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PolyU showcases at BIO International Convention

PolyU joined as an exhibitor at the BIO International Convention (BIO2023) held in Boston on 5-8 June to showcase our research expertise in Life Sciences and explore new opportunities for global partnerships. This year’s event attracted more than 15,000 attendees from 7,000 companies and 84 countries for a variety of business meetings and conferences over the past week. As the only University in Hong Kong exhibiting at this annual largest biotechnology meeting, we showcased PolyU’s capabilities in drug discovery and development, biomedical engineering, diagnostics, material science etc. The delegation was joined by three academics including Prof. Pei LI (ABCT), Dr. Xin ZHAO (BME) and Dr. Gilman SIU (HTI) to connect with industry leaders and learn best practices. It has been an inspiring experience to meet with great minds of the biotech industry across the world, and we are committed to further facilitate opportunities for international collaborations and partnerships. Looking forward to seeing you again at BIO2024 in San Diego!

PolyU researchers develop optoelectronic graded neurons for perceiving dynamic motion

The tiny visual systems of flying insects have inspired researchers of the Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) to develop optoelectronic graded neurons for perceiving dynamic motion, enriching the functions of vision sensors for agile response. Biological visual systems can effectively perceive motion in a complicated environment with high energy efficiency. Particularly, flying insects have high flicker function frequency (FFF) and could perceive objects with high motion speeds. This nature inspiration leads to advancing machine vision systems with very economical hardware resource. Conventional machine vision system for action recognition typically involves complex artificial neural networks such as “spatial” and “temporal” stream computation architectures. Led by Prof. Yang CHAI, Associate Dean of Faculty of Science and Professor in Department of Applied Physics at PolyU, the research team showed that optoelectronic graded neurons can perform high information transmission rate (>1000 bit/s) and fuse spatial and temporal information at sensory terminals. Significantly, the research finding empowers the functionalities that are unavailable in conventional image sensors. Prof. CHAI, said, “This research fundamentally deepens our understanding on bioinspired computing. The study finding contributes to potential applications on autonomous vehicles, which need to recognize high-speed motion on road traffic. Also, the technology may be used for some surveillance systems.” Bioinspired in-sensor computing Machine vision systems usually consist of hardware with physically separated image sensors and processing units. However, most sensors can only output “spatial” frames without fusing “temporal” information. Acute motion recognition requires “spatial” and “temporal” stream information to be transferred to and fused in the processing units. Therefore, this bioinspired in-sensor motion perception brings the progress in motion processing, which have been a computational challenge with considerable demands on computational resources. The PolyU research “Optoelectronic graded neurons for bioinspired in-sensor motion perception” is published on Nature Nanotechnology. The research team has focused on studies on in-sensor computing to process visual information at sensory terminals. In other previous studies, the team demonstrated the contrast enhancement of static images and visual adaptation to different light intensities. Prof. CHAI, noted, “We have been working on artificial vision for years. Previously, we only used sensor arrays to perceive static images in different environments and enhance their features. We further look into the question whether we can use a sensor array to perceive dynamic motion. However, sensory terminals cannot afford complicated hardware. Therefore, we choose to investigate the tiny visual systems such as those of flying insects which can agilely perceive dynamic motion.” Flying insects such as Drosophila with a tiny vision system can agilely recognize a moving object much faster than human. Specifically, its visual system consists of non-spiking graded neurons (retina-lamina) that have a much higher information transmission rate (R) than the spiking neurons in the human visual system. The tiny vision system of insect greatly decreases the signal transmission distance between the retina (sensor) and brain (computation unit). Essentially, the graded neurons enable efficient encoding of temporal information at sensory terminals, which reduces the transfer of abundant vision data of fusing spatiotemporal (spatial and temporal) information in a computation unit. This bioinspired agile motion perception leads to the research team to develop artificially optoelectronic graded neurons for in-sensor motion perception. Highly accurate motion recognition High accurate motion recognition is essential for machine applications such as for automated vehicles and surveillance systems. The research found that the charge dynamics of shallow trapping centres in MoS2 phototransistors emulate the characteristics of graded neurons, showing an information transmission rate of 1,200 bit s−1 and effectively encoding temporal light information. By encoding the spatiotemporal information and feeding the compressive images into an artificial neural network, the accuracy of action recognition reaches 99.2%, much higher than the recognition achieved with conventional image sensors (~50%). The research unleashes challenge in motion processing which demands considerable computational resources. Now, the artificially graded neurons enable direct sensing and encoding of the temporal information. The bioinspired vision sensor array can encode spatiotemporal visual information and display the contour of the trajectory, enable the perception of motion with limited hardware resources. Getting inspiration from agile motion perception of the insect visual systems, the research brings significant progress in the transmission speed and processing of integrated static and dynamic motion for machine vision systems in an intelligent way.

