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HKU Scholars Won Prestigious National Award

11 Jan 2006

 

The University of Hong Kong's cutting edge in scientific and technological research has been affirmed again as its academics have been awarded the 2005 State Science and Technology Award (SSTA) at the prize presentation ceremony held in Beijing earlier on Monday.

Professor Sheung-tat Fan, Chair Professor of the Department of Surgery, and his liver transplant team comprised of Professor Chung-mau Lo, Dr Chi-Leung Liu, and Dr See-ching Chan, have won the first-class award for the category of State Scientific and Technology Progress Award (SSTPA). This is the first time that an entry from Hong Kong is conferred a first-class award under SSTA. Professor Vivian Wing-Wah Yam, Chair Professor of the Department of Chemistry, has been honoured with the second-class award for the category of State Natural Science Award (SNSA).

Professor Fan and his team's winning project, entitled ‘Adult-to-adult Right Lobe Live Donor Liver Transplantation', has been recognised as a breakthrough in the relevant field. Liver transplantation is the most effective treatment for patients with terminal liver diseases but its application is limited by the low organ donation rate in Hong Kong. The other possible source of liver grafts is from the living persons but its application in adult recipients was limited because it was thought that a person could donate a left lobe only but the left lobe is generally too small for most adult recipients. Ever since 1996, Professor Fan and his team have striven to refine the surgical technique of live donor liver transplantation (LDLT) by innovating and developing the procedure of right lobe liver graft. Since then, right lobe LDLT has been widely adopted by numerous liver transplant centres around the world.

Professor Fan, who has also been elected by the Chinese Academy of Engineering as an academician under the category of medicine and pharmacy recently said: "our team is very honoured to be recognised, for the first time, with a national award. Though liver transplant is the most difficult and challenging among other organ transplantations, our efforts are paid off when we see our patients can get back the hope of life through our work. We shall continue to refine the technical design of the operation, so as to maintain the excellent outcome of our transplant patients."

'Molecular Design and Luminescence Studies of Transition Metal Complexes with Alkynyl- and Chalcogen-Containing Ligands', a research project undertaken by Professor Vivian Wing-Wah Yam, was chosen out of over 135 entries competed in the category of natural science this year. Professor Yam, who is a member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, has devoted her research efforts to the molecular design and synthesis of novel luminescent inorganic and organometallic metal complexes that can serve as molecular functional materials. Some of these new molecular materials have promising optical and light-emitting properties, which may find interesting applications in materials, science, and as chemosensors or biosensors by utilizing luminescene as the reporting property for different substances. Professor Yam has been well respected by her counterparts over the world, as her articles have been extensively published in a number of renowned journals in relevant field, such as Accounts of Chemical Research, Angewandte Chemie International Edition, Journal of the American Chemical Society, Chemical Communications and her works have been widely cited.

Professor Yam said, "It is my great honour that our work has been recognised by our Nation. I would like to thank all my past and present research students and associates who have been involved in this project. This National Award re-affirms my belief that Hong Kong can be a place for excellence in basic science research and we will continue to work hard towards discovering more new classes of novel molecular functional materials with improved properties."

Professor Lap-Chee Tsui, Vice-Chancellor of the University, has extended his heartfelt congratulations by saying: "Professor Fan and Professor Yam are duly deserved to such distinguished scholarships. This accomplishment has again affirmed HKU's calibre and expertise in scientific and technological research. "

The SSTA, which are organised by the State Council of the People's Republic of China, is one of the most prestigious awards in the fields of science and technology in the mainland. The awards aim to recognise those citizens and organisations that are contributory to the scientific and technological progress activities.

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