https://phys.org/ en-us Latest news from The Chinese University of Hong Kong An international research team led by the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) has achieved a breakthrough in the field of medical microrobots by developing the world's first antibiofilm liquid-bodied magnetic-controlled robot. https://phys.org/news/2025-04-liquid-bodied-robot-enables-precise.html Bio & Medicine Tue, 01 Apr 2025 14:54:38 EDT news662738067 Bashania fargesii bamboo is an important dominant understory species influencing community structure and regeneration of overstory trees, and it serves as an important food source for giant panda in the Qinling Mountains. B. fargesii invades old fields via clonal rhizome growth. However, the pattern of bamboo invasion into old fields and the role of physiological integration during bamboo expansion and regeneration, especially under giant panda herbivory are unclear. https://phys.org/news/2022-12-clonal-enlightens-bamboo-forest-giant.html Ecology Fri, 02 Dec 2022 11:40:02 EST news589203601 The ocean covers about 70% of the Earth's surface area and is the largest reservoir of energy. Researchers have been exploring the approach for harnessing ocean energy to solve the world energy crisis and pollution problems caused by thermal power generation. The nanogenerator, including piezoelectric, triboelectric, and pyroelectric nanogenerators, is one of the key technologies for mechanical energy conversion. The triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG) makes use of the triboelectric effect and electrostatic induction to harvest mechanical energy based on contact or sliding electrification. https://techxplore.com/news/2021-03-water-tube-based-triboelectric-nanogenerator-efficient-ocean.html Energy & Green Tech Thu, 18 Mar 2021 11:58:03 EDT news535287477 Collaborating with the University of Oxford, Professor Ho Yin Edwin Chan's research team from the School of Life Sciences of The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) recently unveiled the counteracting relationship between pre-mRNA-processing factor 19 (Prpf19) and exocyst complex component 7 (Exoc7) in controlling the degradation of disease protein and neurodegeneration of the rare hereditary ataxia. The research findings have been published in the prestigious scientific journal, Cell Death & Disease. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2021-03-protein-counteracting-hereditary-ataxias.html Medical research Mon, 01 Mar 2021 12:05:01 EST news533822698 A research team from the School of Life Sciences at The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) has recently discovered that SOX9 protein is an essential regulatory factor of choroid plexus function that ensures the correct composition of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). The finding, recently published in the prestigious scientific journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), has provided the scientific community a novel understanding to the molecular regulatory mechanisms behind the function of the blood-CSF barrier and lays the groundwork for developing novel therapeutic strategies for preventing and treating neurodevelopmental disorders. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2021-02-neurological-diseases.html Neuroscience Wed, 24 Feb 2021 10:14:14 EST news533384049 An international team led by Professor Yilin Wu, Associate Professor of the Department of Physics at The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) has made a novel conceptual advance in the field of active matter science. The team discovered a new route in which the self-organization of active fluids in space and time can be controlled by a single material property called viscoelasticity. This new finding may pave the way for fabricating a new class of self-driven devices and materials, such as the ability to control the rhythmic movement of soft robots without relying on electronic circuits, and for the study of microbial physiology. It has been published in the scientific journal Nature. https://phys.org/news/2021-02-physicists-route-self-organisation.html General Physics Fri, 19 Feb 2021 10:59:12 EST news532954749 Compared to minimally invasive surgery, endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) represents an advanced, less-invasive endoscopic treatment for early gastrointestinal cancer. ESD has significant advantages as an organ preservation surgical treatment, but it is technically challenging with substantial risk of perforation and bleeding. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2020-09-world-colorectal-endoscopic-submucosal-flexible.html Oncology & Cancer Tue, 15 Sep 2020 07:58:45 EDT news519375522 A research team from the Department of Computer Science and Engineering (CSE) at The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) has developed a new Gene Expression Embedding frameworK (GEEK), which uses artificial intelligence technologies in machine learning and natural language processing to study the regulation of gene expression. In contrast to previous works that focused on one or a few regulatory mechanisms at a time, this new framework can study the joint effects of many mechanisms simultaneously. A research article describing this new study has been published in the renowned international science journal Nature Machine Intelligence. The framework may help study the causes of cancers and treatment methods. https://techxplore.com/news/2020-08-ai-approach-multiple-gene-regulatory.html Machine learning & AI Mon, 31 Aug 2020 09:13:05 EDT news518083979 A large cohort study conducted by the Faculty of Medicine at The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CU Medicine), in collaboration with investigators from the University of Sydney, Australia, has discovered that shortened DNA telomere length is a useful biomarker linked to a higher risk of developing cardiovascular disease in patients with type 2 diabetes. The Endocrinology and Diabetes team of CU Medicine evaluated this biomarker in over 5,300 type 2 diabetes patients during a 13-year follow-up period. Patients with cardiovascular disease at baseline or during follow-up had shorter tail-ends of DNA strands, expressed as relative Leukocyte Telomere Length (rLTL), than those who never had cardiovascular disease. For each unit relative decrease in rLTL, the risk of cardiovascular disease increased by 25%. These results have been published in Diabetes Care. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2020-08-shortened-dna-telomere-length-patients.html Diabetes Tue, 11 Aug 2020 08:40:01 EDT news516353374 Researchers from the Faculty of Medicine at The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CU Medicine) have recently conducted a study to investigate the impact of liver injury on clinical outcomes in COVID-19 patients. Data from over 1,000 COVID-19 patients in Hong Kong was analysed and liver injury was found in around 20% of the patients. The estimated risk of COVID-19 patients with liver injury experiencing adverse clinical outcomes such as intensive care unit (ICU) admission, use of invasive mechanical ventilation or death was almost eight times of other patients. It is suggested that liver function monitoring is important regarding its association with adverse clinical outcomes in COVID-19 patients. These findings have been published recently in the world-renowned medical journal Gut. In view of the high prevalence of various chronic liver diseases in the Asia-Pacific region, CU Medicine's researchers led a group of experts from Mainland China, Japan, Singapore and Australia to issue a position statement on the management of COVID-19 patients with liver derangement. The statement has been published recently in another international medical journal The Lancet Gastroenterology & Hepatology. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2020-08-liver-injury-common-prognostic-covid-.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Thu, 06 Aug 2020 08:22:46 EDT news515920960 Prognosis describes how serious a patient's cancer is and his or her chance of survival. A genetic biomarker is a clinically useful tool to help estimate the state of the disease. A study, conducted by the Faculty of Medicine at The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CU Medicine), has identified a gene called GPR18 which can be a biomarker to help form the prognosis for a patient in nine cancer types. The research team has also provided new insights into B-cells for a cancer patient's prognosis. The findings were recently published in the international scientific journal Communications Biology. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2020-08-insights-b-cells-gpr18-gene-survival.html Oncology & Cancer Tue, 04 Aug 2020 14:03:03 EDT news515768580 A research team led by Professor Jerome Hui Ho Lam from the School of Life Sciences at The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) has decoded for the first time the high-quality genomes of two jellyfish commonly found in Asian waters, including the edible flame jellyfish. Further studies have revealed many unexpected biological findings, including the identification of hormones which are thought to be only contained in arthropods like insects. The findings, just published in Nature Communications, provide references for further studies on the evolution, ecological roles and population bloom of jellyfish. https://phys.org/news/2020-06-decode-jellyfish-genomes-unveil-ecological.html Plants & Animals Mon, 22 Jun 2020 08:27:58 EDT news512033275