PolyU Science in the News

PolyU discovers inadequate calcium, iron and iodine intakes of Hong Kong lactating women

While breastfeeding has become more common across the globe in recent years, lactating women may not be aware of the nutrient adequacy of their breast milk and how their daily diet affects their nutrition intakes. The research team at the Laboratory for Infant & Child of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU)'s Food Safety and Technology Research Centre (FSTRC) has undertaken a study in breast milk to analyze the calcium, iron and iodine levels of breast milk of Hong Kong lactating women and their daily intakes of the respective micronutrients. This is the second phase of the previous research which unveiled the level of polyunsaturated fatty acids (DHA, EPA and AA) of breast milk and lactating women's average daily intake levels of DHA and EPA last year. PolyU researchers recruited 95 lactating women participants between May 2014 and August 2015. They collected breast milk samples and conducted a 3-day diet survey with the participants and subsequently analysed the levels of calcium, iron and iodine in the collected breast milk. Results revealed that about 51 percent, 74 percent and 48 percent of the breast milk samples of the 39 lactating women with 0-6 month-old infants met the adequate intake levels of calcium (200 mg per day), iron (0.3 mg per day) and iodine (85 μg per day) recommended by the Chinese Dietary Reference Intakes (DRIs) 2013 respectively. This suggested that, in most cases, breast milk could supply sufficient micronutrients to support infant growth from the day when they were born to six months old, the period before complementary foods would be given to infants. However, the daily intakes of calcium, iron and iodine of the 95 breastfeeding mother participants in the study were significantly lower than the DRIs' recommendations, with only 12 percent, 6 percent and 2 percent of participants fulfilling the recommended intakes of calcium, iron and iodine respectively. The lack of calcium may lead to osteoporosis, rickets or cardiovascular diseases. The adverse effects on health that may be caused by the lack of iron include iron deficiency anemia and impaired immune response. The lack of iodine may lead to hypothyroidism, goiter, cretinism etc. In view of the research results, Mr Gordon Cheung, Registered Dietitian and Project Fellow of the FSTRC of PolyU's Department of Applied Biology and Chemical Technology (ABCT), suggested that breastfeeding mothers consume a wide variety of food, especially dairy products, tofu, dark green leafy vegetables, meat, legumes, seafood and seaweed products so as to prevent adverse health effects such as osteoporosis, anemia, and warrant the optimal growth and development of infants and young children. Professor Wong Man-sau, Professor of PolyU's ABCT and Deputy Director of FSTRC said, "Our research results reveal that the daily intakes of micronutrients of Hong Kong lactating women are significantly lower than the recommended daily intake levels. Although we have only analyzed the nutritional characteristics of breast milk and dietary habits of lactating women, our major concern is the overall well-being of both breast-fed babies and their lactating mothers. Therefore, we suggest that our lactating mothers should ensure their nutrient adequacy before, during and after breastfeeding by making healthy and balanced food choices." The research team will work to develop a dietary guideline for lactating women in collaboration with other medical professionals and undertake community-based education work to achieve nutritional adequacy via balanced diet amongst lactating women. The research team would like to thank all the participants in the study, Hong Kong Nutrition Association, Hong Kong Catholic Breastfeeding Association, Hong Kong Breastfeeding Mothers' Association, La Leche League Hong Kong, MaMaMilk Baby Alliance, Natural Parenting Network, Integrative Health Clinic at PolyU, Centre for Nutritional Studies at CUHK, Dr Sophie Leung Suk Fong, Professor Su Yixiang of Sun Yat-sen University and the research team of PolyU's FSTRC for their great help and support to the project.  

PolyU presents MA Graduation Fashion Show at the Hong Kong Fashion Week

With the support of the Hong Kong Trade Development Council, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU)'s Institute of Textiles and Clothing (ITC) staged its annual Master of Arts Graduation Fashion Show today (6 July) at the Hong Kong Fashion Week for Spring/Summer. The Show is one of the highlights of the Hong Kong Fashion Week. The Show showcased the creative works of nine selected ITC graduating students from the Master of Arts in Fashion and Textile Design programme. The students each presented a collection of eight original outfits designed under their chosen themes which demonstrated their innovation and creativity. As the sole institute providing taught post-graduate programme in fashion and textiles in Hong Kong, ITC offers interesting and exciting opportunities to those who wish to pursue a career in the dynamic fashion and textiles industry. Since its inception in 1957, ITC has been committed to educational training and development for the advancement of Hong Kong's fashion and textile industry through various research and scholarly activities.  

