Stem cell pioneer Hwang Woo-suk has been named “Research Leader of the Year” by a prestigous American magazine.

The selection was disclosed in the Scientific American's annual list recognizing outstanding acts of leadership in science and technology over the past year.

The report expressed high regard for Hwang’s achievements this year, citing that his team was the first in the world to extract embryonic stem cell lines from a cloned human embryo and the first to clone a dog.

Now in its fourth year, the Scientific American 50 list recognizes people, teams and organizations whose recent accomplishments, whether in research, business or policymaking, demonstrate leadership in shaping both established and emerging technologies.