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Haploinsufficiency of Meis homeobox 2 (MEIS2), encoding a transcriptional regulator, is associated with human cleft palate, and Meis2 inactivation leads to abnormal palate development in mice, implicating MEIS2 functions in palate development. However, its functional mechanisms remain unknown. Here we observed widespread MEIS2 expression in the developing palate in mice. Wnt1Cre-mediated Meis2 inactivation in cranial neural crest cells led to a secondary palate cleft. Importantly, about half of the Wnt1Cre;Meis2f/f mice exhibited a submucous cleft, providing a model for studying palatal bone formation and patterning. Consistent with complete absence of palatal bones, the results from integrative analyses of MEIS2 by ChIP sequencing, RNA-Seq, and an assay for transposase-accessible chromatin sequencing identified key osteogenic genes regulated directly by MEIS2, indicating that it plays a fundamental role in palatal osteogenesis. De novo motif analysis uncovered that the MEIS2-bound regions are highly enriched in binding motifs for several key osteogenic transcription factors, particularly short stature homeobox 2 (SHOX2). Comparative ChIP sequencing analyses revealed genome-wide co-occupancy of MEIS2 and SHOX2 in addition to their colocalization in the developing palate and physical interaction, suggesting that SHOX2 and MEIS2 functionally interact. However, although SHOX2 was required for proper palatal bone formation and was a direct downstream target of MEIS2, Shox2 overexpression failed to rescue the palatal bone defects in a Meis2-mutant background. These results, together with the fact that Meis2 expression is associated with high osteogenic potential and required for chromatin accessibility of osteogenic genes, support a vital function of MEIS2 in setting up a ground state for palatal osteogenesis.

Alfred C. O. Vertegaal
Dec 1, 2006; 5:2298-2310
Research

Members Event

Event participants

Oded Haklai, Associate Professor, Department of Political Studies, Queen's University, Ontario
Neophytos Loizides, Reader, University of Kent; Leverhulme Trust Research Fellow
Madurika Rasaratnam, Lecturer, International Conflict Analysis, University of Kent
Chair: Evangelos Liaras, IE University, Madrid; Academy Associate, Chatham House

Michael Dean
Jul 1, 2001; 42:1007-1017
Thematic Reviews

Expert

Sovereign nations typically measure economic success in terms of GDP (income) but this approach is risky as it fails to track and measure the impact of this on nature. Inclusive wealth, on the other hand captures financial and produced capital, but also the skills in our workforce (human capital), the cohesion in our society (social capital) and the value of our environment (natural capital).

Dongming Wang, Rina Dong and Chenqi Mou
Math. Comp. 89 (2020), 1993-2015.
Abstract, references and article information

Naoya Hiramatsu and Ryo Takahashi
Proc. Amer. Math. Soc. 148 (2020), 2359-2369.
Abstract, references and article information

The Government today announced the establishment of a LawTech Fund to help law firms and barristers' chambers procure and upgrade information technology (IT) systems and arrange lawtech training courses for their staff.

In a statement, the Department of Justice said the LawTech Fund, established under the Anti-epidemic Fund, will be open for applications from April 28 and cater to small and medium-size law firms as well as barristers’ chambers.

Applications will be accepted for two months and those eligible can receive a reimbursement of up to $50,000.

The Law Society of Hong Kong and the Hong Kong Bar Association will establish a joint committee to assess the applications and arrange funding disbursement.

More than 60% of law firms and 50% of barristers' chambers in Hong Kong are expected to benefit from the funding.

As for funding eligibility, law firms or chambers must have five or fewer practising lawyers as at April 8 and at the time of granting the subsidy.

The subsidies must be used for procuring and upgrading IT systems, including but not confined to video-conferencing facilities. The lawtech training that is to receive the subsidy must be recognised and approved by the joint committee.

The application form and guidance notes are available at the homepages of the Law Society and the Bar Association.

The Secretary for Justice has given an outline of the fund and discussed lawtech in her blog.

