Newsletter No. 331

No. 331, 19.1.2009 年輕訊息科學者獲國際嘉許 Young Information Scientists Win International Acclaim 三 名新近加盟計算機科 學與工程學系的年輕 學者，最近獲得國際獎譽。 劉立志教授獲頒加拿大數學 學會博士生獎，此獎旨在表揚 表現傑出的加國大學博士畢業 生。劉教授是首位獲頒此獎的 計算機科學家。他的研究針對 圖像在網絡傳輸的複雜問題， 設計有效的近似算法，以取得 最佳解決方法。 張勝譽教授（ 上圖 ）及其研究 夥伴提出了有效的方法，把可防破解的傳統零知識協定， 轉化為能同時抵禦量子計算機攻擊的新協定，獲「自動 機、語言和程式編寫國際論壇」最佳論文獎。這個論壇 是理論計算機最重要的會議之一，涵蓋所有重要的理論 領域。 李柏晴教授（ 右圖 ）與研究夥伴提出SoftRepeater系統， 以改善無線數據傳送不穩定的缺點，榮獲「ACM CoNext 2008」最佳論文獎。這項活動目的是鼓勵世界各地研究人 員交流創見，以促進計算機網絡技術的發展。 T hree young scholars recently recruited to join the Department of Computer Science and Engineering were awarded international prizes. Prof. Lau Lap-chi became the first computer scientist to receive the Canadian Mathematical Society Doctoral Prize. The prize recognizes the outstanding performance of a doctoral graduate of a Canadian university. Prof. Lau’s thesis tackles fundamental and difficult problems concerning connectivity in graphs, which often have applications in communication networks. Prof. Zhang Shengyu (above, left) and his collaborators came up with an efficient procedure which transforms zero-knowledge protocols secure in the classical setting to another that is probably also secure in the quantum setting. Their research paper received the best paper award in the International Colloquium on Automata, Languages and Programming, one of the most significant conferences in theoretical computer sciences covering all major theory spectrums. Prof. Patrick P.C. Lee (below, left) and his collaborators propose the SoftRepeater system which provides a practical solution to improve the throughput performance of wireless data transfer. The research received the best paper award in the ACM CoNext 2008, a major forum that encourages international research communities to exchange novel ideas shaping the future of computer network technologies. 癌細胞死亡逆轉過程的新發現 Discovery in Cancer Cell Death 個新的領域，並正在研究控制癌細胞死亡逆轉的機制。解 決這些問題將為我們對抗癌症提供新的標靶療法。」 C UHK scientists revealed for the first time that cancer cells can reverse a chemical-induced dying process, which is generally assumed to irrevocably commit cells to die, in a study published in the British Journal of Cancer (in print on 7 January). Researchers in the Department of Biology separately treated human cervical, skin, liver, breast and prostate cancer cells with three different chemicals which initiate cell suicide (apoptosis) to see if cancer cells could survive after they had passed the point of no return for cell death. The result showed that the cancer cells recovered once chemicals to induce the cells’ suicide process were removed, even after the cells had passed normal critical checkpoints. The cancer cells then regained their shape, function and continued to divide. Cells failed to recover only once the nucleus had started to disintegrate–an event that has been known right at the end of the cell suicide process. This finding reveals an unexpected escape tactic which cancer cells could use to survive chemotherapy. Prof. Fung Ming-chiu, the author and professor in the Department of Biology, said, ‘Our finding sparks new leads to research what drives this ability and to what extent the reversibility of apoptosis contributes to the survival and division of cancer cells during cycles of anticancer treatment. Answers to these questions will provide potential new therapeutic targets in our war against cancer.’ 以下項目詳情，請上網閱覽： Details of the following item are available at: www.cuhk.edu.hk/iso/newsletter/ ❏ 三十七項研究項目獲撥款 Thirty-seven Research Projects Receive Grants 中 大科研人員發現，癌細胞能夠「死而復生」。此項 突破性的發現刊載於1月7日發行的國際權威醫學 雜誌《英國癌症期刊》。 生物系的研究人員分別以三種可引發細胞自殺（細胞凋 亡）的化學物，誘導人類的子宮頸癌、皮膚癌、肝癌、乳癌 及前列腺癌的細胞凋亡，藉此了解癌細胞能否在經過被廣 泛視作無法逆轉的死亡臨界點之後仍然存活。 研究結果顯示，一旦將誘發細胞自殺的化學物除去，即使 癌細胞已經過了被科學界認為具關鍵性而又不可逆轉的 死亡徵兆檢測點，仍然能夠生存，並能回復原本的形態和 功能，繼續存活及進行分裂。癌細胞只有在細胞核解體後 才無法復原，亦即是正常細胞自殺過程的末段。意味着癌 細胞可能利用一種意料不及而迄今尚未認識的新機制來 逃避化療藥物的殺傷。 領導研究的生物系馮明釗教授說：「我們的發現開闢了一 公共衞生學院研究生獲獎 Public Health Students Awarded 公 共衞生學院兩名研究生先後於海外及本地的國際 學術會議獲最佳口頭報告獎。社會醫學哲學碩士 兼讀生楊佩儀9月19日於英國約克舉行的一個有關跌倒及 姿勢穩定性的國際會議中，以「往急症室求診的跌倒長者 不同的健康概況」的報告獲獎。公共衞生哲學博士生鍾志 豪則以「中草藥的臨床證據：系統評論綜述」的報告，獲第 四屆港澳研究生中醫藥研討會的最佳口頭報告獎。 T wo graduate students of the School of Public Health won the best oral presentation awards at international conferences held overseas and locally. Miss Yeung Pui- yee, a part-time MPhil student in social medicine, was awarded at the Ninth International Conference on Falls and Postural Stability held in York, UK, on 19 September 2008. Her presentation was entitled ‘Elderly Fallers Presenting to Accident and Emergency Department have a Heterogeneous Health Profile.’ Mr. Chung Chi-ho Vincent, a PhD student in public health, won with his paper, ‘Clinical Evidence on Chinese Herbal Medicine: An Overview of Systematic Review’, at the Fourth Hong Kong–Macau Postgraduate Symposium on Chinese Medicine.