PolyU and Jinjiang Government to establish joint technology and innovation research institute

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) and the Jinjiang Municipal People’s Government have reached an agreement to establish the PolyU-Jinjiang Technology and Innovation Research Institute, aiming to strengthen and facilitate research collaboration among industries, academia and research organisations in Hong Kong and Jinjiang. Prof. Christopher CHAO, Vice President (Research and Innovation) of PolyU, and Mr WANG Mingyuan, Mayor of Jinjiang, signed the relevant agreement at an event held in the Quanzhou Nanyi National High-tech Zone on 2 June. The research institute will leverage PolyU’s research strengths and achievements to meet Jinjiang’s industrial needs and facilitate the city’s industrial transformation. PolyU and Jinjiang city will partner in various fields such as new textile materials, fashion design, intelligent wearable systems, microelectronics, future food, and public policy. The two parties will also nurture entrepreneurial talents with innovative technological knowledge and a global perspective. Capitalising on PolyU’s research excellence and Jinjiang’s industrial strengths and resources, the collaboration between the two parties will support Jinjiang’s development into a top-notch innovation hub, jointly promote the two-way integration of the industrial chain and the innovation chain, and inject new impetus into the development of local high-tech industries.

PolyU researchers achieve record 19.31% efficiency with organic solar cells

Researchers from The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) have achieved a breakthrough power-conversion efficiency (PCE) of 19.31% with organic solar cells (OSCs), also known as polymer solar cells. This remarkable binary OSC efficiency will help enhance applications of these advanced solar energy devices. The PCE, a measure of the power generated from a given solar irradiation, is considered a significant benchmark for the performance of photovoltaics (PVs), or solar panels, in power generation. The improved efficiency of over 19% that was achieved by the PolyU researchers constitutes a record for binary OSCs, which have one donor and one acceptor in the photo-active layer. Led by Prof. LI Gang, Chair Professor of Energy Conversion Technology and Sir Sze-Yuen Chung Endowed Professor in Renewable Energy at PolyU, the research team invented a novel OSC morphology-regulating technique by using 1,3,5-trichlorobenzene as a crystallisation regulator. This new technique boosts OSC efficiency and stability. The team developed a non-monotonic intermediated state manipulation (ISM) strategy to manipulate the bulk-heterojunction (BHJ) OS morphology and simultaneously optimise the crystallisation dynamics and energy loss of non-fullerene OSCs. Unlike the strategy of using traditional solvent additives, which is based on excessive molecular aggregation in films, the ISM strategy promotes the formation of more ordered molecular stacking and favourable molecular aggregation. As a result, the PCE was considerably increased and the undesirable non-radiative recombination loss was reduced. Notably, non-radiative recombination lowers the light generation efficiency and increases the heat loss. The research team’s findings are described in the study “19.3% Binary Organic Solar Cell and Low Non-Radiative Recombination Enabled by Non-Monotonic Intermediate State Transition” published in Nature Communications . The conversion of solar energy to electricity is an essential technology for achieving a sustainable environment. Although OSCs are promising devices that harness solar energy cost-effectively, their efficiency must be improved if they are to be used widely in practical applications. Prof. Li said, “Challenges in research came from the existing additive-based benchmark morphology control methods, which suffer from non-radiative recombination loss, thus lowering the open-circuit voltage due to excessive aggregation.” The research team took about two years to devise a non-monotonic ISM strategy for increasing the OSC efficiency and lowering the non-radiative recombination loss. The publication of the study promises to galvanise OSC research. Prof. Li said, “The new finding will make OSC research an exciting field, and this will likely create tremendous opportunities in applications like portable electronics and building-integrated PVs.” The new door will open when low cost single-junction OSCs can achieve a PCE of over 20%, along with more stable performance and other unique advantages such as flexibility, transparency, stretchability, low weight and tuneable colour. Prof. Li has been recognised as a Highly Cited Researcher 9 years in a row since 2014, which testifies to his significant impact on global research. His pioneering contributions to research on polymer solar cells since 2005 have brought sustainable influence on printable solar energy development with global recognition. Prof. Li said, “The latest study shows a record low non-radiative recombination loss of 0.168 eV in a binary OSC with a PCE of over 19%. This is a very encouraging result for the long-standing research on OSCs that I have conducted over the past two decades. We have already achieved better OSC efficiency, and this will subsequently help accelerate the applications of solar energy.”