The first batch of about 300 Hong Kong residents stranded in Pakistan will take a chartered flight tentatively scheduled to leave Islamabad on the morning of April 30 and arrive in Hong Kong in the afternoon.

In a statement today, the Security Bureau said the returnees upon arrival at Hong Kong International Airport will proceed to the Temporary Specimen Collection Centre at AsiaWorld-Expo by coach for compulsory COVID-19 testing before they are transferred to the quarantine centre at Chun Yeung Estate for a 14-day quarantine.

In view of the COVID-19 situation, the Pakistan Government banned all international flight movements since late March, resulting in Hong Kong residents there being unable to return to Hong Kong through normal means.

The Immigration Department has received requests for assistance from Hong Kong residents stranded there and as at yesterday, it has successfully contacted about 1,600 of them.

Due to the large number of people requesting assistance and having regard to the returnees' quarantine arrangements, the capacities for testing, and the quarantine and treatment facilities, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government must adopt a phased approach in assisting their return, subject to the circumstances.

The first batch of Hong Kong residents on the chartered flight are those staying in Islamabad and its surrounding areas. They also include people with special needs such as those with illnesses and pregnant women.

The cost of taking the chartered flight is about $6,000 per person and is borne by the user.

The Security Bureau said the chartered flight could not have been arranged smoothly without the staunch support of the Office of the Commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (OCMFA) and the Chinese Embassy in Pakistan, as well as the full co-operation rendered by the Pakistan Government and the Consulate General of Pakistan in Hong Kong.

The bureau said the Hong Kong SAR Government will continue to liaise with the residents still in Pakistan and assist in their return.

Meanwhile, a flight will arrive from Doha this afternoon carrying about 170 Hong Kong residents returning from Pakistan themselves.

The bureau added that upon their arrival in Hong Kong, they will be arranged to leave deep throat saliva samples at the Temporary Specimen Collection Centre before being admitted to the quarantine centre at Chun Yeung Estate for a 14-day quarantine.

Apart from Pakistan, the Indian Government has also since late March banned all international flight movements. As at yesterday, the Immigration Department has successfully contacted about 3,100 Hong Kong residents stranded there who sought assistance to return home.

The Hong Kong SAR Government is maintaining close contact with the OCMFA, the Chinese Embassy in India and the Consulate General of India in Hong Kong, while also contacting several airlines to arrange return flights to Hong Kong.

To celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Cultural Centre, the Leisure & Cultural Services Department will hold a fun day from noon to 5.30pm on November 9.

The centre’s venue partners, the Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra, the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra, the Hong Kong Ballet and Zuni Icosahedron will use the latest technology in the foyer to present Western and Chinese music, a ballet performance and sound and scene recreation of the former Kowloon-Canton Railway Station.

At the piazza areas, more than 40 dancers will perform works by acclaimed and emerging choreographers and lead visitors to discover every corner of the centre.

Artist Enoch Cheng will curate "Unseen Scene" in the backstage area to display the magic behind a show through music, dance, projections and other special performances.

Additional programmes will include the Stage & Technology Workshop and the 30th anniversary exhibition "Traces of the Past & Future".

Besides free events on the fun day, the centre will hold a celebratory concert at 8pm on November 29 and 30. Pieces specially selected from the repertoire of the centre's opening concert 30 years ago will be presented.

Click here for details.

The Dr Sun Yat-sen Museum will hold a fun day on November 10 to commemorate Dr Sun's revolutionary journey and enhance public knowledge of the museum.

A variety of activities including a concert, birthday cake motif cardholder workshop and cosplay will be provided.

There will also be virtual reality games and a display of early textbooks for visitors to learn more about Dr Sun's school life in Hong Kong.

In addition, a cultural tour will be held on the Dr Sun Yat-sen Historical Trail. Prior registration is required.

Visitors can also tour the museum's permanent exhibits which comprise precious historical artefacts and a wide range of audiovisual programmes.

