Professor Sunghoe Chang and his research team at the Department of Life Science at the Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology (GIST) discovered the protein that contributes to brain development by controlling the ‘synapse’, the junction of the nerve system where transmission occurs between neurons.

The article published on September 21, 2006 in the Advanced Online Publication of the world-renowned EMBO Journal by professor Chang and his research team reports that they discovered a protein, named SPIN90/WISH, which they claim underlies synapse formation and learning and memory. :Through experiments with cultured neurons, we found SPIN90/WISH takes charge of regulating dentritic spines , which are closely related with synapse formation and various brain diseases”, professor Cahng said.

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Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology (GIST) is a research-oriented graduate school established by the Ministry of Science and Technology in the Republic of Korea in 1993.

The University Identity was changed from K-JIST to GIST in 2004.