Curriculum Vitae

EDUCATION AND AWARDS Qualification Doctor of Philosophy Tertiary Institute Monash University (Australia) Year 2010 - Current Awards Monash Graduate Scholarship, Faculty of Medicine International Postgraduate Research Scholarship (MIPS), Melbourne Protein Group Student Symposium (2010) - Poster Presentation Award Qualification Tertiary Institute Year Qualification Tertiary Institute Year Awards Degree in Bachelor of Science (Honours) Degree in Bachelor of Science University of Melbourne (Australia) 2007 2009 Diploma in Biotechnology Ngee Ann Polytechnic (Singapore) 2002 2005 Du Pont Singapore Prize for outstanding performance in Integrated Laboratory, Directors List for the School of Life Sciences & Chemical Technology

RESEARCH TRAINING Position Research Student (Internship) (June 2004 May 2005) Institute A*Star Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology Project Investigation of the Rad53 DNA Replication Checkpoint Pathway in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Position Institute Project Research Student (Honours) (2008-2009) University of Melbourne (Dept of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology) Differential Regulation of STAT3 Spliceforms under Cytokine Stimulation Research Assistant (Aug 2009 Apr 2010) University of Melbourne (Dept of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology) Conduct detailed laboratory experimental research to contribute to defined projects with the ultimate goal of manuscript preparation and grant submission. Carry out laboratory management duties and provide assistance with biochemistry and molecular biology experiments.

Position Company Description

RESEARCH SKILLS Cell culture techniques, preparation of neonatal rat cardiac myocytes, molecular cloning (i.e. site directed mutagenesis, restriction Enzyme Digestion of Plasmid/DNA, PCR), Lentiviral inducible expression system, polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, Western blot analysis, protein gel staining (Coomassie Blue and Silver stainings), DNA agarose gel electrophoresis, bacterial and yeast transformation, plasmid DNA preparation from bacterial and yeast , in situ immunofluorescence for Saccharomyces cerevisiae and mammalian cultures, fluorescence recovery after photobleaching (FRAP), RNA extraction and preparation for microarray, immunoprecipitation and preparation of in-gel digestion of protein samples for Mass Spectrometry analyses.

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List of Publications in International Journals* * Number all publications in international journals or book chapters, with earliest first and most recent at the end. Provide the Impact Factor (IF) of the journal and indicate your contribution the work described and the publication. Use as many pages as required. Follow the style in these examples: 1. Y.Y. Yeap, I.H. Ng, B. Badrian, T.V. Nguyen, Y.Y. Yip, A.S. Dhillon, S.E. Mutsaers, J. Silke, M.A. Bogoyevitch and D.C. Ng. c-Jun N-terminal kinase/c-Jun inhibits fibroblast proliferation by negatively regulating the levels of stathmin/oncoprotein 18. Biochemical Journal 430(2), 345-354 (2010) (IF 4.897) IHNs contribution to this work was the generation of a stable cell line expressing only GFP as a control for the inducible JNK cell lines in a JNK-/- MEF background using the lentiviral inducible system. 2. D.C. Ng, I.H. Ng, Y.Y. Yeap, B. Badrian, T. Tsoutsman, J.R. McMullen, C. Semsarian and M.A. Bogoyevitch. Opposing actions of extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) and signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) in regulating microtubule stabilization during cardiac hypertrophy. The Journal of Biological Chemistry 286(2), 1576-1587 (2011) (IF 4.773) IHNs contribution to this work was preparation of neonatal rat cardiac myocytes to investigate the role of ERK and STAT3 in the stabilisation of microtubules by using inhibitors of ERK (UO126), STAT3 (STATTIC) and JAKs (AG490). 3. Y.M. Ramdzan, S. Polling, C.P. Chia, I.H. Ng, A.R. Ormsby, N.P. Croft, A.W. Purcell, M.A. Bogoyevitch, D.C. Ng, P.A. Gleeson and D.M. Hatters. Tracking protein aggregation and mislocalization in cells with flow cytometry. Nature Methods 9(5), 467-470 (2012) (IF 19.276) IHNs contribution to this work was the determination of the ability of the flow cytometry protocol to track movement or translocation of cytoplasmic proteins such as the latent transcription factor, STAT3, into the nucleus upon cytokine stimulation and activation. 4. I.H. Ng, D.C. Ng, D.A. Jans and M.A. Bogoyevitch. Selective STAT3-alpha or beta expression reveals spliceform-specific phosphorylation kinetics, nuclear retention and distinct gene expression outcomes. Biochem J 2012. doi:10.1042/BJ20120941 (IF 4.897) IHN contributes to the execution and planning of the experiments in this work and also the preparation of the manuscript and figures.

