Date: Wednesday, 27 January 2021

Venue: Cheung Kung Hai Lecture Theatre 1, G/F, William M.W. Mong Block, Faculty of Medicine Building, 21 Sassoon Road, Pokfulam, Hong Kong [Mixed mode: Face-to-Face and Zoom]

Time: 5:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.

Zoom Link: https://hku.zoom.us/j/92400869481?pwd=bm1nemVVSVprTndVbW55U2lOa1c5Zz09

Meeting ID: 924 0086 9481

Password: 147526

Time: 5:00 p.m.
Speaker: Dr. Man Tong (Research Assistant Professor)
Primary Supervisor: Dr. SKY Ma
Presentation Title: Novel therapeutic strategies to target dysregulated signaling pathways in hepatocellular carcinoma
Abstract: Advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a lethal malignancy with increasing prevalence globally. Treatment of HCC is challenging due to high rates of recurrence and drug resistance developed following standard chemotherapies or systemic therapies by targeting receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitors. Effective and well-tolerated treatments are urgently in need for this deadly disease. We have previously identified and characterized molecular targets which are critical in driving cancer stemness and drug resistance in HCC. Further, novel therapeutic drugs and strategies were developed with their efficacies being validated in preclinical animal models and patient derived xenografts and organoids. This talk will also cover our latest findings regarding the crosstalk between dysregulated signaling pathway and metabolic alterations in HCC and how this knowledge can be leveraged to develop more effective treatment strategies.

Time: 5:30 p.m. 
Speaker: Dr. Hoi Hang Ho (Post-doctoral Fellow)
Primary Supervisor: Dr. R Jauch
Presentation Title: Reprogramming and transdifferentiation of human cells with re-engineered and enhanced transcription factors
Abstract: The programming and transdifferentiation of cellular states through the overexpression of transcription factor combinations are plagued by low success rates, poor efficiency, lengthy procedures and the generation of immature cells.  Our group has previously shown that rational molecular design and directed molecular evolution can enhance the scaffolds of SOX and POU factors to improve the generation of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) in mouse. Here, we found that engineered SOX17 variants could also drive the transdifferentiation of aged mouse fibroblasts into induced neural stem cells (iNSCs). Yet, the variants identified in the mouse system might not be suitable to reprogram human cells. Thus, a direct screen in the human cell system is indispensable for the discovery of enhanced transcription factors in direct cell fate conversions. To benchmark screens with pooled libraries in human cells, we used human dermal fibroblasts and a “correlated hotspot” saturation mutagenesis eSOX17 library. Several new SOX17 variants were identified to outperform SOX2 in human pluripotency reprogramming and will be applied to develop a robust reprogramming method to generate clinical grade iPSCs. Lessons learned from human iPSC generation will inform strategies to identify enhanced transcription factors for the direct transdifferentiation and forward programming of human cells.

ALL ARE WELCOME

Should you have any enquiries, please feel free to contact Miss River Wong at 3917 9216.