Jingle All the Way: ABCT's Christmas Party Filled with Joy and Laughter

Department of Applied Biology and Chemical Technology (ABCT) celebrated its remarkable Christmas Party at Hotel ICON on 11 December 2023. We would like to express our heartfelt gratitude to all those who attended the event and contributed to its joyous atmosphere. Your presence made the celebration truly special, and we are grateful for your support. In particular, we would like to extend our deepest appreciation to the Lim Peng Suan Charitable Trust, our generous donor, for their unwavering support in advancing our department's development initiatives. Their contributions have had a significant impact, and we are sincerely thankful for their continued support. During the event, we took the opportunity to recognize and honor outstanding alumni, staff, and students who have demonstrated exceptional achievements in teaching and research. Their dedication and hard work have not gone unnoticed, and we congratulate them on their well-deserved awards. Further details about the awardees can be found below.   Outstanding PolyU Alumni Award of Department of ABCT 2023 Entrepreneurial Achievement Scholarly Achievement Dr HO Kam-piu Chief Scientific Officer & Founder, GRST Holdings Limited Dr Franco LEUNG King-chi Assistant Professor, Department of Applied Biology and Chemical Technology, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University     ABCT Excellence Award 2023 (Research Output) Awardee Discipline Research Paper Title Name of Journal Paper Dr Chua Song-lin Biology Simultaneous Dissemination of Nanoplastics and Antibiotic Resistance by Nematode Couriers Environmental Science and Technology Prof. Lee Kin-wah, Terence Biology Broad-spectrum Kinome Profiling Identifies CDK6 Upregulation as a Driver of Lenvatinib Resistance in Hepatocellular Carcinoma Nature Communications Dr Lawrence Yoon Suk Lee Chemistry Bridging Li-Ion Batteries and Fuel Cells: from Cathode Leaching Residue to an Atomic-Scale Catalytic System ACS Energy Letters Dr Lo Tsz-woon, Benedict Chemistry Cu–Co Dual-Atom Catalysts Supported on Hierarchical USY Zeolites for an Efficient Cross-Dehydrogenative C(sp2)–N Coupling Reaction Journal of the American Chemical Society (ACS Publication) Dr Xu Linli Chemistry Strongly Coupled Interface Facilitating Charge Separation to the Improved Visible Light-driven Hydrogen Production on CdS@polydopamine/NiS Photocatalyst Journal of Materials Chemistry A   ABCT Excellence Award 2023 (Research Impact) Awardee Discipline Research Impact Title Dr Chua Song-lin Biology MicroFish: A Rapid Detection and On-site Monitoring System in a Bio-chip Dr Ma Cong Chemistry First-in-Class Small Molecule Antibiotic Drug Candidates   ABCT Excellence Award 2023 (Outstanding Postgraduate Student) Awardee Discipline AU Chi Ming Chemistry XU Tianpeng Chemistry NG Shan Shan Chemistry CHEN Xianhong Chemistry CHEUNG Leong-Hung Chemistry LI Zhen Chemistry LEI Mang Leng Biology BEI Ho Pan Biology KONG Wai Po Biology     ABCT Excellence Award 2023 (Teaching) Awardee Prof. Yu Wing-yiu, Michael, Professor Dr Cheung Kwong-chak, Gary, Senior Teaching Fellow Dr Ho Chi-fong, Susan, Senior Teaching Fellow Dr Cheung Ching-mei, Chartia, Teaching Fellow Dr Lam Kim-hung, Teaching Fellow     ABCT Excellence Award 2023 (Teaching Support) Awardee Dr Chan Chun-ming, Fortune, Scientific Officer Dr Lee Chun-kit, Alan, Scientific Officer     As the holiday season approaches, we wish everyone a joyous Christmas holiday filled with love, laughter, and cherished moments with loved ones. May the spirit of this festive season bring you everlasting joy and happiness throughout the coming year.   We once again extend our gratitude to all those who made our Christmas Party an unforgettable occasion. Your presence and support are greatly appreciated, and we eagerly look forward to future endeavors together. Happy holidays, and may the spirit of Christmas illuminate your lives!