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Abstract Indicate below the abstract that is submitted by you for presentation at the YSP and the FAOBMB Congress in Bangkok (include all authors, affiliation(s) and the text of the abstract) The STAT3 spliceform has unique properties in cross-regulating STAT3 and modulating gene regulation 1,2 Ivan H.W. Ng , Dominic C.H. Ng2, David A. Jans1, Marie A. Bogoyevitch2 Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Monash University, VIC, Australia 2 Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Bio21 Institute, University of Melbourne, VIC, Australia Phosphorylation of the transcription factor, STAT3 (Signal Transducer and Activator of Transcription 3) is critical for both its nuclear import and transcriptional activity that regulates many important biological processes. Two STAT3 spliceforms, STAT3 and STAT3, but their specific functions have not been analysed in detail. To address this directly, we have developed a STAT3-inducible expression system in a STAT3-/- background that expresses either STAT3 or STAT3 alone to a comparable level. Examination of the regulation of STAT3 and STAT3 in this system indicated clear differences in the kinetics of cytokine-stimulated phosphorylation and nuclear translocation. Remarkably, sustained phosphorylation and nuclear retention were observed for STAT3 while STAT3 showed transient phosphorylation and nuclear retention. Significantly, cross-regulation between the two spliceforms was noted when the re-expression of STAT3 into cells expressing only STAT3 led to an increased and prolonged in the phosphorylation and nuclear retention of STAT3. Furthermore, a STAT3 R609L mutant, with a disrupted SH2 domain, was not tyrosine phosphorylated following cytokine stimulation and could not cross-regulate STAT3. Finally, the importance of prolonged phosphorylation and nuclear retention of STAT3 was indicated by transcriptome profiling of STAT3-/- cells expressing either STAT3 or STAT3, revealing a distinct set of STAT3-specific genes regulated under basal conditions and after cytokine stimulation. These results highlight STAT3 as a powerful transcriptional regulator in the absence of STAT3, with the ability to cross-regulate STAT3 phosphorylation and nuclear retention in cytokine-dependent fashion in its presence.
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Personal Statement I believe the YSP Travel Fellowship program will present many exciting learning and networking opportunities with fellow young scientists and established academics around the region. I first came into contact with biomedical research in 2004 where I was an intern at the A*STAR Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology (IMCB) in Singapore, working on a final year project on the regulation of cell cycles for my Diploma in Biotechnology under the supervision of Dr. Vaidehi Krishnan and A/Prof. Uttam Surana. I enjoyed participating in the research group meetings and had regular meetings with my supervisor to discuss experiments, project directions, scientific journal articles and ideas. Since then, my passion to expand the knowledge bank in science and help people around me, my love for science and lifelong curiosity motivates me to pursue a career in science. My research focus to date includes cell signalling, signal transduction, cellular stress and nuclear transport which have advanced and expanded since I commenced honours research at the University of Melbourne in A/Prof. Marie Bogoyevitchs Cell Signalling lab in 2009. In 2010, I obtained several scholarships to undertake my Ph.D studies at Monash University under the supervision of both Prof. David Jans, whose lab focuses on nuclear signalling and nuclear transport mechanisms of viral infections, and A/Prof. Marie Bogoyevitch (University of Melbourne). My research project centres on Signal Transducer and Activator of Transcription 3 (STAT3), in particular, the regulation of its activity, transcriptional activity and nuclear transport. STAT3 has attracted significant interest since the discovery that STAT3 plays a crucial role in embryonic development. With its implication in a variety of cancers and diseases, understanding the regulation of STAT3 will facilitate the development of therapeutic drugs. I believe that my project has potentially beneficial clinical importance in the understanding and treatment of diseases. In fact, two different STAT3 splice-forms have been discovered to be ubiquitously present in cells and that their levels are highly regulated during myeloid differentiation. I have developed a lentiviral inducible system whereby the expression of either STAT3 splice-forms could be induced in a STAT3-/- background to eliminate any interference due to endogenous STAT3 proteins with regards to results obtained. The results from this system form the basis of my first first author paper (Ng et al. 2012). Currently, I am using confocal laser scanning microscopy and live cell imaging technique (Fluorescence Recovery after Photobleaching) to understand the nuclear transport kinetics between the STAT3 splice-forms under various cellular conditions. My goal is to excel in both academia and research in the field of cellular signalling and I believe that participating in the YSP program will give me the chance to explore new fields and techniques and further develop my scientific thought and perspectives alongside peers and respected academics. YSP will also be a great opportunity for me to present and share my research with others around the region, which will create collaborative possibilities and enable me to receive intellectual input for present and future ideas. Furthermore, I believe that the incredible experience and opportunities for me in YSP will propel me in the right direction in my career development as I continuously seek improvement in my techniques and projects, the development of my field and the exchange of ideas in good science. Reference: Ng IH, Ng DC, Jans DA and Bogoyevitch MA. Selective STAT3-alpha or -beta expression reveals spliceform-specific phosphorylation kinetics, nuclear retention and distinct gene expression outcomes. Biochem J 2012. doi:10.1042/BJ20120941 Page 2 of 6

