Tag: Taipei Medical University

In addition to prolonging lifespan, scientists also have long been in pursuit of maintaining human healthspan. For the elderly, as their declined muscle mass and strength cause physical inconvenience, maintaining the health of skeletal muscle is therefore of vital importance so as to keep the ideal quality of life.

Professor Yi-Fan Chen and Professor Yun Yen from Taipei Medical University, in collaboration with researchers from Japan and Taiwan, have recently published their work in npj regenerative medicine. The research article examines how Ribonucleotide reductase M2B (Rrm2b) modulates the fate of stem cells in skeletal muscle in response to injury. The homeostasis of skeletal muscle relies on the interplay between the muscle stem cells (MuSCs) and their microenvironment (niche). By genetically modified mouse models, Chen unveiled that specific knockout of Rrm2b in the myofibers (a part of niche), but not in MuSCs, led to the weakness of muscles, including loss of muscle mass and strength. These Rrm2b myofiber-specific knockout mice displayed compromised regenerative capacity of muscle with thinner fiber sizes and weaker functioning. Moreover, the lack of Rrm2b in the myofibers resulted in mitochondrial defects, showing a part of the typical characteristics of mitochondrial myopathy.

Furthermore, Chen’s team collaborated with Dr. I-Hsuan Lin, her fellow TMU researcher, for RNA-sequencing to identify several myokines released from Rrm2b-deleted myofibers. These myokines, including FGF-21, GDF-15, and Mthfd2, triggered MuSCs differentiation rather than reentry of quiescence to repopulate the stem cell pool. The decreased MuSC pool due to the imbalance between differentiation and self-renewal of MuSCs thus contributed to muscle weakness and impaired regenerative capacity.

In conclusion, Chen’s study identified a novel role of Rrm2b in muscle homeostasis. Rrm2b in the myofibers plays a critical role in modulating the stem cell fate of MuSCs by an alternation of the microenvironment (niche), and it provides an opportunity for strategy development to treat muscle disorders. Animals with defective Rrm2b expression can probably serve as a disease model for investigating mitochondrial myopathy in mammals. It is expected that such promising research findings will lead to clinical use in promoting muscle health in the coming years.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41536-022-00231-w

 

Dr. Lin-Yi Tseng is currently an associate professor from the Center for General Education at Taipei Medical University. Her work on “the Development of Western Medicine in Dadaocheng(大稻埕) in Modern Taiwan” recently won the 8th Professor Shutsung Liao Research Award by North America Taiwanese Professors’ Association (NATPA).

According to Dr. Tseng, Dadaocheng played a very important role in the modernization of Taiwan’s medical care, and was the location of many firsts, such as Taiwan’s first general hospital, “Hongji Hospital”; Taiwan’s first female physician, A-Hsin Tsai (蔡阿信); Taiwan’s first dentist, Dr. Tseng-Chyuan Chen (陳增全) (Tseng-Chyuan Dentistry); and the first Indigenous Taiwanese physician (from the Puyuma tribe) to complete a Western-style medical education path, Dr. Tang-Shan Hsieh (謝唐山). In addition, from the Japanese Colonial Period to the early Post-War Period, Dadaocheng had a large number of western hospitals and pharmacies, such as Watsons Pharmacy and Taihetang Pharmacy, etc., which influenced the medical development of not just Taipei, but arguably even all of Taiwan. Unfortunately, Dadaocheng’s medical history and contributions are rarely covered in our history textbooks, and there is a dearth of complete and comprehensive professional research, which is a pity.

Dr. Tseng’s research depicts the evolvement of medical care over decades. The Japanese colonial period brought modern medical care to Taiwan. Through the establishment of new medical schools and hospitals, as well as various medical experiments, the medical foundation of modern Taiwan was laid. Among them, Dadaocheng is an important area for the attainment and practice of medical knowledge.

