HKUMedXelerate2026 Top 10 Showcase (5th Edition): An AI-Designed Cancer Drug and Intraoperative 3D Histology

In this final edition of our HKUMedXelerate 2026 Top 10 series, we spotlight two ambitious clinical innovations that tackle critical real-world bottlenecks in patient care—addressing stubborn tumors that elude conventional immunotherapy and reimagining the operating room with real-time microscopic imaging. 

Featured projects in this edition:

1. AI-Driven Broad-spectrum PD-L1-AOAH Fusion Protein for Refractory Tumors (Led by Dr. Lanqi Gong): 

• Combating resistant tumors using a patented AI-driven target screening platform that identified AOAH as a pan-cancer target. By co-optimizing and fusing AOAH with anti-PD-L1, this single molecule targets both tumors and lymph nodes to reinvigorate immunity. 
• Validated with a 100% response rate across resistant models, the team is working toward CDMO scale-up, IND applications, and first-in-human trials. 

2. Histology at the Operating Table: Rapid Reversible Clearing and Volumetric Imaging of Intact Specimens (Led by Prof. John SL Leung): 

• Reimagining intraoperative diagnostics by compressing the histopathology laboratory into a mobile cart for the operating theatre. 
• Using patent-pending supramolecular chemistry to render specimens transparent and a portable line-scan microscope, this technology provides 100-fold higher resolution than traditional frozen sections in just 10 minutes—all while keeping DNA and molecular structures fully intact. 

Thank you for following along with our HKUMedXelerate 2026 Top 10 series as we showcase how HKUMed research translates into scalable, global clinical solutions! 

#HKUMed #HKUMedTTU #HKUMedXelerate #TechnologyTransfer #BiomedicalInnovation #CancerResearch #AIinHealthcare #SurgicalTech #PrecisionMedicine #TranslationalResearch