Bulletin No. 2, 2024

The breeding ground of innovation Professor Chan is currently a professor at CUHK’s School of Biomedical Sciences, Institute of Tissue Engineering and Department of Biomedical Engineering. She obtained her bachelor’s degree in Biochemistry and her PhD in Surgical Science from CUHK. She was subsequently offered a postdoctoral fellowship in laser medicine at the Massachusetts General Hospital in the US. Before joining CUHK, she worked in the Biomedical Engineering programme of The University of Hong Kong. She is the first tissue engineering scientist to develop this technology to such an advanced stage. The atmosphere of innovation, the multidisciplinary research culture and the research facilities at CUHK are the reasons for her homecoming. “The University values tissue engineering and regenerative medicine research, and multidisciplinary collaborations. The critical mass here, together with the visionary establishment of an ATP GMP manufacturing facility, is significant to tissue engineering research. I have collaborated with Patrick for many years. And I’m glad that we can translate eOCT technology into phase one of the clinical trial evaluating the safety of the technology.” The eOCT treatment takes about four months to complete, which encompasses patient medical screening, bone marrow harvesting, sample transportation to Singapore’s GMP manufacturing facility, manufacturing eOCT in clean rooms, quality assurance tests by third party labs, minimally invasive arthroscopy and eOCT implantation by surgeons, followed by subsequent post-operation follow-up, data collection and analysis, for up to two years. Locating a GMP facility that complied with Hong Kong regulations was challenging. She checked out cities like Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai, Hangzhou, Xian and Guangzhou in her search for a feasible facility, but it turned out to be futile. “Due to regional differences in regulation of ATPs, the harvested samples processed in the mainland couldn't be used for our clinical trials. We ended up opting for a facility in Singapore, despite its longer turnaround time and higher cost,” Professor Chan elaborates. With funding support from the RAISe+ Scheme, she will set up the GMP manufacturing capability of eOCT in Hong Kong by working with the ATP GMP Centre of the Hong Kong Institute of Biotechnology (HKIB), so as to support subsequent clinical trials and commercialisation. The centre at the HKIB will provide a Pharmaceutical Inspection Co-operation Scheme GMP-compliant facility that produces clinical grade ATPs, including eOCT, for approved clinical trials and treatment. The brave newworld of personalised medicine Professor Chan has established the Tissue Engineering Laboratory to improve patients’ quality of life by bioengineering biomaterials and stem cell-based tissues for personalised therapies. Her research interests include complex tissue engineering, natural biomaterials, organoids and tumouroids, mechano-regulation, cell-material interface, multiphoton microfabrication and micropatterning, as well as laser medicine. Her dream is to realise personalised cartilage regeneration within the healthcare system. “Some day in the future, patients with cartilage injuries may send their pre-stored stem cells from cell banks to professional tissue growth service providers for their made-to-order personalised eOCT as their tissue engineering option for arthroscopy implantation. Hopefully, the eOCT ATPs will allow them to regain motility and enjoy their preferred lifestyles soon afterwards.” To develop better therapeutics for patients suffering from joint problems, the team has overcome numerous technical and non-technical constraints, together with applying soft skills to cope with unexpected circumstances, in order to push scientific frontiers and bridge unmet medical needs. “Some challenges could be heart attack-triggering,” she quips. “A manufacturing facility once indicated that they wouldn’t continue their work due to sudden local policy changes, which would result in them discarding patients’ samples.” Her team tried to preserve them at all costs. She says, smiling, “Our commitment to serving patients fuels our courage to grasp the nettle.” 13