Home | Department of Life Sciences

We strive to provide the best education to our students, perform state-of-the-art research at the interface between biology and chemistry, and serve the innovation and technological community.

Interim Head of Department of Life Sciences

Prof. Chow Ming-cheung, Larry

International Rankings

50 th

QS World University Rankings 2027

80 th

Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2026

7 th

Times Higher Education Young University Rankings 2024 (Global)

3 rd

Times Higher Education World’s Most International Universities 2025 (Global)

18 th

Times Higher Education Asia University Rankings 2026

56 th

Times Higher Education Impact Rankings 2025

What's New

Congratulations to Prof. Zhao Yanxiang on receiving the Faculty Award for Outstanding Achievement in Research and Scholarly Activities

Prof. Zhao Yanxiang is the Associate Head of the Department of Life Sciences, and Chair Professor of Biochemistry and Biotechnology. She joined PolyU Faculty of Science in 2006 — and this year marks her 20th anniversary with PolyU. Her primary research interest lies in autophagy (think of it as your body’s internal recycling and cleanup crew), alongside cell metabolism and the structure-based development of functional molecules with therapeutic

10 Sep 2026

Faculty Awards for Outstanding Achievement 2026

Applications are now open for the prestigious Hong Kong PhD Fellowship Scheme (HKPFS) for Academic Year 2027/28

We are pleased to announce that applications are now open for the prestigious Hong Kong PhD Fellowship Scheme (HKPFS) for the 2027/28 academic year. The application deadline is 1 December 2026. PolyU's HKPFS Package 2027/28 Successful HKPFS awardees of PolyU will receive for the entire normal study period: Annual Stipend: HK$344,400 (~US$44,154) Research Excellence Scholarship: in the form of a tuition fee waiver Annual Conferenc

4 Sep 2026

Dr Rainbow Leung Wing Hei and Dr Martina Lei Mang Leng from Department of ABCT has won the Grand Prize and First Prize at The 12th Hong Kong University Student Innovation and Entrepreneurship Competition

We are delighted to announce that ABCT PhD students Dr Rainbow Leung Wing Hei and Dr. Martina Lei Mang Leng from our department has won the Grand Prize and First Prize at The 12th Hong Kong University Student Innovation and Entrepreneurship Competition. Under the supervision of Prof. Terence Lee Kin-wah and Prof. Clarence Wong Tsun-ting, their project — "Therapeutic efficacy of peptide-linked chimeric antigen receptor macrophages (pCAR-M) in so

2 Jun 2026

Big congratulations to Prof. Larry Chow and Prof. Ben Ko! They have both been awarded PolyU’s inaugural "Top 10 Research & Innovation Stories of the Year”!

Big congratulations to our Department Head, Prof. Larry Chow, and Associate Professor, Prof. Ben Ko! They have both been awarded PolyU’s inaugural "Top 10 Research & Innovation Stories of the Year”! This recognition celebrates impactful research that drives progress in Hong Kong and beyond. Prof. Larry Chow is leading a groundbreaking Advanced Therapy Product (ATP) Laboratory – a state-of-the-art, PIC/S GMP-compliant facility dedicated to ce

31 May 2026

Data explosion in AI era: PolyU leads breakthroughs in protein-based data storage, delivering high storage capacity, strong stability and encryption capabilities

Facing the massive volumes of data generated by AI training and smart devices, Prof. Zhongping YAO, Associate Head and Professor of the Department of Applied Biology and Chemical Technology, Dr Cheuk-chi NG, Research Assistant Professor of the same department, and Prof. Chung-Ming Francis LAU, Associate Dean (Global Engagement) of the Faculty of Engineering and Professor of the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, have achieved

22 May 2026