PolyU stages Intimate Fashion Show 2016 at Hong Kong Fashion Week

With the dedicated effort of 33 students under the strong support from the industry, the Intimate Fashion Show was held yesterday (4 July) at the Hong Kong Fashion Week for Spring/Summer. It showcased the final collections of six outfits designed by 12 selected graduating students from The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU)'s Institute of Textiles and Clothing (ITC) majoring in Intimate Apparel. The raw materials as well as the design and production mentoring for the show were sponsored by intimate apparel manufacturers and suppliers. This is the third year that ITC organised the Intimate Fashion Show. Professor John H. Xin, Chair Professor and Head of ITC, remarked that the students' innovation, talent and passion for intimate apparel design were manifested in this unique fashion show. With ITC's close connections with the industry, Professor Xin announced that the show has already secured the full support of two companies, Crystal Group and High Fashion Group, in the coming two years. Mr Kenneth K.C. Wong, Chairman of Hong Kong Intimate Apparel Industries' Association (HKIAIA) and the Executive Director of Top Form International Limited, stressed that HKIAIA would continue to support and nurture the young generation for the future growth of the industry. Mr Kane Zhang, Chief Executive Officer of Best Pacific International Holdings Limited, said that, as an act of social responsibility, they were committed to to support professional intimate apparel education in developing young talents to meet the industry needs. He acknowledged that the precious experience of preparing for the fashion show would help students to develop their future career in the fast-growing industry.  

PolyU fashion design graduates stage Fashion Show 2016

Twenty graduating students from The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU)'s Institute of Textiles and Clothing (ITC) showcased their design flair and talent at the PolyU Fashion Show 2016 on 14 June at the Hong Kong Convention & Exhibition Centre. The graduating students are from the Bachelor of Arts (Honours) Scheme in Fashion and Textiles. Over 2,000 industrialists, fashion designers, media friends and fashion bloggers were attracted to the Show. The Show was officiated by Dr Hon Lam Tai-fai, Legislative Council Member, (Functional Constituency – Industrial [Second]), Mr Anthony Keung, President and CEO of Fenix Group Holdings Ltd, and Professor John Xin, Head and Chair Professor of ITC. ITC is honoured to have invited Ms Masha Ma, MASHAMA CEO & Chief Designer, MASHAMA Ltd as the VIP Judge. Members of the judging panel also comprised well-known fashion designers, scholars and seasoned practitioners of the fashion industry. They are: Ms Janet Cheung, Vice Chairman, Hong Kong Fashion Designers Association Professor Eileen Karp, Chairperson, Fashion Design Department, School of Art and Design, Fashion Institute of Technology, USA Mr Stephen Ma, Head of Design, Initial Fashion Company Ltd Mr Walter Ma, renowned fashion designer; Director, Walter Ma & Co Ltd Mr Xaven Mak, Editor-in-Chief, Harper's Bazaar HK Professor Elinor Renfrew, Head of Fashion Department & Associate Head of Design School, Kingston University, UK Mr Harrison Wong, renowned fashion designer; Design Director, Harrison Wong Ltd and other representatives from the sponsors. Presenting their original collections of six outfits at the fashion show, the students also competed for five awards and three travelling scholarships to Australia and Denmark. Yip Tak-chi, Cobe, with her creative design themed Invisible Children was the winner of the Overall Grand Award. Please refer to the appendix for the full list of awardees.  

PolyU hosted the first-ever citywide fashion festival 'Fashion Future for Hong Kong'