Attachments: Letters of recommendation from two referees.

Submission methods: You can apply in either of two ways: by sending an email with scanned attachments to the Chair of the FAOBMB Fellowship Committee, Prof. Piamsook Pongsawasdi: Piamsook.P@Chula.ac.th or P.Piamsook@gmail.com This is the preferred method. If using this method, please assemble the Application Form and the Attachments into a single PDF file. by sending a hard copy of the application form and supporting documents to: Professor Piamsook Pongsawasdi, Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Science, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok 10330, Thailand.

Closing Date: Applications must be received by 31 July, 2012 (Bangkok time, GMT + 7 Hours). Applicants will be notified by email of the decision of the Committee by no later than 15 September, 2012.

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Nuclear Signalling Laboratory Room 146, Building 77, Monash University, Vic. 3800, Australia Professor David A. Jans (00613) 9901 9341 Telephone: (00613) 9902 9500 Telefax: David.Jans@monash Email: 24.7.2012

Prof Pongsawasdi Chair FAOBMB Fellowship Committee Chulalongkorn University, Thailand RE: RECOMMENDATION LETTER - MR HONG WEE (IVAN) NG Dear Prof Pongsawasdi, I am writing with regard to the application of Mr Ivan Ng for Fellowship support to enable his participation in the 13th FAOBMB Congress (November 2012) in Bangkok. Together with Prof. M. Bogoyevitch (Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Melbourne), I am cosupervisor of Ivans PhD project with the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at Monash University (started 2010). Ivan is an immensely talented young researcher who continues to develop and surprise as his PhD runs its course. He has a strong technical background from his previous studies in Singapore (Ngee Ann Polytechnic 20022005, Diploma in Biotechnology), followed by his undergraduate studies at the University of Melbourne (2007-8), and then a very successful first class Honours Degree (final mark of 85) with Prof. Bogoyevitch at the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology University of Melbourne (2009). He is a very quick learner, mastering a range of sophisticated techniques and methodologies, including gene expression array analysis, live cell imaging (including fluorescence recovery after photobleaching) and proteomics/mass spectrometry, as well as a range of more general biochemical and cell biological approaches to drive his research. Using his skills and his obvious aptitude for research, he recently published his first first author publication, in which he demonstrated for the first time that STAT3 spliceforms were capable of different gene outcomes following cytokine stimulation (Ng et al., Biochem J, in press, 2012). This rides on the back of his continued and productive contribution to a whole host of different projects (Biochem J 2010, JBC 2011, Nature Methods 2012). These publications demonstrate his ability to work well and cooperatively with others across multiple different university sites (Melbourne and Monash), as well as training new members of staff and students. The FAOBMB Congress, including the YSP events represents an ideal opportunity for Ivan to increase his academic experience, in allowing him to discuss and exchange research ideas in the areas of transcriptional regulation, as well as facilitating excellent broader networking opportunities with the diverse members of FAOBMB. This will be critically important for Ivans future research career, which will undoubtedly be fulfilled, as least in part, in the Asian/Pacific region. In short, I have no hesitation in recommending Ivan for Fellowship support to attend the FAOBMB meeting. I thank you for your assistance,

Prof. David A. Jans