K H Chan received his training in internal medicine and neurology in the University Department of Medicine, Queen Mary Hospital, Faculty of Medicine, the University of Hong Kong. He obtained his fellowship in neurology in 2001 and after staying one year of elective research on neuroimmunological disorders and related neuroimmunology focusing on neuronal and muscle autoantibodies in paraneoplastic neurological disorders and myasthenia gravis under the mentorship of Professor Vanda A Lennon in Mayo Clinic Rochester in 2000. He obtained his MD in 2007 and PhD in 2012 from HKU, and joined the University of Hong Kong as Clinical Assistant Professor in 2008, became Clinical Associate Professor in 2013 and was promoted to Clinical Professor in 2024.

His research interests include autoimmune neurological disorders and related neuroimmunology, and neuroinflammation of Alzheimer’s disease. Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an important inflammatory demyelinating disorder of the central nervous system (CNS) with uncertain pathogenesis. Neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorders (NMOSD) cause severe acute myelitis, optic neuritis and encephalitis especially brainstem encephalitis, and can be misdiagnosed as MS. Detection of aquaporin-4 autoantibodies (AQP4-IgG) in serum of NMOSD patients greatly facilitate the diagnosis of NMOSD and its differentiation from MS. APQ4 is the most abundant water channel protein in mammalian CNS, which is expressed abundantly in astrocytic endfeet processes. NMOSD are more common among Asians with long-term treatments different from that of MS. K H Chan’s current research focuses on 1) clinical and radiological features of local MS and NMOSD patients, 2) understanding immunopathogenesis of MS and NMOSD especially the pathogenic role of AQP4-IgG, 3) development of novel immunotherapies for MS and NMOSD, 4) understanding the pathogenetic mechanisms/pathophysiologies of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and 5) development of novel personalized therapeutics for AD and other neurodegenerative diseases causing cognitive impairment and dementia. He is particularly interested in the role of B cells in MS and NMOSD. He participates in international multi-center trial on new disease modifying therapies for MS and NMOSD. His team first reported that brainstem encephalitis is common among Hong Kong Chinese NMOSD patients (Arch Neurol 2010). He is actively researching on the pathogenetic mechanisms/pathophysiologies of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) focusing on microglia-mediated neuroinflammation triggered by beta-amyloid (Aβ) and tau, and dysfunction of the glymphatic system. He is exploring the potential neuroprotective effects of adiponectin (an adipokine with anti-inflammatory and insulin-sensitizing properties) and measures to improve glymphatic functions as strategies to prevent and treat AD. Professor Chan’s laboratory discovered the role of adiponectin in cognition of the mammalian brain (Mol Neurodegener 2016) and that microglia express adiponectin receptors with adiponectin signaling activity leading to anti-inflammatory effects in microglia (J Neuroinflam 2019).

