TWO IBG RESEARCHERS RECEIVED THE SCIENCE ACADEMY YOUNG SCIENTISTS AWARD (BAGEP)
The Turkish Science Academy’s 2020 Young Scientists Award (BAGEP) results were announced. Dr. Ezgi Karaca ve Dr. Serhat Tozburun from IBG were listed among 40 young researchers from a range of different fields.
With the aim of defining the best young researchers, rewarding and supporting them for future research, the Turkish Science Academy has been announcing every year, since 2013, a list comprising the names of academicians from a range of disciplines. One of the most important specifications of this award is that it is fully funded by the public.
Dr. Ezgi Karaca, who received the award in the field of Biology, is the leader of the Computational Structural Biology Laboratory at IBG. Dr. Karaca, along with researcher Dr. Burcu Özden, associate researcher Mehmet Ergüven and a PhD and four MsC students (Ayşe Berçin Barlas, Eda Şamiloğlu, Büşra Savaş, Deniz Doğan and Mehdi Koşaca), works on unveiling the physical principles of biomolecular interactions through determining and dissecting the structures of biomolecular complexes. The structural data obtained in Karaca Lab, can then be used to acquire a fundamental understanding of how biological macromolecules are related to diseases and how to design drugs targeting them. She has several scientific articles published on this subject in prestigious international journals.
Dr. Serhat Tozburun, who was awarded in the field of Physics, leads the Biophotonics and Optical Imaging group at IBG. Along with his group members, namely researchers Prof. Dr. Ender Berat Ellidokuz and Dr. İbrahim Akkaya, PhD student Merve Türker and two MsC students (Ozan Yetiş, and Onur Çakı), Dr. Tozburun investigates laser-tissue interplays using next generation optical technologies. They specifically focus on developing new laser sources for optical imaging, next generation tomography devices, new diagnostic tools using optical nerve stimulation and optical laparoscopic probes using state-of-the-art techniques. The group, with the coordination of Dr. Tozburun, conducts the development of several R&D technologies supported by European Commission (Horizon2020) and TUBITAK grant programs.
We, as the IBG family, congratulate Dr. Karaca and Dr. Tozburun for their success.