Visit of Prof. BAO Xinhe for ABCT Distinguished Lecture and Laboratories Tour

Prof. BAO Xinhe, President at University of Science and Technology of China, Professor at Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics for Chinese Academy of Sciences, and Academician of Chinese Academy of Sciences, has visited The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) on 09 December 2023. During his visit, Prof. BAO Xinhe delivered a distinguished lecture “Efficient catalytic conversion of carbon-based energy for carbon neutrality” that showcased the frontier research achievements of his group over the years. During the talk, Prof. Bao gave a deep analysis of the optimal utilization of fossil fuels, scale development of renewable energy and the promising application future for utilization of carbon dioxide. Meanwhile, Prof. BAO also discussed the emerging carbon strategic catalysis technologies, including carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS), as well as hydrogen energy. Following the lecture, Prof. BAO had a meeting with the senior management of PolyU including the Prof. TENG Jinguang, President, Prof. WANG Zuankai, Associate Vice President (Research and Innovation), Prof. WONG Wai-yeung, Dean of Faculty of Science, Prof. WONG Christina, Director of Research and Innovation, Prof. YUNG Kai-leung, Director of Research Centre for Deep Space Explorations, and Dr. HUANG Bolong, Director of Research Centre for Carbon-Strategic Catalysis. During the meeting, Prof. Bao and senior management discussed the development and collaboration between PolyU and USTC. Especially for the talent cultivations in science and humanity, as well as the deep space explorations, PolyU and USTC will start deep collaborations in the future. After the meeting, Prof. BAO visited the laboratories at PolyU accompanied by Dr. HUANG Bolong. Prof. Bao first visited the Chinese National Rail Transit Electrification and Automation Engineering Technology Research Centre (CNERC-Rail). Prof. Yi-qing NI, Director of CNERC-Rail, and Dr. WANG Youwu, Research Assistant Professor introduced the contributions of CNERC-Rail to the rail transit electrification development and automation engineering in China. Then, Prof. Bao further visited University Research Facility in Life Sciences (ULS). Prof. Thomas LEUNG, the Director of ULS, guided Prof. BAO and showcased the cutting-edge equipment such as Cryo-EM. During Prof. BAO’s visit to PolyU, he not only shared the excellent research achievements but also had in-depth communications with researchers and senior management of PolyU, offering a valuable opportunity for knowledge exchange and collaboration between Polyu and USTC in the field of energy catalysis and related areas.   2023年12月9日下午，中國科學技術大學校長、中國科學院大連化學物理研究所教授、中國科學院院士包信和院士訪問了香港理工大學（理大）。 抵達理大之後，包信和院士先做了一場傑出學術講座，展示了團隊多年來在能源催化研究的重要研究成果，深入分析了化石燃料利用方式和可再生能源的規模發展以及二氧化碳轉化在能源科學領域的應用前景。除此之外，包信和院士也與大家分享討論了碳捕集利用和儲存、氫能轉化在內的催化技術。 學術講座結束後，包院士與理大高階管理層進行了座談，出席者包括滕錦光院士（校長）、王鑽開教授（協理副校長- 研究及創新）、黃維揚教授（理學院院長）、黃詠恩教授（研究及創新事務主任）、容啟亮教授（深空探測研究中心主任）及黃勃龍博士（碳戰略催化研究中心主任兼應用生物及化學科技系副教授）。 在座談上，包院士與理大高階管理層就兩校的發展與合作展開探討，特別是在科學與人文的交流，以及深空探索領域的聯合人才培養方面，兩校將在未來進行深入合作。 座談結束後，包院士在黃勃龍博士的陪同下參觀了兩間理大實驗室。 首站是理大國家軌道交通電氣化與自動化工程技術研究中心，由中心主任倪一清教授和研究助理教授王友武博士陪同參觀與介紹，詳細闡述了目前理大在國家鐵路交通電氣化和自動化工程發展中的重要貢獻， 並展示了前沿研究成果。 接下來，包院士參觀了理大生命科學中心實驗室，由實驗室主任梁潤松教授為包院士介紹了理大的冷凍電鏡等實驗設施。 在這次訪問中，包信和院士不僅分享了他的前沿科研成果，還與理工大學研究人員以及管理層進行了深入交流，為兩校未來在能源催化以及相關前沿領域進行全方位的知識交流與合作提供了寶貴的契機。