1. Lee CY, Lam CL, Pang SYY, Lau KK, Teo KC, Chang RSK, Chan KH. Clinical outcome of generalized myasthenia gravis in Hong Kong Chinese. Journal of Neuroimmunology 2015;289:177-181 
2. Kremer S, Renard F, Achard S, Lana-Peixoto MA, Palace J, Asgari N, Klawiter EC, Tenembaum SN, Banwell B, Greenberg BM, Bennett JL, Levy M, Villoslada P, Saiz A, Fujihara K, Chan KH, Schippling S, Paul F, Kim HJ, de Seze J, Wuerfel JT; and the Guthy-Jackson Charitable Foundation (GJCF) Neuromyelitis Optica (NMO) International Clinical Consortium and Biorepository. Use of Advanced Magnetic Resonance Imaging Techniques in Neuromyelitis Optica Spectrum Disorder. JAMA Neurology. 2015 May 26. doi: 10.1001/jamaneurol.2015.0248. 
3. Qian W, Chan KH, Hui ES, Lee CY, Hu Y, Mak HKF. Application of diffusional kurtosis imaging in detecting occult brain damages in multiple sclerosis and neuromyelitis optica. NMR in Biomedicine  2016;1-10 DOI 10.1002 /nbm.3607 
4. Ng RCL, Cheng OY, Jian M, Kwan SC, Ho WL, Cheng KKY, Yeung PKK, Zhou LL, Hoo RLC, Chung SK, Xu A, Lam KSL*, Chan KH*. Chronic adiponectin deficiency leads to Alzheimer's disease-like cognitive impairments and pathologies through AMPK inactivation and cerebral insulin resistance in aged mice. Molecular Neurodegeneration 2016;11:71 
5. Lee CY, Chiu PW, Chang HC, Barkhof F, Chan KH. Differential brainstem atrophy patterns in multiple sclerosis and neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorders. Journal of Magnetic Resonance Imaging 2018:47(6):1601-1609  doi: 10.1002/jmri.25866 
6. Chan KH, Lee R, Lau KK, Loong F. Orbital ectopic lymphoid follicles with germinal centers in AQP4-IgG positive neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorders. Frontiers in Immunology 2018;8:1947. doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2017.01947  
7. Yick LW, Ma KF, Ng RCL, Kwan SC, Chan KH. Aquaporin-4 autoantibodies from neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder patients induce complement-independent immunopathologies in mice. Frontiers in Immunology 2018;9:1438. doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2018.01438  
8. Jian M, Kwan JSC, Bunting MK, Ng RCL, Chan KH.  Adiponectin Suppresses Amyloid-β Oligomer (AβO)-induced Inflammatory Response of Microglia via AdipoR1-AMPK- NF-κB signaling pathway. Journal of Neuroinflammation 2019;16(1):110.  doi: 10.1186/s12974-019-1492-6 
9. Ng RCL, Jian M, Bunting M, Ma OKF, Kwan JSC, Zhou G, Senthilkumar K, Iyaswamy A, Li M, Leung KMY, Durairajan SK, Lam KSL, Chung SK, Chan KH. Chronic oral administration of AdipoRon reverses cognitive impairments and ameliorates neuropathology in an Alzheimer’s disease mouse model. Molecular Psychiatry 2020 Mar 4. doi: 10.1038/s41380-020-0701-0 
10. Chau CM, Cheung YW, Chan KH, Chow WS, Shea YF. Chiu KC, Mak HKF. Impaired cerebral blood flow in Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus- a comparative study with subjective cognitive decline, vascular dementia and Alzheimer’s disease subjects. NeuroImage Clinical (2020;27:102302. doi: 10.1016/j.nicl.2020.102302) 
11. Yick LW, Tang CH, Ma OKF, Kwan JSC, Chan KH. Memantine ameliorates motor impairments and pathologies in a mouse model of neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorders. Journal of Neuroinflammation 2020;17(1):236. doi: 10.1186/s12974-020-01913-2 
12. Chan KH and Lee CY. Treatment of Neuromyelitis Optica Spectrum Disorders. Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2021;22:8638. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms22168638 
13. J Huang, J Xu, JHC Lai, Z Chen; CY Lee, HKF Mak, KH Chan*, KWY Chan. Relayed nuclear Overhauser effect weighted (rNOEw) imaging identifies multiple sclerosis. NeuroImage: Clinical 2021;32:102867. doi: 10.1016/j.nicl.2021
14. LW Yick, KF Ma, YY Chan , KX Yau, SC Kwan, KH Chan*.  T follicular helper cells contribute to pathophysiology in a model of neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorders. JCI Insight 2023 Jan 17;e161003. doi: 10.1172/jci.insight.161003 
15. Huiqin ZHANG, Zuo Jun Wang, Koon-Ho Chan, Yat-Fung Shea, Jacky Chi-Yan Lee, Patrick Ka-Chun Chiu, Peng Cao, Henry Ka-Fung Mak. Differential Diagnosis of Alzheimer's Disease Spectrum using Structural and Diffusion Kurtosis Imaging. Brain Sciences 2023;13(4):595. doi: 10.3390/brainsci13040595
16. Lee CY, Chan KH. Personalized Use of Disease-Modifying Therapies in Multiple Sclerosis. Pharmaceutics. 2024; 16(1):120. https://doi.org/10.3390/pharmaceutics1601012 
17. Ng RC, Jian M, Ma OK, Xiang AW, Bunting M, Kwan JS, Wong CW, Yick LW, Chung SK, Lam KS, Alexander IE, Xu A, Chan KH. Liver-specific adiponectin gene therapy suppresses microglial NLRP3-inflammasome for treating Alzheimer’s Disease. Journal of Neuroinflammation 2024 Mar 27;21(1):77. doi: 10.1186/s12974-024-03066-y

Project Code/Funding Scheme	Project Title/Principal Investigator/Department	Approved Amount (HK$)
Novartis competitive grant	Study on gray matter involvement in multiple sclerosis using conventional and diffusion kurtosis imaging magnetic resonance imaging	300,000

• Founding Chairman, Hong Kong Multiple Sclerosis Society
• Regional Programme Director, Specialty Board in Neurology, Hong Kong College of Physicians
• Introductory Clerkship Coordinator of MBBS III
• Secretary of the Hong Kong University Alzheimer Disease Research Network (HKUADRN), LKS Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong
• Member of the Asia Pacific Advisory Board on Use of Intravenous Immunoglobulins in Neurological Diseases
• Member of the Asia Pacific Expert Group on Myasthenia Gravis

• Open Journal of Immunology
• Inflammation and Cell Signaling