Admission is free.

Click here for details.

Asian Ethnic Cultural Performances 2019 will be staged on Sunday to demonstrate the diversity of Asia’s cultures.

The event will feature ethnic performances and activities with representatives from 19 Asian countries and places taking part.

Korean traditional Nongak and Taepyeongmu dances, a Japanese Tokushima Awa dance, Indian classical and Bollywood dances, and folk dance performances of countries such as Bangladesh, Laos, Vietnam, the Philippines and Sri Lanka will be showcased.

Hong Kong and Macau arts groups will stage a hip hop lion dance and a cheerleading performance.

Other activities include traditional arts and crafts, costume and food displays, as well as a bamboo musical instrument workshop.

A CIBS mobile studio supported by Radio Television Hong Kong will also be set up to let members of the public learn about broadcasting.

The event will be held from 2pm to 6pm at the Cultural Centre Piazza. Admission is free.

Click here for details.

Ensemble SU from Korea will stage a concert at Sha Tin Town Hall in December.

The quintet breaks boundaries by merging both traditional Korean musical instruments with Western instruments to bring music to life.

The world touring group plays works ranging from Arirang Rhapsody to Bohemian Rhapsody and from Bul-no-ha to the jazz classic Take Five.

The concert will be held at 8pm on December 6 and tickets are available at URBTIX.

Click here for details.

An extraordinary strings crossover performance by erhu master Xu Ke and the Tokyo String Quintet will be held in December.

Heralded as the Paganini of the erhu world, Mr Xu is currently a guest professor at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music and the Senzoku Gakuen College of Music in Japan.

Presented by the Leisure & Cultural Services Department as part of the Music Delight Series, the concert will be held at Tsuen Wan Town Hall on December 14.

Tickets are available at URBTIX.

Click here for details.

About 200 archaeological Song-Yuan period finds unearthed at Kai Tak will go on display in an exhibition at the Heritage Discovery Centre from tomorrow until February 26.

Following the closure of Kai Tak Airport in 1998, the planning work for the Kai Tak Development Area created opportunities for archaeological studies around the former Sacred Hill in Kowloon Bay.

An abundance of Song-Yuan period cultural remains were subsequently unearthed, including a huge amount of ceramics produced by various kilns in Zhejiang, Fujian and Jiangxi.

Similar products from the same period were exported widely and could be found in shipwrecks along the maritime ceramics route.

Highlights of the Treasures from the Sacred Hill: Song-Yuan Period Archaeological Discoveries from Kai Tak exhibition include green glazed incense burners with an eight trigrams pattern and a green glazed dish with a moulded double fish pattern produced by Longquan Kiln.

Other highlights include a brown glazed dragon jar with lugs and a green glazed basin with a phoenix pattern produced by Cizao Kiln and a Daguan Tongbao bronze coin.

Ceramics from the same period on loan from the Art Museum of the Chinese University of Hong Kong will also be displayed.

Curated by the Antiquities & Monuments Office, admission to the exhibition is free.

Call 2208 4400 for details.

The Space Museum will present Turtle Odyssey 3D between January 1 and April 30 where audiences can join sea turtle Bunji for a remarkable adventure and meet an astonishing range of strange and fascinating creatures, including breaching whales, manta rays and clownfish.

Bunji's journey starts from the moment her fragile egg cracks open below the warm sand of an Australian beach.

Having traversed thousands of kilometres of open oceans, she returns after decades with mysterious precision back to the very beach where she was born to lay eggs and start the next generation.

Her journey reminds the audience of how interconnected all creatures are, moving them to cherish these beautiful and vulnerable sea turtles even more.

The 41-minute show will be screened daily at 2.40pm and 6.10pm. An additional show at 11.10am will be available on Sundays and public holidays.

Tickets are available at the Space Museum Box Office and URBTIX. The museum is closed on Tuesdays except public holidays.

Click here for details.

