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Transforming Lives: An Exhibition for HKUST 25th Anniversary

Solving Medical Mysteries 破解醫學之謎

Researches that unlock medical mysteries and find cure can truly transform lives.Various research teams from the School of Science, through their innovative work on proteins, genes and cells, have shed light on new strategies for treatment of Alzheimer’s disease, neurodevelopmental disorders, blindness, deafness, and muscular diseases.

HKUST has also been active in traditional Chinese medicine research. Among the many results, the Centre for Chinese Medicine developed the technology to extract the key ingredients from herbal recipe Xiasangju to fight flu viruses.

解開醫學謎題並尋找治療之道,能真正改變生活。

理學院的各組研究團隊,憑著對蛋白、基因和細胞等的鑽研,在好幾類病症的治療方法上開闢新路徑,包括認知障礙症(又稱阿爾茲海默症)、神經發展疾患、肌肉疾病、聽覺和視覺問題等。此外,科大在傳統中藥研究上亦有成績,其中一項是在藥方夏桑菊中提取主要元素,能有效對抗流感。

Discovering the Mechanism Behind Visual Systems 發現視覺系統機理

Also in 2011, Professor Mingjie ZHANG’s (Life Science) research team, using a fruit fly photoreceptor as a model system, discovered that a scaffold protein called INAD in animal eyes can undergo a “light-dependent architectural or molecular shape change”. This helps us understand how animal photoreceptors can rapidly detect light signals with broad intensity ranges and how human eyes regulate light intake in response to varying lighting conditions, contributing to research on disorders that cause different types of blindness.

2011年,生命科學部張明傑教授及其科研團隊以果蠅的感光細胞為模型系統,發現動物眼睛內被稱為INAD的支架蛋白會跟隨光綫的強弱而發生分子結構的改變。這有助於我們瞭解動物的感光細胞如何快速偵測強度差距極大的光信號,以及人類眼睛如何在不同的光度環境下調控光的接收,對研究人類視覺障礙的成因大有裨益 。

   
Professor Mingjie ZHANG and his research team
張明傑教授及其科研團隊
Visual system of fly
果蠅的視覺系統
   

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Groundbreaking Discovery Unveils a New Treatment Strategy for Alzheimer’s Disease
突破性發現為治療阿爾茲海默症提供新方法

Video : Groundbreaking Discovery Unveils a New Treatment Strategy for Alzheimer’s Disease

In 2014, Professor Nancy IP and her research team (Life Science) made an exciting discovery – the team identified the protein EphA4 as a key player in Alzheimer’s disease (AD) pathology. They demonstrated that aberrant activation of EphA4 triggers a signaling pathway, which leads to cognitive impairment observed in AD. The team also validated the potential of manipulating this pathway as a possible therapeutic intervention. By blocking EphA4 activity with an EphA4 inhibitor, they showed that cognitive impairment as well as AD pathology was reduced in animal models. These significant findings highlight EphA4 as a new molecular target and offer a novel strategy for AD drug development.

2014年,生命科學部葉玉如教授及其科研團隊令人振奮地發現,EphA4蛋白在認知障礙症形成過程中起關鍵作用。他們證明了EphA4蛋白的過度激活會減低神經細胞之間的通訊能力,造成認知功能障礙。科研團隊在動物實驗中,使用抑制劑控制EphA4的活性,成功減輕了認知障礙及阿爾茲海默症病狀,證實了以抑制蛋白活性爲干預療法的可能性。這些重要發現使EphA4成爲新的分子標靶,為開發治療阿爾茲海默症的藥物提供了新策略。

   
Professor Nancy IP
葉玉如教授
Potential therapeutic strategies for AD
可能治療阿爾茲海默症的新策略
   
   
Identified a naturally occurring compound from a traditional Chinese medicine database as small molecule inhibitor of EphA4
從傳統中藥數據庫找到天然化合物,抑制EphA4的活性
Identified a naturally occurring compound from a traditional Chinese medicine database as small molecule inhibitor of EphA4
從傳統中藥數據庫找到天然化合物,抑制EphA4的活性
   

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Novel Protein Identified in Muscle Stem Cells Fuel hope for Muscular Dystrophy Treatment
在骨骼肌幹細胞中發現新蛋白質分子,為治療肌肉萎縮症帶來希望

In 2012, Professor Zhenguo WU (Life Science) and his research team discovered a novel protein Pax3/7BP, using a series of molecular, cellular, and animal-based assays. Pax3/7BP, along with the protein Pax7 is required for the proliferation of muscle stem cells in young animals, to promote skeletal muscles growth. This breakthrough discovery will facilitate the development of muscle stem cell-based therapies for the treatment of muscle diseases including muscular dystrophies.

