MU Connect #11

研究及知識轉移 Research & Knowledge Transfer

A race against time: advancing early detection of life-threatening sepsis 推進膿毒症的早期檢測分秒必爭

Sepsis is a medical emergency in which the immune system overreacts to an infection, which can lead to organ failure or death. Each year, millions of people worldwide, including young children, die of sepsis. However, diagnosing and treating the disease remains a major challenge. Early symptoms often resemble those of minor illnesses, and a patient’s condition can deteriorate rapidly within days or even hours. There is an urgent need for faster and more accurate ways to detect sepsis before it becomes fatal. Prof. Jack Tang Wai‑ho (pictured), a molecular biologist and Head of Diagnostic Sciences in the School of Nursing and Health Sciences at HKMU, is shedding new light on a lesser‑known but critical player in sepsis: platelets. These are the smallest cells in the blood and are essential for clotting to stop bleeding. His project, titled “Deciphering the pathophysiological role of platelet PANoptosis in sepsis”, began in January 2026 with HK$1.26 million in funding from the Research Grants Council. Prof. Tang earned his PhD from The University of Hong Kong, where he focused on cardiomyopathy among patients with diabetes. He subsequently worked as a postdoctoral fellow at Yale University, investigating why patients with diabetes had thicker, more reactive blood platelets than others. This ignited his interest in vascular disease and led him to HKMU in 2023.

膿毒症，又稱敗血症，是人體受感染後出現免疫失調反應的一種急症，可導致器官衰竭，甚至死亡。全球每年有數以百萬計的人死於膿毒症，當中不乏幼童。然而，由於膿毒症早期症狀往往與一般輕微疾病相似，而病情卻可能在數天，甚至數小時內迅速惡化，因此令診斷與治療至今仍充滿挑戰。醫學界當務之急，是研發更快捷、更準確的診斷方法。本身為分子生物學家的都大護理及健康學院診斷科學學系主任鄧偉豪教授（上圖），冀以新角度研究膿毒症，正聚焦研究血液中體積最小的細胞——負責止血和傷口癒合的血小板。今年 1 月，他開展「血小板泛凋亡在膿毒症中的調控作用及機制研究」項目，並獲研究資助局撥款 126 萬港元支持。鄧教授於香港大學完成博士學位，集中研究糖尿病患者出現心肌病的問題，其後在耶魯大學擔任博士後研究員，研究為何糖尿病患者的血小板較一般人更厚且反應更強。這段經歷燃起他對血管疾病的興趣，並於 2023 年加入都大。

Hard to diagnose in children

兒童患者難以察覺

Prof. Tang notes that diagnosing sepsis in children is particularly challenging. According to the World Health Organization, nearly half of all estimated sepsis cases worldwide occur in children under the age of five. “Young patients may struggle to communicate their symptoms, and early signs, such as fever and lethargy, are not specific to sepsis,” Prof. Tang explains. “Clinicians may therefore miss the critical window for early intervention.” He adds that blood culture, the “gold standard” for diagnosis, typically takes two to four days to deliver results, which can delay the identification of appropriate treatment.

鄧教授指出，診斷兒童是否患有膿毒症尤其困難。根據世界衞生組織的資料，全球估計膿毒症病例中，近半數患者為五歲以下兒童。他解釋：「年幼患者未必能清楚表達症狀，而發燒、倦怠等早期病徵亦非膿毒症獨有。臨床醫生可能錯失及早介入治療的良機。」

他補充，現時血液培養是診斷膿毒症的黃金標準，但一般需時兩至四天才有結果，或會延誤作出適切治療。