Bulletin No. 2, 2019

38 Chinese University Bulletin No.2, 2019 R esearch New Link between Sleep Disorder and Heart Disease The Faculty of Medicine conducted the world’s first study to investigate the association between unrecognized obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) and postoperative cardiovascular complications. Results showed that patients with unrecognized severe OSA have a twofold increased risk of postoperative cardiovascular complications compared to those without the disorder. The study has recently been published in the Journal of the American Medical Association . Putting the CAR-T before Cancer The clinical trials of Chimeric antigen receptor-T cell (CAR-T cell) therapy, a cellular therapy that targets to prolong overall survival of patients with haematological malignancies, will soon be kicked off by the Faculty of Medicine. Being an immunotherapy that harnesses the power of patient’s own immune system, the CAR-T cell therapy extracts T cells, which fight infections and kill cancer cells, from the patient’s blood. By modifying these cells genetically in a qualified laboratory and building in radar-like receptors on them, the T cells then recognize and attack cancer cells, including those that used to evade the immune system, upon being reinfused into the patient’s body. Nanomaterials Made Quick and Easy A research team led by Prof. Bian Liming of the Department of Biomedical Engineering developed a novel approach for preparing single-chain nanomaterial which boasts 20 times more in production efficiency than the traditional methods. By easing their production, the nanomaterials can now be yielded on a large scale, enabling their use in gene or drug delivery, stem cells behaviour regulation and protection.