NUS Physiology

💡Research Seminar || 25 Oct 2024, 12PM || MD9 Level 1 Workshop Room Registration Link: https://lnkd.in/ejXuvnkv Title: Resolving Single Cell Analysis Bottlenecks with Singleron's End-to-End Workflow Xiaojing, Ph.D., has a decade of experience in single cell analysis and bioinformatics. After completing her doctorate at the National University of Singapore, she pursued postdoctoral training in Computational and Systems Biology. Since 2019, she has worked in industry, specializing in single cell multi-omics solutions for immune profiling. Currently, she manages bioinformatics platforms at Singleron. Singleron Biotechnologies

💡Research Seminar || 18 Oct 2024, 12PM || MD9 Level 1 Workshop Room Registration Link: https://lnkd.in/g8R6ubCg Title: Identification of Ligands for Membrane Transporter Long Nguyen

💡Research Seminar || 2nd October 2024, 12PM || MD9 Level 1 Workshop Room Registration Link: https://lnkd.in/g5xtvnEn Title: Therapeutic targeting of metabolic dysregulation in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis A/Prof Shyuan Ngo is a Group Leader at the University of Queensland. She leads a research program that aims to define the contribution of altered metabolic homeostasis to ALS pathophysiology and pathobiology. Her research integrates studies in ALS patients with studies in human-derived cell models (including stem cell-derived neurons, and human primary myosatellite cells and myotubes) and mouse models of ALS. Projects aim to decipher the molecular drivers of ALS and to identify therapeutic strategies for ALS. The translational nature of her research has led to the expediting of therapeutics into clinical trials.

👨🏫Teaching Seminar || 13th September 2024, 12PM || MD9 Level 1 Workshop Room | Dr Wang Hai Yang Registration Link: https://lnkd.in/gXkk2iFV Title: Preserving Fertility; Understanding Ovarian Aging and Rejuvenation Dr. Haiyang Wang received his PhD from Chungbuk National University in South Korea. He then conducted postdoctoral research at Johns Hopkins University under the mentorship of Prof. Rong Li. Currently, he is a Senior Research Fellow at the Mechanobiology Institute, National University of Singapore. His research focuses on understanding the molecular, cellular, and biomechanical mechanisms that govern the maturation, quality, and aging of oocytes.

👨🏫Teaching Seminar || 23rd August 2024, 12PM || MD9 Level 1 Workshop Room Registration Link: https://lnkd.in/gQkDtSra Title: Innovative Educational Strategies to Enhance Student Learning This seminar explores innovative methods to improve student engagement and learning in two exciting domains: student-generated questions and the use of AI technology. Question-asking is a powerful tool for fostering critical and reflective thinking, helping learners identify gaps and promoting engagement. We propose a shared Q&A platform for students to post queries, facilitating timely feedback and peer learning. Analyzing these questions provides educators with insights into problem areas and cognitive engagement, which can be used to refine teaching strategies according to learner needs. As Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology continues to advance, its impact on the education of medical and health professionals will be significant. While some argue that it may have negative implications for students’ learning, educators should should consider incorporating AI technology into their teaching methods to enhance students’ learning experiences. Our study aims to explore the effects of an AI chatbox on learning and motivation.

💡Research Seminar || [Cancelled - Prof Yu is unable to come to Singapore for his talk, We apologize for any inconvenience caused] Dr. Mingzhou Ye is a professor at the Suzhou Institute of Nano-tech and Nano-bionics, Chinese Academy of Sciences. He received his BA and PhD degrees from the Department of Chemical Engineering at Zhejiang University, and conducted postdoctoral research at the College of Pharmaceutical Sciences of Zhejiang University, and the Department of Biomedical Engineering at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Dr. Ye joined the Suzhou Institute of Nano-Tech and Nano-Bionics, CAS in 2021 as a PI. His research focuses on the development of innovative nanomedicines designed for the controlled release of various drug molecules, aiming to precisely regulate the disease microenvironment, thereby enabling efficient immunotherapy for tumors and inflammation-related diseases. He has published over 20 peer-reviewed articles in prestigious journals such as Nature Nanotechnology, Matter, Advanced Materials, and Advanced Functional Materials, and has filed 5 patents in U.S. and China. Dr. Ye has led several projects including the National Science Fund for Excellent Young Scholars, Jiangsu Science Fund for Distinguished Young Scholars, the National Natural Science Foundation of China General Project, and received the first prize of the Henan Provincial Medical Science and Technology Award.

