The winner of the Science Award presented by the Sabri Ülker Foundation, which implements projects in order to raise awareness about healthy nutrition, was announced during the ceremony held for this occasion. Asst. Prof. Nilay Yapıcı, from the Department of Neurobiology and Behavior in Cornell University and a Nancy and Peter Meinig Family Investigator, was awarded with 2022 Sabri Ülker Science Award in the event organized by the Sabri Ülker Foundation. Yapıcı was awarded for her studies on tasting and eating mechanisms in human brain.  

The Sabri Ülker Foundation Science Award, one of the most respected awards given to scientists, was presented to the winner.  The winner of this year’s award, which was given for the seventh time, is Asst. Prof. Nilay Yapıcı from the Department of Neurobiology and Behavior in Cornell University and a Nancy and Peter Meinig Family Investigator. Yapıcı won the award for her work on “How Neural System Regulates Food Intake Decisions and Metabolism”.

At the ceremony held in İstanbul, Asst. Prof. Nilay Yapıcı’s award was presented by Deputy Minister of Industry and Technology Dr. Çetin Ali Dönmez, Yıldız Holding Chairman Ali Ülker, Head of Harvard Sabri Ülker Center Prof. Dr. Gökhan Hotamışlıgil and President of the Sabri Ülker Foundation Dr. Talat İçöz. 

Prominent guests from academia, science community and business world were present at the ceremony held for the presentation of Sabri Ülker Science Award which is given to young researchers for their projects associated with nutrition, food and metabolism in order to promote the development of scientific research in Turkey. 

The awarded research is on neural circuits in the brain that regulate food intake

Focusing on the biology of hunger in her studies, Asst. Prof. Nilay Yapıcı conducts her research on how neural circuits in the brain that regulate food intake function. In her laboratory works, Asst. Prof. Yapıcı seeks to identify neurons in the brain that mediate food intake decisions and trace their activity during the urge to eat. The outcome of her studies can lead the way to finding out the mechanism causing overconsumption of particular foods. 

Dr. Yapıcı’s lab seeks to understand how animals make state-dependent decisions by integrating sensory cues and internal motivational drives, and how organisms regulate these decisions.  Recent projects conducted in the lab focus on how taste perception and hunger sensation function on the level of molecules, cells and neural circuits. 

Asst. Prof. Dr. Nilay Yapıcı: “I hope my studies will lay the road to discover new strategies to treat obesity.” 

Asst. Prof. Nilay Yapıcı from the Department of Neurobiology and Behavior in Cornell University said “Our research seeks to provide new and interesting data in the long-run on how the brain regulates food intake. I hope our scientific studies will lay the road to discover new strategies to treat obesity and eating disorders. I am very happy that I am deemed worthy of Sabri Ülker Science Award. I would like extend my sincere thanks to everyone.”

“Our focus is on contributing to building a healthy society and a healthy future” 

Highlighting the importance they attach to science as Yıldız Holding, Yıldız Holding Chair Ali Ülker said “As the Foundation and the Holding, our focus is on contributing to building a healthy society and a healthy future.” Ali Ülker added: “We continue to follow the inspiring path of our late founder Sabri Ülker, who achieved many innovative firsts thanks to his trust in science even 70 years ago. We see it as our mission to create an environment where science can flourish and reach a wider audience, and to support young scientists who cannot continue their scientific research due to lack of funding. We are certainly aware of the fact that this mission we undertake is a serious responsibility. In this journey, we derive strength and courage from Turkish scientists, who regularly contribute to scientific community with new research and inventions.” 

“Sabri Ülker Foundation Publications published 2 million books” 

Emphasizing that Sabri Ülker Foundation continues to devotedly work for the future of public health, Ali Ülker said “Our Foundation is working on numerous projects and events that will touch lives of people of all ages one way or another.” He added “In addition to dozens of projects developed for our children, we continue to make national and international collaborations in order to raise awareness on developing healthy living habits and following a balanced diet. Having been launched in 2019 with a sense of responsibility for our future and the motto “everyone should read”, Sabri Ülker Foundation Publications published 2 million books for readers of all ages. Up to now, numerous books have been published including books on popular health topics, academic books and books for children. They were published so that everyone could read. Everything we do, we do it to contribute to building healthier generations to come. This sense of responsibility lies at the heart of our motivation.”

Referring to the significance of scientific research in this field, Ali Ülker said “The winner of this year’s Science Award is a valued scientist, Asst. Prof. Nilay Yapıcı from the Department of Neurobiology and Behavior and a Nancy & Peter Meinig Family Investigator, who conducts research on the biology of hunger. I would like extend my heartfelt congratulations to Nilay Yapıcı. I would like to express my gratitude to Prof. Dr. Gökhan Hotamışlıgil once again for his efforts and support on our journey.” 

“In 2023, we will be hosting Nobel Prize winning speakers in Turkey” 

Reminding that Sabri Ülker Foundation has been working to contribute to the future of the public health since its establishment in 2009, Sabri Ülker Foundation’s Secretary General Selen Tokcan informed the guests about the plans of the foundation for 2023 and said “We have brand new projects in our pipeline. In 2023, we will host Nobel Prize winning speakers in our country and we will disclose to the public a number of ground-breaking works on genetics and metabolism. The “Metabolism and Life” Symposium to be organized under the umbrella of Harvard Sabri Ülker Center, which continues to operate under the leadership of Prof. Dr. Gökhan Hotamışlıgil, is scheduled for May 9-10th, 2023 in Turkey and thousands of scientists will be hosted by our Foundation. It is such an honor for us to support young scientists who work for a bright future in public health. I sincerely congratulate Asst. Prof. Nilay Yapıcı, this year’s winner of our Science Award. I hope, together we will live in a much healthier future.”

Prof. Dr. Gökhan Hotamışlıgil: “The achievements of young scientists are truly remarkable” 

Stating that both Sabri Ülker Foundation and Harvard Sabri Ülker Center share a common dream of encouraging young Turkish scientists who will be the stars of the future, Prof. Dr. Gökhan Hotamışlıgil, Head of Harvard Sabri Ülker Center and President of Sabri Ülker Science Award Jury said “I would like to thank Ülker family and the Sabri Ülker Foundation for their contributions to the development and strengthening of the global efficiency of our scientific capacity.” Hotamışlıgil added: “This is a long-term dream. However, I sincerely believe that we will make this dream come true step by step. The achievements of the young scientists who have previously won the Science Award are already truly remarkable. This year’s winner, Nilay Yapıcı is another brilliant mind. First, I sincerely congratulate her. I am really impressed by her studies on tasting and eating mechanisms of the human brain. As Harvard Sabri Ülker Center, our focus is on metabolic diseases and obesity. We can collaborate within this scope and I am confident that young scientists will earn new groundbreaking achievements thanks to these potential collaborations.”

Previous award-winners participated in an online panel discussion

A panel discussion titled “Sabri Ülker Science Award Winners: From Past to Present” was held as part of the event. Moderated by Prof. Dr. Gökhan Hotamışlıgil, the panel discussion hosted valued scientists who were previous winners of Sabri Ülker Science Award since 2016. Dr. Ebru Erbay, Dr. Ömer Yılmaz and Dr. Elçin Ünal participated online whereas Dr. Elif Nur Fırat Karalar and Dr. Tamer Önder were present on stage.  

The participants informed the guests about their individual scientific studies and their future goals as well as how winning the Science Award made an impact on their lives.