PolyU project Co-Building Kuk Po awarded the Countryside Conservation Funding Scheme to revitalise village

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) has received a funding support of HK$3 million from Countryside Conservation Funding Scheme (CCFS) for a cultural rehabilitation / revitalisation project on “Co-Building Kuk Po: Creating, Sharing, Learning & Enjoying” with a duration of 18 months. Led by Mr Michael Chan, Senior Teaching Fellow in School of Design at PolyU, the project aims at revitalizing the Kuk Po village, strengthening connections between the villagers and community and sharing history and stories of Kuk Po.  Kuk Po village has great potential to foster development of diversified industries, such as education, agriculture, catering, craftsmanship and tourism. The project will design directory signs to provide information and direction, along with creation of studied history and stories about the village. A new hiking route at Sheck Nga Tau for elaborating a historical story board, as well as mobile public rest area for tourists and old villagers will be constructed. Also, the project team and villagers will co-organise a series of workshops for the public. Traditional festivals like Chinese New Year and Mid-Autumn Festival will be celebrated in a modern way on carnival festivity for the gathering of villagers.  Co-learning ambassador team will be formed to attract new generations of the village and local people on conservation activity and contribution. These innovative activities aim to increase public awareness on Kuk Po and its sustainable development, together with promotion of art education on local community.  Implemented under the Countryside Conservation Office (CCO) in Environment Branch of the Environment and Ecology Bureau, the CCFS is dedicated to support sustainable and holistic conservation efforts in Hong Kong’s rural countryside through an integrated funding source covering a wide spectrum of areas on different levels ranging from natural environment/habitats, non-graded built heritage to cultural and historic assets, etc. 

PolyU and Wenzhou government sign agreement to drive the establishment of a joint technology and innovation research institute

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) and the Wenzhou Municipal People’s Government have reached an agreement to drive the formation of the PolyU-Wenzhou Technology and Innovation Research Institute, with the aim of promoting Wenzhou to become a key innovation and technology hub for entrepreneurs and talents. Through this innovation platform which is the result of government-academia collaboration, both sides will partner in the research of core technologies in various fields including new energy, advanced materials, intelligent wearable devices, maritime engineering equipment, offshore wind power, blockchain, and fashion design. PolyU will leverage its research excellence to support Wenzhou’s development into a top-notch technology innovation base, through fostering the city’s translational research and commercialisation of research and innovation. Both sides will also join hands to nurture innovative and entrepreneurial talents who are knowledgeable about critical technologies of the future and possess a global outlook. The framework agreement was signed on PolyU’s campus on 22 May 2023 by Prof. Christopher CHAO, PolyU’s Vice President (Research and Innovation) and Mr WANG Zhenyong, Vice Mayor of Wenzhou. The signing was witnessed by Dr LAM Tai-fai, Council Chairman of PolyU; Prof. Jin-Guang TENG, President of PolyU; Dr Miranda LOU, Executive Vice President of PolyU; together with Mr LIU Xiaotao, Standing Committee Member of the Zhejiang Provincial Communist Party Committee and the Party Secretary of Wenzhou; Mr WANG Jun, Secretary General of the Wenzhou Municipal Communist Party Committee; and Mr WANG Chi, Head of the United Front Work Department of the Wenzhou Party Committee. PolyU has established strong partnerships with universities and research institutes in the Mainland. The University also collaborates with Mainland businesses and local authorities in the promotion of translational research and knowledge transfer, while actively encouraging its students to learn about the development trends and opportunities in the Mainland. Recently, PolyU has engaged numerous local governments to discuss establishing joint technology and innovation research institutes, which connect PolyU’s capabilities and achievements in basic research to the needs of local industries. These collaborations would contribute to the Nation’s self-reliance in its pursuit of technological advancement and benefit the development of local manufacturing sectors.