💡Research Seminar || 23rd July 2024, 12PM || MD9 Level 1 Workshop Room Registration Link: https://lnkd.in/ghXDVA3m Title: Tracing the Dynamics and Heterogeneity of Tumour Metastasis via Single Cell Genomics Siyuan Zhang, an alumnus of the National University of Singapore, currently serves as an Associate Professor at UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, USA. His laboratory is dedicated to investigating the molecular mechanisms underpinning the dynamic co-evolution of tumor cells and the tumor microenvironment (TME) during tumor initiation, drug resistance, and metastasis. Employing multi-scale integrated single-cell methodologies in conjunction with diverse genetic mouse models, the Zhang lab seeks to unravel complex interactions within tumor ecosystems. This seminar will highlight the lab’s innovative experimental approaches and their latest discoveries in elucidating the mechanisms that drive metastasis in breast and ovarian cancers. Insights will be shared into how a plethora of factors within the complex metastatic niche influence cancer metastasis processes.

💡Research Seminar || 5th July 2024, 12PM || MD9 Level 1 Workshop Room Registration Link: https://lnkd.in/gjzjUdYB Title: Protein misfolding in ALS: From disease mechanism to therapeutic strategy The research of Joseph Huang’s group is directed toward unraveling the signaling events that direct protein trafficking in co-translational protein folding and toward understanding the role that protein misfolding plays in neuron degenerative diseases. At the moment, this group is focusing on the TAR (trans-activation response element) DNA binding protein (TDP-43) in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) and Frontotemporal Lobar Dementia (FTLD). Studies are in progress to elucidate the participation of the chaperones in preventing protein aggregation and develop new therapeutic strategies as well as diagnostic tools against ALS and Huntington’s disease. As a member of the Neuroscience Program in Academia Sinica, Dr. Huang’s team is also investigating the proteinopathy of misfolded proteins in neurodegenerative diseases in general.

👨🏫Teaching Seminar || 28th June 2024, 12PM || MD9 Level 1 Workshop Room | Noof Abdullah Saad Shaif Registration Link: https://lnkd.in/g2bE_62G Title: Neuroscience of Sleep During this seminar, Dr Noof will provide an overview of sleep from a neuroscientific perspective. This seminar will offer a comprehensive understanding of why we sleep, how sleep affects our daily lives, and the importance of good sleep hygiene. Attendees will gain insights into the stages of sleep, the crucial functions of both slow-wave and rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, the various neurotransmitters involved in sleep regulation, and the impacts of sleep disorders such as insomnia, narcolepsy, and circadian rhythm disorders. This seminar is ideal for students, researchers, and anyone interested in the science behind sleep and its vital role in our overall health and well-being.

💡Research Seminar || 26th June 2024, 12PM || MD9 Level 1 Workshop Room | Carlos Ibanez Registration Link: https://lnkd.in/gSWcEH4G Title: Regulation of adipose tissue function and plasticity by activin receptors ALK4 and ALK7 ALK7 (Activin receptor-like kinase 7) is a member of the TGF-β receptor superfamily predominantly expressed by cells and tissues involved in endocrine functions, such as neurons of the hypothalamus and pituitary, pancreatic β-cells and adipocytes. Recent studies have begun to delineate the processes regulated by ALK7 in these tissues and how these become integrated with the homeostatic regulation of mammalian metabolism. The picture emerging indicates that ALK7’s primary function in metabolic regulation is to limit catabolic activities and preserve energy. Although our understanding of the basic molecular events underlying ALK7 signaling has benefited from the vast knowledge available on TGF-β receptor mechanisms, how these connect to the physiological functions regulated by ALK7 in different cell types is still incompletely understood. Findings of missense and nonsense variants in the Acvr1c gene, encoding ALK7, of some mouse strains and human subjects indicate a tolerance to ALK7 loss-of-function. Recent discoveries suggest that specific inhibitors of ALK7 may have therapeutic applications in obesity and metabolic syndrome without overt adverse effects.