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The Research Grants Council of the University Grants Committee has announced today (July 15) the funding results of the Theme-based Research Scheme (TRS) for 2024/25. Of the seven research projects awarded, HKU research teams have achieved outstanding results leading three of them, securing a total funding of HKD$ 133.684 million.

HKU researchers also participate in three other TRS projects. 

TRS aims to focus academic research efforts of UGC-funded universities on themes of strategic importance to the long-term development of Hong Kong.

Moreover, HKU researchers are collaborators in two projects under the Areas of Excellence Scheme.

The accomplishments by HKU researchers will further bolster the University’s worldwide reputation as a premier research institution and promote a culture of innovation and excellence. HKU remains dedicated to seeking further funding opportunities to support its research endeavours and contribute to the betterment of Hong Kong and the world.

The three HKU-led TRS projects are:

Theme 1: Understanding Diseases and Disease Prevention
Project Title: Sustained cART-free HIV-1 Control by Immunotherapeutic Interventions 
Project Coordinator:
Professor CHEN Zhiwei
Department of Microbiology, School of Clinical Medicine, LKS Faculty of Medicine

Project description
Since the discovery of AIDS virus in 1983, there has remained a need for research breakthroughs on a cure. Over 39 million people living with HIV-1 (PLWH) continue to face the challenges of drug resistance, cumulative drug toxicity, and stigma associated with their life-long use of combination antiretroviral therapy (cART). The proposed TRS project, led by Chair Professor Chen Zhiwei of the HKU AIDS Institute, aims to investigate effective immunotherapies that can potentiate host immunity to achieve sustained cART-free HIV-1 control, a state of viral suppression below the limit of detection for a prolonged period in PLWH. Using the advanced techniques of systems virology and immunology, Professor Chen will collaborate closely with scientists and clinicians from HKU, CUHK and Immune Cure to determine the mechanism of PD1-based vaccine-mediated six-year cART-free virologic control in animal models, the impact of the PD1-based vaccine on the viral reservoir among cART-treated PLWH, and sustained cART-free HIV-1 virologic control using analytical treatment interruption and combination immunotherapy. The aim of the findings is to enrich our knowledge of mechanisms of immune protection, which are critical for saving the lives of PLWH, and for reducing the toxicity of, and resistance to, cART, and for reducing the financial burden on governments and individuals.

Project title: Understanding Phenotypic Plasticity in Hepatocellular Carcinoma to Mitigate Therapy Resistance and Tumour Recurrence
Project Coordinator:
Professor Stephanie K.Y. MA
School of Biomedical Sciences, LKS Faculty of Medicine

Project description
Hepatocellular Carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most prevalent and aggressive types of primary liver cancer in this region. The overall prognosis is unsatisfactory due to late presentation, drug resistance, and frequent tumour recurrence. Cancer cell plasticity is now a recognised hallmark of cancer, allowing cancer cells to undergo molecular and phenotypic changes that permit them to adopt different differentiation states. The researchers believe that the maintenance of stemness and a less differentiated state plays a critical role in the onset, progression, and severity of HCC, particularly in driving therapy resistance and tumour recurrence. The overall goal is to understand the biology of cancer cell plasticity, particularly tumour stemness, and its relationship with drug response and tumour relapse, and to lay the foundation for the development of personalised medicine and the discovery of new therapeutic targets, thereby improving healthcare for people suffering from the disease.

Theme 2: Developing a Sustainable Environment
Project Title: High-Frequency, High-Power and High-Efficiency Wireless Power Transfer Technologies
Project Coordinator:
Professor Ron Shu-Yuen HUI 
Co-Principal Investigator
Professor Siew Chong TAN 
Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Faculty of Engineering

Project description
The power level of wireless power transfer (WPT) traditionally decreases with increasing operating frequency. The operating region of high-frequency (HF) and high-power (HP) is a generally uncharted territory of WPT. Mega-Hertz operations pose three technological hurdles including the lack of (i) WPT resonators with precise parameters suitable for mass production, (ii) low-loss gate drive and power inverters with low switching losses and (iii) low-loss electromagnetic shielding materials for MHz operation.

This proposal overcomes these problems with three new and integrated approaches for HF-HP-High Efficiency (HE) WPT applications. We shall study (a) new MHz printed-circuit-board (PCB) resonator structures with high quality factor, (b) new MHz gate drive circuits for soft-switched power inverters, and (c) low-loss metasurface for electromagnetic shielding for HF-HP-HE WPT systems.

The potential applications include wireless charging of consumer electronics, laptops, drones, e-bikes and mobile robots. The Hong Kong Government has clear policy to stay as a technology hub for the Greater Bay Area in China. The project team has previously contributed to the world’s wireless charging standard “Qi”. This new project will provide new technologies for the uncharted territory of HP, HF and HE WPT regime, strengthening Hong Kong as a globally leading innovation hub in WPT technology.

The accomplishments by HKU researchers will further bolster the University’s worldwide reputation as a premier research institution and promote a culture of innovation and excellence. HKU remains dedicated to seeking further funding opportunities to support its research endeavours and contribute to the betterment of Hong Kong and the world.

For RGC's press release, please visit: https://www.info.gov.hk/gia/general/202407/15/P2024071500374.htm

For media enquiries, please contact:
Communication and Public Affairs Office, HKU
Ms Melanie Wan (Tel: 2859 2600 / Email: melwkwan@hku.hk)
Ms Jaymee Ng (Tel: 3910 3612 / Email: ngjaymee@hku.hk)
Mr Kenneth Choi (Tel: 3917 2607 / Email: khkchoi@hku.hk)