Dr. Tseng indicated that “humanities” are also of great significance to medical research. With the passage of time, many important medical materials in Taiwan may gradually disappear. As a historian, one has the responsibility of getting Taiwanese people understand the medical history of modern Taiwan through interviews, studies, writing and publications. Furthermore, as a lecturer at a medical university, it is one’s responsibility to get students to understand the medical development of modern Taiwan. The research results should also be published as a historical publication so that more people can understand the deep relationship between Dadaocheng and Western medicine.

Taipei Medical University research team, led by Professor Chia-Kwung Fan of the Department of Molecular Parasitology and Tropical Diseases, visited the Kingdom of Eswatini, a diplomatic ally of Taiwan, between October and December in 2021.
During the visit, the team successfully carried out a parasitic disease investigation and continued to support the bilateral public health cooperation for parasite control and prevention which was initiated 12 years ago.

Professor Chia-Kwung Fan has for many years been a key supporter of public health diplomacy, leading the collaboration with Mbabane Government Hospital , Malaria Center and the Parasite Prevention Center to monitor various parasitic diseases in Eswatini, such as intestinal parasites, malaria and schistosomiasis by disseminating knowledge and skills required for laboratory work and pest control through tailored training programs. The hope is to bring neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) to an end by 2030 (in line with United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals Target 3.3 on communicable diseases) through cross-national collaboration.

The planned collaboration in research was forced to suspend due to COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, which could lead to the lost momentum in in disease prevention and control and the consequent reappearance of chains of infection. Professor Fan therefore led a team of researchers, consisting of post-doctoral researcher, Chia-Mei Chou , doctoral student of the Department of Public Health, Hsiao-Ching Kuo , and doctoral student of the Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences, Yun-Hung Tu , to re-initiate the collaborative research project in Eswatini.

Reflecting on the task, Professor Fan indicated that the project was awash with unknown and possibly severe challenges. In addition to the preparation of protective equipment and vaccines necessary for protection from COVID-19, a large majority of time was spent with the health personnel in Eswatini strategizing the best plan of action to go deep into the community through scenario planning and carrying out itinerary checks for the inspections, blood collection and questionnaires. On top of the monitoring of intestinal parasites, they also targeted provinces with potential pork tapeworm epidemics risks for serum screening.

Yun-Hung Tu found that even with the training and work experience of a professional medical examiner, he finds it challenging working in the field while wearing full PPE and shuttling between local communities to recover blood, urine and feces samples. Meanwhile, Hsiao-Ching Kuo encountered problems during her research when the off-road bus she took broke down and there was power outage in the accommodation area followed by bad weather. The outbreak of the South African variant of Omicron further complicated matters and resulted in the cancellation of the return flight. While in the field members of the TMU research team faced numerous situations that tested their adaptability and communication skills.

Despite a series of challenges, Professor Fan and his team successfully completed the investigation and produced a solid analysis with recommendations for the local authorities and communities to plan for follow-up treatment. Professor Fan believes that long-term bilateral medical and public health collaboration projects serve to benefit a new generation of medical talent in the fields of biomedical research and international collaboration. Taiwan is uniquely placed to offer its strong clinical capabilities in medical and parasite control and public health to contribute to the wellbeing of international communities. Professor Fan hopes that TMU and the Taiwanese government will continue to pay attention to the development of related fields in medicine and continue to support such partnerships between Taiwan and its international friends.

Taipei Medical University (TMU) Innovation & Entrepreneurship Education Center (IEEC) recently held the inaugural Medical Humanistic Care Workshop 2022 in collaboration with Shuang Ho Hospital, themed “Applying medical 3D printing to restore the body integrity of organ donors”.

The use of 3D printing for the replication of organs enables donors’ bodies to be returned to a full body state after donation and acts as a reassuring measure for the donor and their relatives in the process of organ donation. Influenced by traditional ideas, Taiwan’s organ donation rate has been much lower than most Western countries.

According to the statistics from the Taiwan Organ Registry and Sharing Center , over 10,000 patients are on the waiting list for an organ transplant as of May 2022, among them less than 335 (3.2%) have already received an organ or tissue transplant. Data over the years shows that in total only close to 10% of those waiting for organ donation successfully received an organ transplant, while many patients with organ failure are still waiting desperately for a life-saving donation.