Over 2,500 fashion design professionals gathered at the 'Fashion Future for Hong Kong', the first-ever citywide festival jointly presented by The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU)'s Institute of Textiles and Clothing (ITC) and the Hong Kong Fashion Designers Association (HKFDA) yesterday at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre. With the funding support of CreateSmart Initiative of the HKSAR Government, the Festival offered a series of activities including an international fashion design seminar, a local talent alumni fashion show and an international fashion design competition. The festival aims at nurturing young fashion design talents and promote Hong Kong as a regional creative fashion hub. The Festival was officially opened by Mr Gregory So, Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development; Mr Jerry Liu, Head of Create Hong Kong; Mr Kevin Yeung, Chairman of HKFDA; and Professor Philip Chan, Deputy President and Provost of PolyU. "The Government of the Hong Kong SAR attaches great importance to the development of the fashion industry of Hong Kong. We have made a conscious attempt to capitalise on our past success and seek to bring the fashion design of Hong Kong to a new horizon," said Mr Gregory So. "I am grateful to the organisers of today's event, the Institute of Textiles and Clothing of the Hong Kong Polytechnic University and the Hong Kong Fashion Designers Association. We will see the convergence of creative ideas and works of well-established players in the field. Through such convergence we see both inheritance and competition that would ignite new senses and spark off creativity in fashion design." International Fashion Design Seminar To inspire fashion design students, graduates and professionals, four prominent fashion scholars and designers shared their views and insights on fashion design education, as well as the upcoming trends of the fashion industry. The two fashion scholars, Professor Eileen Karp, Chairperson of Fashion Design Department, School of Art and Design, Fashion Institute of Technology, USA; and Professor Elinor Renfrew, Head of Fashion Department and Associate Head of Design School, Kingston University, UK, shared the prevalent fashion design education strategies in their hometowns. Both agreed that fashion educators should be committed to nurture creative and innovative graduates to meet the needs of the challenging industry. The other two speakers, Miss Molly Goddard and Miss Holly Fulton, are the creative directors of their own fashion brands, based in the world's best fashion city, London. They shared their professional knowledge and experience on fashion design trends and revealed the challenges of being fashion designers in London. Hong Kong Young Talent Alumni Fashion Show To enhance the image and exposure of local fashion brands, the Show featured the latest collections designed by 18 local young designers graduated from four different local institutes, including Caritas Bianchi College of Careers, Hong Kong Design Institute, School of Continuing and Professional Studies of The Chinese University of Hong Kong, and ITC of PolyU.  

PolyU stages Knitwear Fashion Show

The creative flair and design talent of graduating students from The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU)'s Institute of Textiles and Clothing (ITC) received an over-whelming response and appreciation from the industry at the Annual Knitwear Fashion Show held today (30 May) at The Mira Hong Kong. With the concerted effort of ITC design students, PolyU and various knitwear producers and yarn suppliers, the annual Knitwear Fashion Show showcased 22 collections of four outfits from 22 graduating students majoring in knitwear design. The raw materials and manufacturing techniques for the show were sponsored by knitwear producers and yarn suppliers. Professor John H. Xin, Head and Chair Professor of ITC, said, "This is the eighth successive year for ITC to organise the Knitwear Fashion Show. We are thrilled to receive enormous support from the industry throughout the years. Apart from providing a platform for the students to demonstrate their creativity and talent, the Show also helps in strengthening the connection and building a long lasting partnership between ITC and the industry. ITC will continue to nurture talented professionals for the industry and to support sustainable development of the knitwear industry." As the sole provider of tertiary education in fashion and textiles in Hong Kong, ITC offers exciting opportunities to those who wish to pursue careers in the dynamic fashion and textiles industry. Since its inception in 1957, ITC is committed to educational training and development for the advancement of the Hong Kong fashion and textile industry through various research and scholarly activities.

