Dong Hoon Shin graduated from Seoul National University College of Medicine in South Korea. After serving as a public physician for three years, he earned his Ph.D. in Anatomy. He currently teaches and researches as a full professor and chairperson in the Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology at Seoul National University. Over the years, his research interests have mainly focused on acquiring scientific information on premodern peoples’ health and disease status. Using research techniques and tools ranging from the anatomical and histological to the molecular, he has worked to reveal the physical and/or pathological traits of ancient peoples and their patterns at different historical stages. He has conducted viral, bacterial, and helminthic pathogen investigations with archaeologically obtained human remains such as Korean mummies. These have afforded vivid glimpses of premodern peoples’ health and disease status and, thus, of their actual lives, in significant detail from both medical and sociocultural perspectives. To enrich his understanding of human diseases of the past, he is also actively joining in fieldwork at archaeological sites outside South Korea. Currently, they include the Indus Valley Civilization ruins of presentday India and the permafrost burial grounds of West Siberia. Until 2022, he published 218 peer-reviewed articles (international: 193; domestic:25) and 50 book chapters or magazine contributions (international: 26; domestic: 24). Based on his academic achievements, he was inducted as a National Geographic Explorer and Kavli Frontiers of Science Fellow. 

Lab Official Blog (Bioanthropology and Paleopathology in Asia)

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National Geographic Explorer (Since 2016)

Kavli Frontiers of Science Fellow (Since 2015)

My Research Reported in National Geographic News