Inauguration of joint research centre on smart rail transit technology formed by PolyU and Qingdao West Coast New Area government

Inauguration of the Joint R&D Centre for Smart Rail Transit Monitoring Technology (the Centre) was held on 23 May 2023 at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU). The Centre is jointly established by PolyU and Qingdao West Coast New Area (Qingdao New Area) government, with the aim of promoting intelligent rail transit monitoring system. The Centre is a research and technology collaboration between Qingdao New Area government and the National Rail Transit Electrification and Automation Engineering Technology Research Centre (Hong Kong Branch) (CNERC-Rail) of PolyU. Riding on PolyU’s academic and research expertise, the Centre aims to drive advancing rail transit technology for the promotion of smart transportation. The inauguration ceremony was hosted by Prof. Jin-Guang TENG, President of PolyU and Prof. Christopher CHAO, Vice President (Research and Innovation) of PolyU and it was joined by a delegation of Qingdao government led by Ms. YU Yu, Head of the Organization Department of the Qingdao Party Committee. The delegation of Qingdao municipal government and administrative committee of Qingdao New Area visited PolyU and the Industrial Centre. The delegates also participated in fruitful discussions with PolyU researchers from CNERC-Rail and Faculty of Construction and Environment. Valuable discussion was made to drive the establishment of a joint research institute with Qingdao New Area government. The joint research institute aims to drive research collaboration, innovations incubation and talents development. Through this government-academia collaboration platform, it aims to promote the development of world-class technology hub in Qingdao.

PolyU and CUHK jointly develop ABarginase, the first-in-class drug for multiple obesity-related metabolic diseases