More than 30 local music and dance groups will perform in the Youth Music & Dance Marathon on January 5.

The free event presented by the Leisure & Cultural Services Department will be held from 1pm to 6pm that day at the Cultural Centre Piazza.

Event highlights will include performances by singers and groups from the Renaissance Foundation and My Main Stage as well as other local bands such as Chonotenki and Gainorva.

The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts’ School of Dance, the Hong Kong Schools Dance Association and other groups will also give a variety of dance performances such as Chinese, street, jazz, modern, cha-cha-cha, jive and J-pop.

Click here for details.

The city's annual Jazz Marathon will be held on April 25.

The all-day music event will see artists from France, India, Italy, Japan, the Mainland, Russia and the US collaborate with local musicians to create a borderless jazz soundscape.

The Day Marathon Concert will be held from 2.30pm to 6pm while the Night Marathon Concert will be held from 7.15pm to 10.45pm.

 
Ahead of the concerts, jazz workshops with the artists will be held on April 24.

Presented by the Leisure & Cultural Services Department, the events will be held at Queen Elizabeth Stadium in Wan Chai.

Tickets are available at URBTIX.

Click here for details.

The Space Museum is staging a special exhibition 2020 Astronomical Events to highlight six major astronomical events happening this year.

The events include grouping of the four planets with the moon in late March, the serial phenomena of Jupiter's moons on June 11 and 12, and the partial solar eclipse on June 21.

Information on the Perseid meteor shower in mid-August, the Geminid meteor shower in mid-December and the Jupiter-Saturn conjunction on December 21 will also be featured.

The exhibit explains details and phenomena of these events, while serving as a practical guide to help visitors pick the best dates, times, locations and tools to observe them.

It will run until September 21 in two phases. The first three events will be presented during the first phase from January to June, while the second phase events will be shown from June to September.

Admission is free.

Call 2721 0226 for enquiries.

Let’s discuss student opinion forms, course evaluations, student evaluation of teaching forms, whatever term you use. Article after article year after year highlight how toxic they are. More recently the emphasis has been on how they differ according to instructor … Continue reading →

The Les Arcs Co-Production village, running December 13-16 within the Les Arcs European Film Festival (Dec 13-20), will present 25 projects in development and a further 10 works-in-progress. Several of the projects chosen for this year’s event are Irish films and films with Irish producers’ backing.

More than 40,000 new niches at two columbaria in Tuen Mun and Fanling will open for applications from May 11, the Food & Environmental Hygiene Department announced today.

Tsang Tsui Columbarium in Tuen Mun will provide 22,680 standard niches and 220 large niches, while Wo Hop Shek Columbarium in Fanling will provide 21,720 standard niches and 330 large niches for application.

The department said applicants should only file one application form to apply for either a large or standard niche for the same deceased person.

It said applicants have to fill in the particulars of at least three deceased people when applying for a large niche.

Since the type and number of niches available in the two columbaria are different, the chance of successful allocation varies, the department added.

The application deadline is June 10.

Click here for details.

(To watch the full press conference with sign language interpretation, click here.)

The Government is confident that the Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education (DSE) Examination could be held on April 24.

Secretary for Education Kevin Yeung made the statement when explaining the arrangements for the DSE examination at a press conference today.

Mr Yeung said the Government understands that some DSE candidates are concerned about their safety.

He said measures will be taken to make sure that examination venues will be as safe as possible.

Exam candidates will have to wear masks, which have already been distributed, before entering the examination centres. Hand sanitisers will also be given to them.

If a candidate has a fever or upper respiratory tract symptoms, they will not be allowed to take the exam.

Additionally, more classrooms will be turned into examination centres and desks will be separated by at least 1.8m in most centres.

Mr Yeung said: “We are now confident that the exam could be held on April 24.

“We believe that with everyone’s effort and hopefully with the support of the community in trying to control the spread of the disease, we will be able to complete the DSE exam by the end of May.”