Sai Kiang LIM

Sai Kiang LIM
Exosomes Technology & Therapy

Email: Lim_Sai_Kiang@imcb.a-star.edu.sg

Sai Kiang Lim is a renowned molecular biologist and biochemist who has made significant contributions to the understanding of the underlying molecular and cellular mechanisms of diseases and the development of therapies. She received her Bachelor of Science in Biochemistry with Honours from the National University of Singapore in 1985 and her PhD in Molecular Biology from the State University of New York at Buffalo in 1992.
After completing her postdoctoral training as a Cooley's Anemia Foundation Research Fellow at Columbia University and as a Leukemia Society of America Special Fellow at the same institution, Lim became an independent investigator in 1996. She has held independent faculty positions at the National University of Singapore, the Genome Institute of Singapore, the Institute of Medical Biology, and the Institute of Cell and Molecular Biology.
Lim's research has focused on the elucidation of the underlying molecular and cellular mechanisms in diseases and the development of therapies, particularly in natural and synthetic nano-lipid vesicles. She has made notable contributions to the scientific community, including the discovery of stable eukaryotic mRNA decay intermediates in mammalian cells and the discovery of therapeutic MSC exosomes.
Lim is a pioneer in MSC exosome research and technology, having discovered MSC exosomes in 2008. She and her collaborators have rationalized and demonstrated several world "firsts" in the efficacious use of MSC exosome efficacy against many diseases and injuries. She has also been a major driver in the development of MSC exosomes as the most technology-ready of all therapeutic exosomes.
Lim is a prolific MSC exosome inventor, with an IP portfolio of >12 families with >100 granted patents and numerous pending applications. She also founded Paracrine Therapeutics (PT), the first start-up to develop MSC exosome therapeutics in 2016. PT has elevated the technology readiness of MSC exosomes from TRL1/2 to TRL5/6 and completed a clinical trial phase 1 in May 2022.
Lim is a globally recognized expert in basic exosome science and translation, as evidenced by her numerous keynote addresses, leadership roles in international committees on exosome science and translation, and adhoc reviewing of major research grants and high-impact journals. She has also been named a Highly Cited Researcher by the Clarivate Analytics Web of Science Group in 2021 and 2022, placing her in the top 0.1% globally.
Overall, Lim's groundbreaking research has contributed significantly to the scientific community's understanding of the underlying molecular and cellular mechanisms of diseases, particularly in the context of nano-lipid vesicles and MSC exosomes. Her contributions have opened up new avenues for the development of therapies and have the potential to revolutionize the treatment of many diseases and injuries.

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Sai Kiang LIM

A*STAR celebrates International Women's Day