A study published in the Journal of Bioresources and Bioproducts establishes quantitative structure-activity relationships governing surfactant efficacy against phenolic inhibition in lignocellulose enzymatic hydrolysis. By integrating experimental validation with computational modeling, researchers identified hydrophobicity, hydrogen bonding capacity, and electrophilicity as critical molecular descriptors, demonstrating that optimized surfactants preferentially bind cellulase catalytic tunnels with affinities significantly exceeding those of inhibitory phenolics.

A systematic analysis published in the Journal of Bioresources and Bioproducts establishes functionalized microalgae as emerging composite bioproducts with transformative potential across diagnostics, therapy, and theranostics. The review categorizes physical, chemical, biotechnological, and hybrid functionalization approaches while critically addressing immunogenicity, long-term biosafety, and clinical translation challenges essential for advancing these sustainable biomaterials from laboratory innovation to patient care.

The growing prevalence of intelligent manufacturing and autonomous vehicles has intensified the demand for three-dimensional (3D) reconstruction under complex illumination conditions (including complex reflection and transmission). Traditional structured light techniques rely on inherent point-to-point triangulation, and is unable to decouple complex illuminations, resulting in errors in depth reconstruction. Parallel single-pixel imaging (PSI) has demonstrated unprecedented superiority under extreme conditions. However, a complete theoretical model has not yet been reported to adequately explain its underlying mechanisms and quantitatively characterize its performance. This hinders the effective application of the technology and its ability to accurately address practical needs. In this study, a comprehensive theoretical model for the PSI method is proposed, including imaging and noise models. The proposed imaging model describes light transport coefficients under complex illumination, elucidating the intrinsic mechanisms of successful 3D imaging using PSI. The developed noise model quantitatively analyzes the impact of environmental noise on measurement accuracy, offering a framework to guide the error analysis of a PSI system. Numerical simulations and experimental results validate the proposed models, revealing the generality and robustness of PSI. Finally, potential research directions are highlighted to guide and inspire future investigations. The established theoretical models lay a solid foundation for PSI and bring new insights and opportunities for future application in more demanding 3D reconstruction tasks.

The Secretary for Housing, Ms Winnie Ho, and the President and Vice-Chancellor of the University of Hong Kong, Professor Xiang Zhang, have signed an Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) today (March 31) to establish a co-operation framework for advancing research and practical applications of cutting-edge construction technologies in public housing projects. This partnership will leverage the research prowess of a global top university alongside the Hong Kong Housing Authority (HKHA)'s full-cycle functions - from planning and design through construction and operations management to maintenance - and its comprehensive practical scenarios, bringing world-class innovations to local construction practices to pioneer industry leadership and accelerate Hong Kong's construction sector toward higher quality, more intelligent, and sustainable practices.

The “Action for Earth” Summit, one of the flagship events of Hong Kong Climate Week 2026, is being held today at Rayson Huang Theatre, The University of Hong Kong. The Summit brought together representatives from the United Nations, the Ministry of Ecology and Environment, the Hong Kong SAR Government, the business sector, and leading international academic institutions to examine policy pathways, frontier research and actionable strategies for climate adaptation—reflecting the growing international consensus to shift the focus from “mitigation” to proactive “adaptation”.

The research project “Scalable fabrication of flexible, ultra-flat diamond films” co-led by Professor Zhiqin Chu in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, and Professor Yuan Lin in the Department of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering at the University of Hong Kong (HKU), has been selected as one of China’s Top 10 Scientific Advances of 2025.  This innovative technology has successfully enabled the large-scale, high-quality preparation of diamond membranes, laying a critical foundation for the development of next-generation electronic and optical devices.

Initiated and hosted by the University of Hong Kong (HKU)’s Institute for Climate and Carbon Neutrality (ICCN), Hong Kong Climate Week 2026 marks its opening today under the theme “From Mitigation to Adaptation — Bridging Global Consensus and Local Implementation.” The week-long event aims to harness Hong Kong’s unique strengths as an international financial centre and a global connectivity hub to accelerate a just, inclusive and resilient net-zero transition. It also underscores Hong Kong’s role as a “two-way bridge,” connecting the Chinese Mainland with the world, advancing the deployment of climate technology, and channelling green finance.

The HKU Musketeers Foundation Institute of Data Science (HKU IDS) at the University of Hong Kong (HKU) will host the Hong Kong Global AI Governance Conference 2026 on 10–11 April at the Rayson Huang Theatre. The Conference will bring together scholars, policymakers, and industry leaders from around the world to discuss emerging issues in artificial intelligence governance.