Researchers from The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) and The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) have jointly made a groundbreaking drug discovery in treating multiple metabolic diseases related to obesity and insulin resistance like diabetes and fatty liver disease. The new drug, ABarginase, opens a new path for safe, long-lasting cures to multiple obesity related diseases simultaneously through an ingenious treatment mechanism – arginine starvation. Currently, patients often have to take multiple medications for these inter-related diseases, and are hence more prone to the potential risks of polypharmacy. ABarginase shows promise for the effective treatment of multiple metabolic diseases including prediabetes, type 2 diabetes and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. The fabrication process of ABarginase is inexpensive and highly efficient, making it affordable and widely adoptable for clinical applications. The research is led by Prof. Thomas LEUNG Yun-chung, Professor of the Department of Applied Biology and Chemical Technology and Lo Ka Chung Charitable Foundation Professor in Pharmaceutical Sciences of PolyU, and Prof. Alisa SHUM Sau-wun, Associate Professor, School of Biomedical Sciences of the Faculty of Medicine of CUHK. Obesity is not just about being fat. It is associated with many chronic diseases, such as diabetes, nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, heart disease, hypertension and cancer. The PolyU-CUHK research team discovered that a low level of arginine (a semi-essential amino acid) in the blood can suppress fat synthesis, promote fat breakdown and sensitise cells to insulin. Native arginase can break down arginine, but it has a short circulatory half-life of less than 30 minutes. Prof. Thomas Leung said, “By using an advanced fusion protein strategy, our research team developed a long-lasting recombinant human arginase, ABarginase, that contains an albumin-binding domain, which enables it to bind with the stable and abundant albumin in the blood stream to extend its half-life by about 200 folds. ABarginase exhibits strong catabolic activity and it would only require one dose of ABarginase a week to maintain circulating arginine at low levels to achieve arginine starvation.” In preclinical studies, diet-induced obese mice were injected with ABarginase once a week, while control mice were injected with saline. Researchers found that within eight weeks of treatment with ABarginase, the treatment group’s body weight, fat mass, fatty liver and characteristic features of diabetes such as high blood glucose, insulin resistance and glucose intolerance were entirely reversed. Prof. Alisa Shum said, “The promising results show that ABarginase has great potential in safely and effectively treating multiple metabolic diseases related to obesity, insulin resistance, diabetes, and most importantly nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, which has no FDA-approved drug so far. We may have found the one drug that can cure them all.” Patent applications for this invention were filed in multiple countries. The research team is now scaling up the production for manufacturing ABarginase at Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) grade in preparation for conducting clinical trials. Prof. Leung and Prof. Shum further added, “As scientists, we dream of building a better world. The successful development of ABarginase is an important step towards realising our dream.” In an affirmation of its potential benefit to patients and positive impact on global health, as well as a testament to the research excellence of inter-university collaboration, ABarginase recently won one of the two prestigious Grand Prizes awarded to Hong Kong in this year’s International Exhibition of Inventions Geneva – the International Federation of Inventors’ Associations (IFIA) Best Invention Award. Obesity is generally recognised as a global health problem. According to the latest data of the World Health Organization, more than 1.9 billion adults were overweight and over 650 million adults were obese in 2016, accounting for 39% and 13% of the world’s adult population. While in Hong Kong, about one in two adults are considered to be overweight or obese. The joint research project is supported by the Lo Ka Chung Charitable Foundation Limited, the Health and Medical Research Fund of the Health Bureau and the State Key Laboratory of Chemical Biology and Drug Discovery of PolyU.

PolyU and China Harbour establish joint research centre to promote land development research