Captivating speech delivered by Prof. Wong Wing-tak during the “Testing and Certification Manpower Development Award Scheme 2023-24” award presentation ceremony

We are delighted to announce that the "Testing and Certification Manpower Development Award Scheme 2023-24," organized by the Hong Kong Council for Testing and Certification with unwavering support from the Innovation and Technology Commission, successfully conducted its award ceremony on the 4 December 2023. This remarkable event aimed to foster a culture of talent training and development within the Testing and Certification (T&C) industry, while also recognizing the unwavering dedication of T&C practitioners who have consistently pursued continuous learning and professional development, as well as contributed significantly to the enhancement of service quality. With the presence of over 200 distinguished guests and esteemed awardees, the occasion was truly momentous and celebrated the collective achievements of the industry.   Professor Wong Wing Tak, Chairman of the Hong Kong Council for Testing and Certification, congratulated the awarded organizations and practitioners during the award ceremony. He expressed, "Through their remarkable achievements, we hope to raise awareness among various sectors of society about the importance placed on talent in the testing and certification industry. We aim to foster young people's understanding of the profession's mission and its contributions to society, facilitate talent acquisition in the industry, and construct a new era of sustainable development for Hong Kong's testing and certification industry in the age of technological innovation."   Please refer to the press release for more details: 「2023-24年度檢測認證人力發展嘉許計劃」公布得獎結果 - 新浪香港 (sina.com.hk)

Dr Huang Bolong Honored as Highly Cited Researcher 2023 in the field of Chemistry by Clarivate

