From December 9th to 13th, 2024, National Cheng Kung University (NCKU) was part of a significant visit to the Kyushu region. The visit, which involved a group of 45 representatives from 12 Taiwanese universities (members of the University Academic Alliance in Taiwan, UAAT), was aimed at fostering international collaboration. The visit included a collaboration meeting and 2 sessions of the UAAT Fair. It was based on the Memorandum of Understanding on International Cooperation between UAAT and KOOU (Kyushu Okinawa Open University), of which the four Japanese Universities mentioned are members.

On December 5, Prof. Nguyễn Thị Thanh Mai, Vice Chancellor of Viet Nam National University Ho Chi Minh City (VNU-HCM), led a delegation to National Cheng Kung University (NCKU) to discuss collaboration of talent cultivation through intensive courses, summer school program, and degree programs. Chair Prof. Hong-Chen Chen, Executive Vice President of NCKU, hosted the meeting with representatives of the Academy of Innovative Semiconductor and Sustainable Manufacturing (AISSM) and the Office of International Affairs (OIA).

Even though the COVID-19 pandemic fades away, research efforts never stop gaining more insights into viral infections, like SARS-CoV-2 and influenza, for better preparation for the next pandemic. A recent study from Dr. Pin Ling and his team in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology at National Cheng Kung University (NCKU) provides a novel insight into the host’s first sense of viral infection to trigger the early antiviral defense. Retinoic acid-inducible gene I (RIG-I) is a cytosolic viral RNA sensor critical for host antiviral defense against RNA virus infection, including SARS-CoV-2 and influenza. RIG-I sensing of viral infection mainly occurs in the cytoplasm after virus invasion and replication within a cell.

This year’s Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was awarded to scientists who discovered microRNA (miRNA), underscoring its significance. A team led by Dr. Pai-Sheng Chen from the Department of Medical Laboratory Science and Biotechnology at National Cheng Kung University (NCKU) has identified a groundbreaking mechanism: how hypoxia-inducible factor-1 alpha (HIF-1α) dynamically regulates miRNA maturation at a non-transcriptional level. This finding solves a key upstream mystery and has been published in the prestigious journal Nucleic Acids Research, garnering global attention.