Rats with mathematical minds? Groundbreaking research led by neuroscientists from CUHK and CityUHK has confirmed that these furry friends possess a specific brain region dedicated to numerical processing and can be educated to distinguish among numbers, challenging the notion that maths is the sole preserve of humans. Explore the surprising cognitive abilities of these little rodents and the potential they create for novel interventions for human learning disabilities.
Over 100 earthquakes of magnitude six or higher occur globally each year, according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS), causing numerous casualties. While plate tectonics are their primary cause, along with other factors such as volcanic activity, understanding and predicting their occurrence remains elusive. Now, a CUHK study has unearthed a novel cause: the stress exerted on faults by landslide-dammed lakes. It offers valuable insights for earthquake risk management and prediction.
It’s not often that a new species of abelisaurid dinosaur gets discovered – the habitat of the famous Carnotaurus hasn’t yielded another abelisaurid since it was found 40 years ago – but that’s exactly what a CUHK-led team has just done. The extensive set of bones they found in South America come from Koleken inakayali, an agile apex predator that inhabited the ancient southern supercontinent of Gondwana 60-plus million years ago. The discovery sheds light on how predatory dinosaurs evolved and shows that more than one top predator lived side by side in Late Cretaceous ecosystems.
Picture the tropical forest - hot, humid and full of obstacles. The dense plant life, uneven terrain and wild animals make it extremely difficult for researchers to monitor temperatures near the forest floor, crucial data for understanding the impact of climate change. Yet CUHK scientists have braved this inhospitable realm, overcoming immense challenges to discover cooler microclimates close to the ground, and offering vital clues about how these precious ecosystems are responding to our warming world.
Standing proud as the first comprehensive research university in mainland established by a Hong Kong academic institution, CUHK-Shenzhen is now celebrating its 10th anniversary and has embarked on a series of celebratory activities under the theme of “Decade of Success, Fusion of Innovation”. As CUHK-Shenzhen reflects upon its remarkable journey, it continues to inspire with the way it has turned its vision into reality.
A landmark CUHK-Elsevier report unveils the research prowess of the Greater Bay Area, with a 17.9% annual growth in output over five years. This dynamic region now hosts 420,000 active researchers – nearly doubling since 2018. CUHK has emerged as a standout performer, accounting for a significant share of the GBA’s cutting-edge research in fields like biomedicine and AI, while boasting the highest field-weighted citation impact (FWCI) among top institutions.
Recent CUHK medical discoveries provide hope for patients battling a range of diseases. An international study helps with the fight against diabetes, potentially facilitating early intervention and changing clinical practice. The development of novel retrievable nanorobots for targeted and enhanced thrombolysis may save stroke patients from brain damage. And a study reveals antiviral drug tenofovir disoproxil fumarate increases fracture risk in elderly patients with chronic hepatitis B.
CUHK is celebrating a range of accomplishments that solidify its status as a preeminent global leader in higher education and research. From a historic rise in prestigious university rankings to a sweep of awards at an esteemed international invention showcase, CUHK has consistently demonstrated its unparalleled commitment to academic excellence, innovative thinking and pioneering discoveries across its diverse programmes and world-class faculties.
As a world-renowned university, CUHK is devoted to fostering dialogue to exchange views on a variety of issues. Recently, CUHK organised a number of activities, including a climate conference that brought together scientists from China’s first homemade polar icebreaker, a dialogue that explored the ethical complexities of biomedicine through the lens of Buddhism, and an international finance forum for the 60th anniversary of CUHK Business School.
Imagine being trapped in a freezing body from head to toe, losing the ability to move, speak and even breathe. ALS, a mysterious condition that causes these symptoms, has long puzzled researchers. CUHK and University of Oxford researchers have discovered our bodies work like an intricate symphony orchestrated by our genetic instructions. A transcription factor called Yin Yang 1 (YY1) is playing the wrong notes, potentially leading to ALS.
Cardiovascular disease, hypertension and diabetes are considered diseases of affluence – and now another potential candidate has been added to the list. Researchers from CUHK and APRU found a surprising correlation between per capita GDP and laryngeal cancer instance rates, which are alarmingly high in the Caribbean and Europe due to unhealthy lifestyles. In addition, women in Japan, Switzerland and the Czech Republic are defying the global trend to register an increasing number of cases.
Prepare to be amazed by what kombucha can become. CUHK researchers have discovered that this beloved beverage holds the key to eco-friendly food packaging. It can be used to make a bio-based material that stretches like plastic but decomposes naturally, promising to revolutionise packaging. Best of all, it’s harmless and can even be eaten. Goodbye plastic pollution, thanks to the extraordinary potential of kombucha.
Dragons are intimately intertwined with Chinese culture – so much so that we’re not even sure of these mythological creatures’ origins. Whether they be an offshoot of ancient religious worship, a composite of animals like alligators, snakes or something else, they have long fascinated scholars. As a recent CUHK exhibition demonstrated, ancient Chinese artefacts with dragon designs can profoundly illuminate socio-cultural attitudes of people across different times.
