focuses on tonsil, which can be seen in the back of the throat whose functions and nerve plasticity are closely related to epilepsy, learning and memory.

By exploring the mechanism of neurotransmission, signal transduction between nerve cells and the mechanism of antiepileptic drugs, he has advanced the studies of the acquisition and extinction of fear memory. It was discovered that fear memory will make cancer cells grow, so the elimination of fear memory has therapeutic effects.