PolyU Develops Novel Nano Biosensor for Rapid Detection of Flu Virus

The Department of Applied Physics (AP) and Interdisciplinary Division of Biomedical Engineering (BME) of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) have jointly developed a novel nano biosensor for rapid detection of flu and other viruses. PolyU's new invention utilizes an optical method called upconversion luminescence resonance energy transfer (LRET) process for ultrasensitive virus detection. It involves simple operational procedures, significantly reducing its testing duration from around 1-3 days to 2-3 hours, making it more than 10 times quicker than traditional clinical methods. Its cost is around HK$20 per sample, which is 80% lower than traditional testing methods. The technology can be widely used for the detection of different types of viruses, shedding new light on the development of low-cost, rapid and ultrasensitive detection of different viruses. Traditional biological methods for flu virus detection include genetic analysis -- reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) used in immunology. However, RT-PCR is expensive and time-consuming while the sensitivity for ELISA is relatively low. Such limitations make them difficult for clinical use as a front-line and on-site diagnostic tool for virus detection, paving the way for PolyU's development of the new upconversion nanoparticle biosensor which utilizes luminescent technique in virus detection. PolyU's researchers have developed a biosensor based on luminescent technique which operates like two matching pieces of magnet with attraction force. It involves the development of upconversion nanoparticles (UCNPs) conjugated with a probe oligo whose DNA base pairs are complementary with that of the gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) flu virus oligo. Given the complementary nature of the DNA base pairs of the UCNPs probe oligo and AuNPs flu virus oligo, they work like two matching pieces of magnet, which would be drawn together due to attraction force. This process is also called oligo hybridization. Upon being illuminated by a portable near-infrared laser pen, the UCNPs emit eye-visible green light while the AuNPs would absorb the green light. One can easily quantify the concentration of the targeted flu virus by measuring the decrease in the green light intensity. Initially, PolyU researchers have utilized upconversion LRET for ultrasensitive virus detection in liquid phase system. The research team has further improved the sensitivity of the luminescent detection method by utilizing a solid phased nanoporous membrane system (NAAO) for virus detection. As NAAO membrane consists of many hollow channels, they allow more space for oligo hybridization to take place, significantly increasing its sensitivity by more than 10 folds compared to the liquid phase system, proven by clinical detection using inactivated virus samples. Not only is the design and operation of PolyU's invention simple, it does not require expensive instruments and sophisticated operational skills, with its sensitivity comparable to traditional clinical methods. In comparison to conventional downconversion luminescent technique, it causes low damage to genetic materials and does not induce background fluorescence. In addition, since each virus has a unique genetic sequence, researchers would be able to design a complementary probe once the genetic sequence of the targeted virus is known. In other words, the upconversion LRET technology can be widely used for the detection of different types of viruses simply by modifying the UCNPs capture probe. The related results have been recently published in ACS Nano and Small, two leading journals in nano material research. With the support from the Innovation and Technology Support Programme, the research team will continue to enhance the nano biosensor for rapid virus detection, which includes increasing its sensitivity and specificity, and developing a matrix for detection of multiple flu viruses on a single testing platform.

PolyU Develops Fluorescent Probes for Rapid Detection of Formaldehyde in Food

The Department of Applied Biology and Chemical Technology (ABCT) of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) has developed fluorescent probes for rapid detection of formaldehyde in food. In recent years, formaldehyde has been discovered to be illegally used in food processing for bleaching and preservation purposes, arousing health concerns by the general public. PolyU's highly selective formaldehyde rapid detection method involves only simple procedures. It can test 10 food samples on-site in one go in comparison to traditional methods which entail 30 minutes for the testing of each food sample one by one. Its cost is less than HK$30, which is 90% lower than traditional testing methods. If the food sample contains formaldehyde, under hand-held UV light, the fluorescent probes will appear to be fluorescent blue, which can be easily observed by naked eyes. Traditional methods for formaldehyde measurement are liquid chromatography which involves chemical derivation of formaldehyde, chromatographic separation and instrumental analysis of the formaldehyde content with reference to the sample standard. However, these methods require expensive instruments, sophisticated operational skills, tedious sample preparation and time-consuming analysis. Given their low testing through-put, the testing of 10 food samples would require up to 5 hours (10 X 30 minutes), making these methods not suitable for on-site food safety inspection. In addition, the test results of formaldehyde testing kits available in the market are easily interfered by irrelevant substances. Their low selectivity and stability make them difficult to satisfy the on-site food safety inspection and high through-put needs of the industry and authorities. Based on prior research on a chemical reaction that enables chemical coupling of 1) amine-functionalized resins, 2) formaldehyde and 3) fluorescent dyes via gold catalysis, PolyU researchers have developed fluorescent probes for rapid detection of formaldehyde in food with excellent selectivity and high stability. Firstly, researchers added pre-treated food samples, amine-functionalized resins, fluorescent dyes and gold catalysts into a container, and heated the solution at 50 oC for 1 hour. After that, organic solvents were added to wash out excessive reagents. The three-component coupling reaction will connect resin-linked sterically bulky amines and fluorescent alkynes through chemical bonding with formaldehyde in food so that the surface of the resins will give out fluorescent blue colour under hand-held UV light. One can easily detect the formaldehyde concentration by observing the brightness of the fluorescent colour by naked eyes. Not only is the design and operation of PolyU's invention simple, it does not require expensive instruments and sophisticated operational skills. It can test 10 food samples in one go, making it an ideal solution for on-site food safety inspection and front-line quality control. The research was conducted by ABCT in collaboration with Guangdong Entry-Exit Inspection and Quarantine Bureau. The related paper has been recently published in Organic & Biomolecular Chemistry, a leading journal in Organic Chemistry. A joint PolyU-GDCIQ China patent has been filed. The research team will continue to enhance the formaldehyde rapid detection method, which include developing a new class of tunable fluorescent dyes and developing high through-put rapid detection formats.