Countries and regions worldwide fiercely compete to attract top talent. Support and infrastructure play a crucial role in academics’ and scientists’ decisions about where to pursue their research endeavours. Five world-renowned scientists have recently joined CUHK to establish cutting-edge STEM labs in Hong Kong. Let’s find out what drew them to do so and what they aspire to accomplish.
As an international university, CUHK is committed to promoting exchanges among tertiary institutions in different places. In late 2023, the University organised several presidential forums, and was involved in inaugurating the Belt & Road Alliance for Traditional Chinese Medicine. In celebration of CUHK’s 60th anniversary, it has held a series of commemorative events in the past few months, such as an anniversary banquet and a visit to CUHK from renowned cellist Yo-Yo Ma.
CUHK scholars continue to garner international accolades for their academic excellence. Remarkably, 13 of them were recognised among the most cited researchers of 2023 globally, while one has been elected as the only new Hong Kong member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. Read more to find out what else they have achieved.
Dialysis is inconvenient and debilitating for millions of people worldwide with chronic kidney disease (CKD), with a major negative impact on their daily lives. Even worse, there are no treatments for the major marker of the condition, kidney fibrosis – meaning the root of the problem cannot be tackled. However, thanks to a CUHK research team, that could change: while searching for an effective gene therapy for the disease, they discovered something surprising – tiny particles of gold alone are capable of treating it. So far, they’ve proved it works in mice; now they’re working towards trialling it in people.
Tick-tock, tick-tock: the climate clock is making an alarming sound, counting down the amount of time we have left to save the earth. Scorching heat and potentially devastating flooding are both on the rise. Two recent CUHK studies have explored what we can do about that: while one is helping the authorities map floods and take contingency measures, the other predicts an ever hotter future, and suggests ways we can mitigate the heat’s most debilitating effects.
It might surprise you that our immune systems have a memory, and it is crucial in our battle against diseases like COVID-19. The secret of improving this memory might be living inside you already. A research team from CUHK’s Faculty of Medicine has discovered the critical role that certain gut bacteria can play in lengthening the duration of immune responses to COVID-19 vaccines. The problem is, not everyone has them. As a result, they’ve come up with a supplement containing the beneficial bacteria, and demonstrated how effective it can be in boosting immunity. Now they’re looking at what our gut microbiome can do to protect us from other diseases.
CUHK has recently organised several events that demonstrate its research excellence in promoting innovation and technology. At the Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine International Society – Asia Pacific Conference 2023, 1000 research leaders and industry experts from around the world shared the latest breakthroughs; Innovation Day gathered over 40 CUHK start-ups to showcase the results of industry-academia-research collaboration; Entrepreneur Day provided a platform for academics, students, alumni, investors and industry to advance the entrepreneurship agenda; and the CUHK Robotics Open Day presented cutting edge discoveries to the wider community.
As CUHK marks its 60th anniversary, its members have received numerous prestigious honours. Professor Katalin Karikó, who was recently awarded the degree of Doctor of Science, honoris causa by CUHK, was honoured with the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2023 approximately two months later. Professor Liao Wei-hsin has become the first recipient from Hong Kong of the Leonardo Da Vinci Award. Professor Cheng Hong and her research team became the first in Hong Kong to receive the prestigious Best Paper Award (Research Track) from the ACM SIGKDD International Conference. Pro-Vice-Chancellor Professor Anthony Chan has been bestowed the European Society for Medical Oncology Lifetime Achievement Award. Last but not least, Vice-Chancellor Professor Rocky S. Tuan has been elected as Chair of the Association of Pacific Rim Universities.
Wearable artificial muscles offer the hope of recovery for people with devastating injuries and medical conditions. With ExoMuscle, Professor Raymond Tong Kai-yu from CUHK has come up with the most effective artificial muscle yet developed: twice as strong as human muscles, it could potentially be used to create a wearable exoskeleton, like something worn by super villain Doctor Octopus. ExoMuscle interprets signals from the muscles and brain through a unique interface that connects them with the bionic muscle.
Can you imagine how hot you would feel when a heatwave comes if you lived in a tin-sheet house? It would be like living in a steam oven. Heatwaves are roasting the world, smashing records with unrelenting severity. A CUHK research team has developed a high-performance radiative cooling paint based on recycled glass, a forgotten resource in our communities. It can potentially provide buildings with supplemental cooling without consuming energy.
Professor Katalin Karikó’s story is a shining example of how the power of persistence can lead to discoveries that change the world. In the face of countless obstacles, she tenaciously pursued her vision of utilising mRNA for therapy for decades. Alongside Professor Drew Weissman, their research paved the way for the development of life-saving Covid vaccines. She embodies not only relentless pursuit of scientific knowledge, but also the hope to ignite passion and inspire young minds about the wonders of science.