PolyU's Inaugural iGEM Team Makes History with First Silver Medal Win

Thirteen undergraduate students from the Department of Applied Biology and Chemical Technology formed the first team in Hong Kong Polytechnic University called PolYneer made history by winning a prestigious silver medal alongside top universities at the 2023 International Genetically Engineered Machine (iGEM) competition held in Paris, France from November 2-5 .   iGEM is a prestigious international synthetic biology event that attracts over 6,000 participants worldwide, including undergraduate college students, graduates, and high school students from 40 countries. The team "PolYneer" combines “PolyU” and "Pioneer", representing the team as the first ever team from PolyU and their mission to pioneer new solutions. While the capital Y illustrates their research topic of developing novel bispecific antibody to address a critical issue in the treatment of osimertinib-resistant non-small cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC). Osimertinib is the first-line targeted therapy for NSCLC patients with EGFR mutations, yet it is often accompanied by likelihood of resistance development.   To overcome this resistance, the team created an award-winning peptide-based bispecific antibody called Polyneerab, which simultaneously binds to both EGFR and c-MET on cell surface. Polyneerab demonstrated a profound effect on the suppression of cell growth in osimertinib-refractory NSCLC cells in combination with osimertinib treatment. Our novel approach also overcomes the shortcomings of traditional bispecific antibodies, including the complex production process and high production costs. The innovative potential of Polyneerab was evidenced by the team's prior acquisition of a Team Impact Grant in July during the same competition. In the Hackathon competition in the same event, two members of the PolYneer team showcased their exceptional skills in computer coding design, and were subsequently chosen as one of the top three finalists.   The ambition of PolYneer is to discover a cost-effective solution that can help combat the therapeutic resistance of NSCLC patients in the hope of improving their treatment outcomes. Throughout the competition, PolYneer actively participated in several outreach initiatives, including online surveys to raise awareness of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) in Hong Kong and a T-shirt sales campaign to support the Hong Kong Cancer Fund. The PolYneer team exemplified PolyU's ethos of "Opening Minds, Shaping the Future", making breakthroughs for NSCLC treatment and elevating cancer knowledge in their local community. Their receipt of a silver medal at the prestigious iGEM competition highlights Hong Kong's growing stature as a leader in biotechnology innovation and underscores the tremendous potential of the next generation of researchers to develop solutions that can benefit public health worldwide.     香港理工大學首支iGem團隊創歷史 榮獲銀牌   由應用生物及化學科技學系的十三名本科生組成的香港理工大學首支團隊PolYneer，於2023年11月2日至5日在法國巴黎舉辦的國際基因工程機器International Genetically Engineered Machine (iGEM)競賽中比賽中與耶魯大學、牛津大學、麻省理工學院等頂尖大學一起奪得銀牌，創下歷史。   iGEM是一項聲譽卓著的國際合成生物學賽事，吸引了來自全球40多個國家的超過6,000名參賽者，包括本科生、研究生和高中生。團隊"PolYneer"結合了“PolyU”和“Pioneer”的概念，代表著理大的首支隊伍，及其開創新解決方案的使命。大寫的Y展示了他們的研究主題，即開發新型雙特異性抗體，以解決治療奧希替尼(osimertinib)耐藥性非小細胞肺癌(NSCLC)。奧希替尼是帶有EGFR突變的NSCLC患者的一線靶向治療藥物，但很容易產生耐藥性。   為了克服這種耐藥性，團隊創造了一種獲獎的基於多肽的雙特異性抗體Polyneerab，能同時與細胞表面的EGFR和c-MET結合。Polyneerab在與奧希替尼治療結合使用時，對抑制奧希替尼耐藥性NSCLC細胞的生長表現出深刻的效果。我們的新方法還克服了傳統雙特異性抗體的缺點，包括複雜的生產過程和高昂的生產成本。Polyneerab的創新潛力在同一賽事7月份獲得Team Impact Grant。在同一賽事的Hackathon競賽中，PolYneer團隊的兩名成員展示了他們在計算機編碼設計方面的卓越技能，隨後被選為前三強的得奬者。   PolYneer的抱負是用他們的高成本效益解決方案合成多肽雙特異性抗體，幫助對抗NSCLC患者的治療耐藥性，希望改善他們的治療結果。在整個比賽過程中，PolYneer積極參與了多項外展活動，包括在香港進行線上調查，提高對非小細胞肺癌(NSCLC)的認識，以及銷售T恤衫以支持香港癌症基金會。PolYneer團隊體現了理工大學“啟迪思維• 成就未來”的精神，為NSCLC治療取得突破，提升了本地社區對癌症的認識。他們在聲譽卓著的iGEM比賽中獲得銀牌，凸顯了香港在生物技術創新領域日益增長的地位，並突顯了下一代研究人員開發對全球公共衛生有益解決方案的巨大潛力。  

PolyU ABCT Scholars ranked The World’s Top 2 Percent Scientists by Stanford University

PolyU Scientist Achieves Breakthrough Recognition from Falling Walls Science for New Catalyst Materials Developed in 2023

