S Y and H Y Cheng Professorship in Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative MedicineS Y and H Y Cheng Professorship in Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine"Dr Cheng Siu-Yue and Dr Cheng Hung-Yue, our late aunts, both medical alumnae of HKU in 1932, made immense contributions to the medical field in Hong Kong. It is our hope that this donation will enable HKU, our alma mater, to continue to make breakthroughs in Stem Cell Biology Research. " Mr Andrew Lee King-Fun (BArch 1956) |
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Danny ChanAppointed in 2016 A flat worm that was studied by Charles Darwin on his landmark expedition around the world on HMS Beagle is now being investigated as a possible key to stem cell and tissue regeneration. Planarians have the ability to regenerate their bodies and scientists believe they can replicate this biological ability to “rejuvenate” some human cells. |
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Ronald LiAppointed in 2011
Numerous currently incurable human diseases arise from the loss or malfunction of highly specialized cell types that lack the capacity to regenerate (such as heart and brain cells) due to diseases (such as myocardial infarction and stroke), traumas (such as spinal cord injuries due to accidents) or aging (such as blindness due to age-related macular degeneration and glaucoma). Recent identifications of various stem cell populations and advances in biomedical sciences have enabled clinicians and researchers to pursue for the first time the revolutionary paradigm of Regenerative Medicine, whereby damaged cells or organs can now be repaired or replaced. Therefore, stem cell research has the unprecedented potential to provide solutions to incurable medical conditions. The Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine Consortium (SCRMC) of the Medical Faculty takes a multi-disciplinary approach to study stem cells by broadly integrating the various unique strengths at HKU, with novel medical concepts and cutting-edge equipment. It is currently composed of more than 150 Faculty members and trainees from 16 Departments. SCRMC is also organizing a Hong Kong-wide Stem Cell Initiative. The Head of SCRMC is Professor Ronald Li, its Founding Director, who also holds Professorships in the Departments of Medicine and Physiology. Previously he was an Assistant Professor of Medicine at the Johns Hopkins University (JHU) in Maryland, and a tenured Associate Professor at the University of California, with appointments in Biomedical Engineering, Biophysics, Genetics, Physiology and Cell Biology. Professor Li’s main interest is to understand better the electrophysiological consequences of gene and cell-based heart therapies. His own research laboratory is helping to explain the behaviour and the biology of pluripotent human stem cells, cardiac differentiation, specification and maturation. The research team applies the basic knowledge gained to design and engineer custom-tailored cells and tissues as biological alternatives to conventional treatments and therapies. The group was the first to construct genetically engineered human embryonic stem cell-derived heart cells, and its work on a bio-artificial pacemaker has received high accolades. Other findings in the field have been recognised by the American Heart Association as the Best Basic Study of 2005, Ground-Breaking Study of 2006, and Late-breaking studies of 2003, 2004 and 2007. Professor Li’s laboratory has received funding from the National Institute of Health, California Institute of Regenerative Medicine, the Research Grant Council of Hong Kong, and others. Professor Li has received numerous honours for his work, including the Young Investigator Award of the Heart Rhythm Society in 2003, Top Junior Faculty Research Award from the Department of Medicine at JHU in 2002 and 2004. Internationally he has also served on many high-profile bodies including the National Institute of Health and the National Science Foundation in the US, the American Heart Association, The Medical Research Council and the Wellcome Trust in the UK, and the Research Grants Council of Hong Kong. |