The organ recruitment team leader, Dr. Hui-Tzung Luh from the Neurosurgery Department of Shuang Ho Hospital said that currently most of those on the waiting list are in need of a new kidney. On average, there are about 8,000 patients in need of kidney transplantation each year, but only over 200 are ever successful in receiving an organ transplant. Most patients can only rely on dialysis and keep waiting for the right match. The use of dialysis machines not only is a heavy burden on health insurance finances, but also seriously affects the quality of life of patients who routinely have to use the machines.

Dr. Luh explained that after an organ is removed from the donor, the cavity in the body will be dented and deformed where it has been sutured, and this will affect the body’s appearance. With the use of 3D printing, the shape of the organ can be realistically restored, so that the appearance of the donor will not be greatly affected. Shuang Ho Hospital recently used such method on a brain-dead patient, whose body was sutured and filled with the 3D printed organs with thank-you message after the organ donation.

This was a great comfort to the patient’s mother. The TMU team behind this 3D printing technology hopes that the adoption of such method helps address concerns of the individuals wishing to observe traditional ideas and gives the public more confidence in voluntary organ donation in the future. The Director of IEEC at TMU, Professor Yu-Cheng Hsiao indicated that 3D printing can quickly customize and is now a commonly used tool. However, there are still challenges in the 3D printing of organs such as making the organs match close to the size of the donor’s body and considering how they will be disposed of during cremation. And for those considerations, corn flour was therefore used as the material for its organic properties suitable for printing of human organs.

Director Hsiao pointed out that the workshop not only taught students how to operate the medical 3D printer to make the organs, but more importantly, gave the students a thorough knowledge of the organ donation process. The workshop was set to teach medical students for the time being, but its long-term objectives are expected to be reaching out to anyone who wanted to know more about the organ donation process in the future. Director Hsiao hopes that the willingness of the Taiwanese public to voluntarily donate organs will increase when they are given the option of filling the body with 3D printed organs, hence improving the likelihood of those waiting for organ donation getting matched with the organs they need.

Taipei Medical University (TMU), in collaboration HTC Corporation (HTC), established its Instructional VR Resource Center for Food Safety. Aiming at improving food safety across Taiwan, this Center brings in VR technology and high-quality training content to the University’s food safety education and promotes the digitization of Taiwan’s food processing industry. This collaborative project between TMU and HTC stemmed from their ongoing partnership of talent development of food safety professionals using innovative technology.

TMU established the first College of Nutrition in Taiwan in 2016 and the first School of Food Safety a year later. As the only such establishment in Taiwan, TMU School of Food Safety is dedicated to the training and education of future practitioners and professionals in the modern food industry.

Associate Professor Hui-Ting Yang from the TMU School of Food Safety applies virtual reality to the courses she teaches, which allows future food safety professionals to virtually experience the workflow involved in a number of a work environment.. Take the VR kitchen for instance, training modules includes food materials inspection, food preparation, cooking procedure and food serving. Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points can also be incorporated into the observation training, and simulated food serving stress and fires in the kitchen can also be incorporated for contingency response training. Trainees can accumulate a large amount of authentic experience within a short period of time and acquire the skills and abilities necessary to adapt to their workplace. Moreover, this training approach effectively prevents errors and subsequent business losses caused by their lack of familiarity with the operations.

Raymond Pao, Senior Vice President of HTC, said, “The VR scenario simulation training has been implemented in teaching and learning in various types of businesses and schools. Through immersive learning experience, it can simulate real emergencies and reinforce correct contingency response capability in students. Students can also use HTC’s Virti 360 VR platform to easily create their own VR teaching materials. They can quickly produce all kinds of VR content according to their learning syllabus. Through industry-academia collaboration, relevant teaching materials can be imported into the employee training program of domestic smart food factories. Employees can then practice relevant SOP in simulated VR scenarios as and when required to strengthen their learning effectiveness, thus benefitting the domestic food safety industry and talent development.”