Dr Bolong HUANG, an Associate Professor of Department of Applied Biology and Chemical Technology at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU), has been chosen as a finalist for the Falling Walls Science Breakthroughs of the Year 2023 in the Engineering and Technology category. This recognition is for his research in nanocatalysts that have applications in sustainable energy. Dr Huang is one of the three Hong Kong awardees in this category.    Dr Huang's research interests encompass theoretical calculations of electronic structures in various materials, including energy materials and rare earth materials. His focus is on developing catalyst materials that support sustainable energy supply and conversion technologies, in line with global environmental protection goals.    Using his expertise in theoretical calculations and machine learning techniques, Dr Huang is dedicated to creating new catalysts for important chemical reactions in sustainable development. This includes generating hydrogen through water-splitting, improving fuel cells and metal-air batteries through oxygen reduction and evolution, and reducing carbon dioxide emissions.    Dr Huang explained, “My theoretical calculations not only accelerate the discovery of novel catalysts but also gain crucial insights into fundamental reaction mechanisms. I am driven to pursue catalysis research to identify more novel functional materials that can be applied in sustainable developments.”   The Award aims to promote research and innovation across all disciplines by recognizing groundbreaking discoveries. The award, established by the Falling Walls Foundation in Berlin, celebrates the most recent advancements in science and society worldwide.     理大科學家研發新型催化劑 入圍德國Falling Walls科學突破獎2023    香港理工大學（理大）應用生物及化學科技學系副教授黃勃龍博士，憑藉研發納米催化劑，研究成果為可持續能源的碳戰略實現廣泛應用，入圍德國Falling Walls科學突破獎2023-工程技術類別。該類別有三名來自香港的學者入圍，黃勃龍博士是其中一位。   黃勃龍博士的研究專長包括︰納米材料、能源材料、固體功能材料、稀土材料等的電子結構理論計算，及其在多規模能源轉換和供應系統中的應用。他致力於催化方面的研究，以開發支持可持續能源供應和轉換技術的新型催化劑材料，為保護環境的全球願景作出貢獻。    發揮在理論計算和機器學習技術方面的專業知識和經驗，黃勃龍博士為可持續發展開發新型催化劑，包括水分解產生的氫氣（H2）、用於燃料電池和金屬空氣電池的氧氣還原和進化，以及降低二氧化碳控制碳排放。   黃博士表示︰「透過理論計算除了加快研發新型催化劑，更能從中增進及洞悉基本反應機制的重要見解。我將繼續專注催化研究，發掘更多可應用於可持續發展的新型功能材料。」   德國跨界創新基金會（The Falling Walls Foundation）設於德國柏林，其頒發的Falling Walls科學突破獎旨在表彰取得傑出成就和突破的科學家，對研究領域產生了長遠重大的影響，並為解決全球性挑戰作出貢獻。

ABCT PhD Graduate Achieved the FS Outstanding PhD Thesis Award 2022-23

We are delighted to announce that Dr. CHEN Tianxiang, ABCT PhD graduate under the supervision of Dr. Benedict Lo, has received the FS Outstanding PhD Thesis Award 2022/23. The FS Outstanding PhD Thesis Awards Scheme aims to recognize the outstanding PhD students in the Faculty of Science for the high quality of their theses produced during their studies at PolyU.   Dr. CHEN’s research focuses on the rational design and characterisation of atomically precise 3d metal clusters in zeolites. And he is greatly interested in the structure‐activity correlations of supported metal clusters in reactions by exploiting a combination of state-of-art characterisation techniques. His winning thesis is entitled “Precise synthesis of Cu-based metal nanoclusters in zeolites and the structure-catalysis investigations”.   Supported single-atoms (SAs) and metal nanoclusters (NCs) are well-known as next-generation nanomaterials. Great efforts have been made to engineer the electronic and geometric properties of the metal moiety(ies) in SAs and NCs, for instance, the coordination environment, metal compositions, and host materials. Contributing to the development of advanced characterisation techniques, a comprehensive comprehension of the electronic and geometric properties of SAs and NCs can be achieved.   Dr. CHEN’s thesis focuses on the precise synthesis of supported NCs with high accuracy. Capitalizing on the fundamental principles of coordination chemistry and solid-state chemistry, a stepwise assembly strategy has been proposed for the synthesis of multinuclear copper-based NCs within zeolite supports. By utilizing cutting-edge structural elucidation techniques, the electronic and geometric structures of the NCs have been unravelled, and their atomic-level structure-activity relationships have been extensively discussed. This thesis demonstrates the remarkable ability to manipulate the geometric and electronic structure of metal clusters at an atomic level.   Let’s us take this chance to congratulate Dr. CHEN and honor his incredible achievement.

PolyU researchers unveil liquid metal microelectrodes with soft, stretchable and permeable properties to be used for implantable bioelectronic devices

PolyU chemistry scholar received Higher Education Outstanding Scientific Research Output Award from the Ministry of Education