EY1920 Year Book

45 44 The somatosensory system is a component of the mammalian nervous system that is concerned with the perception and interpretation of external stimuli and internal changes of the body. While the general structure of this system is known, its development and molecular heterogeneity is not fully understood. Thus, the research focus of my lab is the specification and integration of different sensory neuron subgroups into functional neural circuits during development. Introduction Molecular principles underlying the neuronal specification and neural circuit formation in the peripheral nervous system Department of Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet As two genetically distinct groups of tropomyosin receptor kinase C (TrkC) expressed in proprioceptive sensory neurons (PSNs) cells were found, it raises the question of whether there competition amongst developing PSNs. This project addresses this by manipulating the expression level of TRKC in PSNs before the cell death. Figure 4: Induction of Exogenous TrkC+ Strategy R26pCAG;TrkCCreERT2 mouse line This basic science research has great potential for clinical applications such as treatment of neurological diseases, by neuronal replacement therapy. Currently, in-vitro culture systems are used to derive specific neuron types from stem cells, which are then transplanted locally to disperse in the targeted neural tissue. Thus, we believe that a better understanding of the mechanisms of neurogenesis might provide a critical step in ensuring optimal transplantation. Figure 3: High TrkC+ Population Ablation Strategy TrkCCreERT2;R26GFPDTAmouse line Figure 2: Experimental strategy using transgenic mice Figure 1: Schematic overviewof early neurogenesis Results Methodology Photos Discussion MBBS Enrichment Year 2019/20 Cheung Ka Yuet Full Year < RA - M olecular p rinci p les un d erlying the neuronal s p ecification an d neural circuit for m ation in the p eri p heral nervous syste m at K arolins k a Institutet , Sw e d en > Cheung Ka Yuet www.meteconferences.org Intercalation - MRes(Med) at HKU Introduction Coursework (6 Research Postgraduate Studies) A B Hands-on research training Field of study: Gut microbiome Project title: The role of gut microbiota in brain health Research project Personal reflection Introduction to Biostatistics (MMPH6002 ) Advanced Statistical Methods I (MMPH6117) These 2 are statistic courses organized by the School of Public Health. Through these 2 courses, I am able to equip myself with descriptive and inferential statistical techniques, with emphasis on selection of appropriate methods and tools for various applications, and proper interpretation of results. I also get familiarized on the usage of R language in statistical computing. Advances in Vascular Biology and Therapeutics (MMPH6172) Current Therapeutic Strategies for Metabolic Diseases (MMPH6205) These 2 are courses provided by the Department of Pharmacology and Pharmacy and the Department of Medicine respectively. Through these courses, I recognize how different regulatory systems coordinate together the maintenance of vascular tone and vascular integrity, and the rationale behind the current and prospective drug treatments for vascular diseases and vascular complications of diabetes, hypertension and dyslipidemia. I have also gained understandings on traditional Chinese medicine, gut microbiota, nutraceuticals’ therapeutic effect on metabolic disease. Genome Science (BBMS3009) This is a undergraduate course offered by the Centre for Genomic Sciences. Through this course, I am able to gain my insights in topics applicable to human genetics and genomic biology in the “ post-genome ” era. Main topics include The Human Genome Project. I have also learned the theory behind technologies for genomic analysis such as microarrays and high- throughput sequencing; and bioinformatics for handling, analysing and interpreting genomic data, making use of standard analysis programs and public genomic resources such as the HapMap, 1000 Genome, ENCODE and Epigenetic Roadmap. Methodology and analysis We have recruited 150 healthy females and 150 males to participate in the study. Subjects will be asked to provide stool, urine and fasting serum sample. These subjects have been invited to perform assessments include questionnaires on demographics, past medical history, drug history, family history, home address and pets, mode of delivery etc. Each subject has also receive blood pressure assessment performed with Uscom BP+ central blood pressure monitor, Microlife AFIB to screen for atrial fibrillation, and Omron VP-1000 Vascular Profiler which measures both ABI (Ankle Brachial Index) and baPWV (brachial ankle Pulse Wave Velocity) to assess peripheral arterial disease (PAD) and arterial wall stiffness, respectively. A flow-mediated dilatation(FMD) test and a carotid intimal medial thickness(carotid IMT) measurement using an ultrasound machine are also performed on subjects to detect potential vascular dysfunction and atherosclerosis. The neuropsychological function of these subjects are also evaluated by Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA - HK version); 21-item Depression Anxiety Stress Scale (Chinese version); STOP- BANG questionnaire and Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (Cantonese version). A detailed 1-month diet history is also documented for nutritional analysis. Principal Supervisor Dr GKK Lau (Department of Medicine) Co-supervisor Professor IFN Hung (Department of Medicine) Making a decision to stay in HK for my MRes[Med] degree never means that I will have an year without up and downs. Struggles always appear when a prolonged commitment is needed whileI have been used to a short work-reward cycle, and when I have doubts in my own ability/direction. But there are also some sweet moments. My research requires me to communicate a lot with people in order to get an idea on their lifestyle. Due to this nature,I can approach people from all sorts of life when they become my subjects. There is one lady in her 50s being especially memorable to me. She is very concerned about her own health and keeps a very disciplined diet. However, because of genetic factors, she was still found to have her vascular age being like in her 80s. She was so upset and worried in our laboratory once we disclosed her this assessment result. Our whole team also feels sorry for her at that time. So otherthan giving her advise on her exercise pattern, we arrange her an extra check-up(which is not required in the protocol) after a few months. Her vascular age then becomes 70s after adapting a more aggressive exercise routine. Although it is still bit far from the ideal, it is a great improvement and encouragement to her. Since she is a staff working under the Medical faculty, she always greets me with smile whenever we come across to each other in Sassoon Road. I always doubted myself at that time , perceiving both my daily performance as repetitive and unremarkable. But this incidence really cheers me up. Subjects who completed the above assessments are given an actigraphy for 1-week in-home sleep quality and physical activity monitoring. A 24-hr ambulatory blood pressure monitoring (ABPM) device is also distributed. Subjects who returned their ABP and actigraphy assessment data have undergone a liver fibroscan in Queen Mary Hospital for hepatic steatosis and fibrosis score assessment . The DNA extraction work of 150 stool samples (50% of the target) have been finished. Metagenomic sequencing has been performed. Preliminary statistical analysis on shotgun metagenomic results has been performed to explore the relationship between subject’s vascular health and gut microbiome relative abundance. Significant Shannon gut microbiome diversity differences are shown between FMD performance, arterial stiffness, carotid IMT category. Both Shannon diversity analysis and differential quantification analysis in phylum level also demonstrated significant differences in gut microbiome among dichotomized hypertensive stage. ß Omron VP-1000 Vascular Profiler for ABI and baPWV assessment Ultrasound screen capture of a carotid IMT measurement à MBBS Enrichment Year 2019/20 Cheung Nga Man Full Year < IC - M R e s( Me d) at HK U, H o ng K o ng > Cheung Nga Man