Bulletin No. 2, 2013

News in Brief   49  Improving Brain Function of Cognitive Impaired Patients A study conducted by the Department of Psychiatry reveals that physical exercises and cognitive activities may help enhance cognitive functions of the elderly, thereby reducing the risk of cognitive impairment. Among the 423 elders who have completed the study, 56% of the participants showed improvement in cognitive functioning, said Prof. Linda Lam, director, Department of Psychiatry. Supported by the Simon K Y Lee Elderly Fund, the research aimed at promoting early detection and intervention of cognitive diseases in elderly people. Hong Kong’s First Fragile X Carrier Screening Fragile X syndrome is one of the most common causes of congenital mental retardation in baby boys. To help doctors identify women with hidden genetic problems, the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology has launched the territory’s first Fragile X carrier screening by introducing the new Fragile X PCR technology to assist prenatal diagnosis of abnormal fetuses as well as assessment of women’s health. The department has recently validated the Fragile X PCR method on 14 full-mutation cases, 20 pre-mutation cases, and 75 normal controls with 100% accuracy. Optimizing Indoor Wireless Connectivity The Faculty of Engineering and Microsoft Corporation have successfully developed a new system called WISER that improves indoor access to radio frequency spectrum which can enhance the performance of wireless technologies. The performance of the WISER prototype in the Ho Sin Hang Engineering Building on campus was proven satisfactory. Prof. Chen Ming-hua, Department of Information Engineering, said WISER has huge potential in wireless communications worldwide. From left: Prof. Kong Wing-shan Grace, Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology; Prof. Hon Kam-lum Ellis, Department of Paediatrics; Prof. Leung Tak-yeung and Prof. Choy Kwong-wai Richard, Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, explaining the Fragile X PCR method