2012年,生命科學部鄔振國教授及其科研團隊利用一系列分子、細胞及動物實驗發現了新型蛋白質Pax3/7BP。Pax3/7BP和Pax7對促進年幼動物骨骼肌幹細胞的分裂生長有重要作用。這項突破性發現,會大大促進以骨骼肌幹細胞治療與肌肉相關的疾病(包括各類肌肉萎縮症等)的研究。

     
Pax7- and Pax3-binding protein are required for the proliferation of muscle stem cells
骨骼肌幹細胞的分裂生長需要Pax7及Pax3結合蛋白質
     

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Structure of Motor Protein Necessary for Normal Eyesight and Hearing Determined
確定影響視力及聽力的肌球蛋白結構

Video : Structure of Motor Protein Necessary for Normal Eyesight and Hearing Determined

In 2011, Professor Mingjie ZHANG (Life Science) and his team used a combination of nuclear magnetic resonance and X-ray crystallography to determine the structure of motor protein myosin VIIa, important for proper development and normal function of human ears and eyes. Genetic mutations of myosin VIIa lead to hereditary deaf-and-blindness. This work is expected to help improve genetic counseling for deaf-and-blind people, and may lead to gene therapy.

2011年,生命科學學部張明傑教授及其科研團隊通過核磁共振與X射線晶體衍射技術確定了肌球蛋白VIIa的結構。肌球蛋白VIIa對人耳及眼睛發育有重要作用,其基因變異將導致先天性失聰失明。此研究將有助於對失聰和失明人士進行基因診斷,也爲基因治療提供了理論基礎。

   
Prof Mingjie Zhang (front) and his research team
張明傑教授(前)及其科研團隊
The disease-causing mechanism of the Usher syndrome
Usher致病機理
   

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Turning a Traditional Chinese Herbal Recipe into an Effective Weapon against Avian Flu 傳統中藥處方變成防治禽流感的有效武器

Can Chinese herbal tea help us fight Avian Flu? Professor Karl TSIM led the Centre for Chinese Medicine R&D (CCM) to develop an advanced technology to extract effective liposoluble ingredients from the traditional Chinese herbal recipe Xiasangju (夏桑菊), which has been found effective in preventing flu virus from entering body cells.

中國涼茶能否用於禽流感防治?詹華強教授領導科大中藥研發中心(CCM)開發出一種先進技術,從傳統中藥名方「夏桑菊」中提取脂溶性有效成分,該成分可以有效防止流感病毒入侵細胞。

     
Xiasangju
夏桑菊
     

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Unraveling the Molecular Mechanism Underlying Neurodevelopmental Disorders 揭開神經發育障礙分子機制的奧秘

The cerebral cortex is the part of the brain that controls higher mental functions. In 2013, Professor Nancy IP and her research team (Life Science) demonstrated for the first time that growth of the cerebral cortex is regulated by coordinated proliferation and differentiation of intermediate progenitor cells, while disturbances in this precise coordination results in abnormal brain formation. These significant discoveries have enhanced understanding of the evolution of the brain and are providing new insights into the pathophysiology of neurodevelopmental disorders such as autism.

大腦皮層是大腦中控制高階心智功能的部分。2013年,生命科學部葉玉如教授及其研究團隊首次確定了一種名爲「中間前體細胞」的幹細胞可精準調控大腦皮層的生長,該過程失調會導致腦部結構異常。這些重要發現有助於我們瞭解大腦進化,爲研究自閉症等神經發育障礙病症的機理提供了新的思路。

     
Biological experiment shows the relationship between neuron production and autistic behavior
驗證神經元增長與自閉症症狀關係的生物實驗
     

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