Professor Zhang Ge honoured with the Beijing Municipal Natural Science Award

Professor Zhang Ge, Chair Professor in Chinese Medicine and Associate Dean (Research) of the School of Chinese Medicine at Hong Kong Baptist University (HKBU), has received the Second-Class Award from the 2024 Beijing Municipal Natural Science Award from the People’s Government of Beijing Municipality for his project “Multi-level Regulatory Mechanisms of Weightlessness-Induced Bone Loss”. 

A collaboration between HKBU, Tsinghua University, and Peking University, the project addresses the critical needs of the manned space programme. Its findings have not only opened new directions for studying weightlessness-induced bone loss but also provide a theoretical basis for addressing public health issues like osteoporosis and bone loss from prolonged bed rest. 

The project pioneered the discovery that the cell membrane ion channel Piezo1 is the molecular basis of gravity sensing in bone tissue, proposed a new model of micro-regional calcium regulation of bone metabolism. It was also the first to internationally reveal the key regulatory mechanisms of weightlessness-induced bone loss from the perspective of non-coding RNA, elucidating a new mechanism of exosome-mediated bone tissue homeostasis regulation. Additionally, it established a precise monitoring and treatment method for weightlessness-induced bone loss /osteoporosis targeting small RNA /exosomes. 

The Beijing Municipal Natural Science Award, conferred annually by the People’s Government of Beijing Municipality, are among the most prestigious recognitions in China’s scientific community.  

This award is an acknowledgement of the outstanding achievements in scientific innovation and the culmination of years-long collaboration between research teams in Hong Kong and Beijing.