Speaking about the collaboration, Professor Yue-Hwa Chen, Director of TMU School of Food Safety, said, “I am very pleased to collaborate with HTC’s VIVE Medical VR Division to build the first Instructional VR Resource Center for Food Safety in Taiwan. We are constantly thinking about how to increase the learning interest and effectiveness of students. The integration with VR technology has given us new ideas in our course designs and how we advise Taiwan’s food processing factories to continuously transform their operation, improve work quality, and enhance staff development with help of technology.”

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues, Taipei Medical University shows its presence in international pandemic prevention. The TMU FLYoung International Service Club has launched online services in place of its annual healthcare services to the Kingdom of Cambodia. It will continue to assist with improving local health care and water resources in order to fulfill the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of eliminating inequalities in health and education.

Due to the shrinking of medical resources around the world as a result of the pandemic, the situations in disadvantaged and remote villages have worsened. In 2021, TMU FLYoung have successively accumulated masks, forehead thermometers and other supplies to donate to Cambodia to help with pandemic prevention. Since the team is unable to provide medical and health education activities in person, it has instead adopted online courses on “the respiratory system”, “pandemic prevention” and other important pandemic related topics urgently needed by the locals.

Huang Shao-Hua, a fourth-year student of the TMU College of Medicine, is the leader of this service team. He indicated that 2021 summer service is mainly divided into two major targets: the Cambodia-Taiwan Education Program (CTEP) and the Sunshine Classroom. The CTEP mainly trains local seed teachers in English and computer information. As with previous years, the Sunshine Classroom teaches topics such as trauma care and understanding of the digestive system. However, this year, it will also focus on the respiratory system and share Taiwan’s experience in pandemic prevention. It will also include the concept of “isolation”, emphasize not eating or being together with those who are symptomatic, and observing social distancing. These are essential pandemic prevention measures for Cambodia, where the pandemic is worsening.

With 109 student clubs, TMU has one of the most diverse student activity landscape among universities in Taiwan. 15 of these clubs provide services such as free clinics and medical and health education activities in remote villages at home and abroad. Although many clubs are unable to dispatch their service teams because of the pandemic, the students’ passion for service has not diminished. Some clubs have adopted online operations in the hope of doing their part in global pandemic prevention and medical education.

Led by Professor Yi-Hsin Hsu as the Principal Investigator, Taipei Medical University worked with a group of elementary schools to improve students’ understanding of aging and dementia. Asking the students to compile a book on the life stories of their grandparents, the program enhanced the grandparent-grandchild relationship while promoting neuroscience and disseminating current scientific knowledge on dementia, a major neurological brain disease.

Through the partnerships with Ruifang Elementary School and Yifang Elementary School in New Taipei City and Zhongxiao Elementary School in Taipei City, over 200 students and their families participated. A total of 50 students were selected to present their outstanding work at TMU in May 2021.

Principal Chuan-Chuan Lu of Ruifang Elementary School pointed out that the life story book project was very meaningful. In the writing of the storybook, the dialogue with grandparents has enhanced family interaction and deepened relationships.

Dean Li-Juing Wu of the College of Education at the National Taipei University of Education, who participated in the review, said that history is not only found in textbooks; it is also the living history spoken from the mouths of grandparents, and this type of historical exploration is warm and can be touching.

Professor Hsu and associate professor Yang have been teaching the humanities course in TMU since 2014. The course integrated assignment “Life book writing for our grandparents (LB4OG)” where young people write storybooks on the life story of their elders so that the students can develop a deeper understanding of a future aging society. Over the past seven years, 400 books of family history have been created by college students. The publication of innovative assignment was accepted by the international medical education journal, Medical Education (Impact Factor 4.570, Ranking 4.8%).

This project aims to train a group of seed teachers to promote popular medical science and will continue to be jointly rolled out in more schools in the future. It is hoped that these partner elementary schools will integrate this activity into their future curriculum, facilitating the continuous dissemination of medical popular science and health knowledge.