Date: Wednesday, 9 March 2022

Time: 5:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.

via Zoom:  https://hku.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJAvc-ipqTopGNBY8-KoplpvE5ws08GkD-R9

Meeting ID: 942 4117 1324

Passcode: 325101

5:00 p.m.

Speaker: Dr. Xiaonan DONG (Post-doctoral Fellow)
Primary Supervisor: Prof. Kathryn Song Eng CHEAH
Presentation Title: Potential nucleus pulposus progenitors and their relevance to intervertebral disc degeneration
Abstract: Intervertebral disc disease (IDD) is a major cause of low back pain that imposes clinical burdens worldwide. The impairment of reparative capacity of the intervertebral disc (IVD) is a possible pathogenetic mechanism. The nucleus pulposus (NP) is a hydrated gelatinous core at the central of IVD that contributes to the shock-absorbance function. Healthy IVD contains notochordal-like cells (NCLs) and chondrocyte-like cells (CLCs) in NP, which produce key extracellular matrix proteins. The number of NCLs diminishes rapidly with age, leaving the CLCs to become the dominant cell type, with the emergence of myofibroblast-like cells during IDD. Knowledge of the cellular heterogeneity, molecular and functional characteristics of progenitors in the NP and their role in maintaining a healthy disc is still limited. Using a combination of genetic approaches to tag cell-cycle label-retention in mice and single-cell transcriptomics, we identify considerable cell heterogeneity and the presence of both slow- and fast-cycling cells in adult mouse NP. The data support our hypothesis that slow-cycling cells might serve as potential resident progenitors which can be activated to replace the senescent cells and maintain NP homeostasis. Prodrug-mediated cycling cell ablation and premature disc degeneration mouse models are being employed to understand the functional roles of these cell types.

5:30 p.m. 

Speaker: Dr. Yuan GAO (Post-doctoral Fellow)
Primary Supervisor: Dr. Stephanie Kwai Yee MA
Presentation Title: The role of URB1-AS1 in regulating sorafenib sensitivity of hepatocellular carcinoma
Abstract: The drug resistance of sorafenib, a first-line treatment for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), is an important problem to be solved urgently. Despite much research, there are still limited strategies to overcome sorafenib resistance. To comprehensively elucidate the mechanism of HCC sorafenib resistance, we performed LncRNA sequencing and found that LncRNA URB1-AS1 was up-regulated in sorafenib-resistant samples and was closely related to sorafenib resistance. Through in vitro and in vivo experiments and clinical sample analysis we will systematically confirm the role of URB1-AS1 in mediating HCC sorafenib resistance. Together, our work may suggest an important role of URB1-AS1 in mediating HCC sorafenib resistance.

ALL ARE WELCOME

Should you have any enquiries, please feel free to contact Miss Veronica Kwok at 3917 9515.