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) and China Harbour Engineering Co. Ltd (CHEC) have collaborated to establish the China Harbour–PolyU Joint Research Centre for Land Development (JRC) to promote sustainable land development, develop a green, low-carbon economy and improve the urban living environment. The Centre inauguration ceremony was held on the PolyU campus on 17 May. The establishment of the research centre symbolises a joint effort between PolyU and CHEC to boost practical research into land development. The Ceremony was attended by Mr TSE Chin-wan, Secretary for Environment and Ecology; Mr Shuiqiu YE, Deputy Director-General of the Department of Educational, Scientific and Technological Affairs of the Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in the HKSAR; Mr Ka Sing KWONG, Head of Project Strategy and Governance Office of the Development Bureau of the HKSAR; Ir Aaron Kwok Ming BOK, President of The Hong Kong Institution of Engineers; Mr Hoi Shan HSU, Director of the Beijing–Hong Kong Academic Exchange Centre; Mr Hang LIANG, Vice General Manager of the Greater Bay Area Branch of the China Communications Construction Company Ltd ; Mr Heming JIANG, Deputy Manager of CHEC (Hong Kong), Prof. Jin-Guang TENG, President of PolyU; Prof. Qingyan CHEN, Director of the PolyU Academy of Interdisciplinary Research (PAIR); and Prof. Xiaoli DING, Director of the PolyU Research Institute of Land and Space (RILS). The collaboration agreement on the establishment of the JRC was signed by Prof. Christopher CHAO, Vice President (Research and Innovation) of PolyU and Mr Yong XUE, Managing Director of CHEC (Hong Kong). Mr Tse Chin-wan, Secretary for Environment and Ecology said, “The JRC provides an excellent platform for both basic and applied research in the field of green land development and construction. I look forward to important new research results from the Centre that will contribute to green land development and construction in Hong Kong and help Hong Kong achieve its target of carbon neutrality, making it a more livable and sustainable city.” Prof. Teng, President of PolyU said, “The CHEC–PolyU Joint Research Centre for Land Development will effectively combine PolyU’s strong scientific research capabilities with CHEC’s extensive experience in project implementation. Through close cooperation between the two parties, the Centre will propose innovative ideas and advanced technologies, and, through knowledge transfer, the research outcomes can be applied to land development projects in Hong Kong, the Greater Bay Area, the Nation and other parts of the world, hence improving livelihoods and contributing to societal sustainability.” Mr Yong Xue, Managing Director of CHEC (Hong Kong) said, “The global vision, project experience and outstanding research strengths of the combined team will boost research and development in advanced new technologies, in particular for green, low-carbon and sustainable land development and construction. We aim to promote the findings of the JRC to benefit the entire industry and society as a whole by enhancing the efficiency, safety, cost-effectiveness and environmental protection in the process of land development and construction.” The JRC is the first joint research centre established by the China Communications Construction Company Ltd (CCCC), parent company of CHEC, in partnership with a Hong Kong higher educational institution. The JRC will harness CHEC’s abundant resources and experience in implementing projects and applying technologies in Hong Kong and other parts of the world, with PolyU’s solid research strengths in land and infrastructure development. The JRC will be jointly operated by RILS and CHEC under the leadership of inaugural Co-Directors, Prof. Jianguo DAI, Management Committee Member of RILS, PolyU and Mr Hualei SUN, General Manager of Administration Department of CHEC (Hong Kong). The Centre will initially focus on research innovation, knowledge transfer and talent cultivation in the following areas:   • Technologies for marine engineering and construction of immersed tunnels to connect islands;   • Technologies for innovative prefabricated building, smart harbour and smart airport projects, facilitating the efficient use of land;   • Solutions for municipal and marine solid waste treatment, contributing to the realisation of carbon neutrality, and better recycling and reuse of municipal and marine solid wastes;   • Fibre-reinforced polymer composite materials and green high-performance concrete for marine engineering; and   • Life-cycle technologies for marine infrastructures and development, and application of innovative AI-based spatial information technologies for construction projects. Mr Ming LIN, Chief Scientist of CCCC and Academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, said, “CCCC attaches great importance to technological innovation and application. As the first joint construction industry-university research centre in Hong Kong, CCCC will fully support the operation of the JRC, striving to create a better development blueprint for Hong Kong, contributing to the implementation of national development strategies for transportation, marine construction, and supporting major development projects in Hong Kong and the GBA.”

PolyU showcased innovations at World Intelligence Congress in Tianjin

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) recently participated in the 7th World Intelligence Congress (WIC) in Tianjin to showcase technology innovations and to join other valuable exchange activities. Prof. Christopher CHAO, Vice President (Research and Innovation) of PolyU led a delegation of PolyU scholars to attend the opening ceremony of the 7th WIC and other exchange programmes in Tianjin.  With the theme on “Intelligence: Extensive Development Space, Sustainable Growth Driver,” WIC focused on cutting-edge scientific topics such as generative artificial intelligence (AI), 5G+AI, smart manufacturing. The three-day event brought government officials, scientists and entrepreneurs together to explore cooperation opportunities.  In the technology exhibition, PolyU showcased latest innovations in ultra-precision machining and medical technology such as Nano Multi-rings Defocus Incorporated Lens and AI-driven heart disease diagnosis technology. PolyU also co-organized a seminar on Tianjin-Hong Kong technology and innovation cooperation with Tianjin’s technology bureau. In the seminar, Prof. CHAO said riding on Tianjin’s solid entrepreneur and industry foundation and PolyU’s research expertise and talents, both entities would contribute to further collaboration on the establishment of research institute and promotion on translational research and knowledge transfer. During the seminar, PolyU researchers, Tianjin’s technology entrepreneurs and education institutions made insightful sharing and discussion on innovative technologies such as ultraprecision machine technology, drones, AI-driven disease diagnosis, autonomous driving system. The discussion paved the way for further collaboration in research and technology development.  A delegation of Tianjin’s technology bureau visited PolyU in February this year. PolyU was invited by the delegation to visit Tianjin and attend the president-entrepreneur round table forum at the WIC. Moving forward, PolyU would actively promote exchanges and cooperation with Tianjin government and organisations for further cooperation in research and technology development and talents exchange.