NEWS
Foo Lab @ Cold Spring Harbor Asia Meeting 2025
"From Mechanisms to Therapies: Targeting Cardiometabolic Complications in Obesity and Diabetes"
in Suzhou, China
Foo Lab attends the Cold Spring Harbor Asia conference on "From Mechanisms to Therapies: Targeting Cardiometabolic Complications in Obesity and Diabetes" which was held in Suzhou China.
RESET @ Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon
2025
Project RESET collaborated with SG Marathon Pte Ltd, this year's Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon organizers for our 3rd annual community outreach event. Outreach events such as these allow us to transform communities into active participants in the pursuit of medical breakthroughs. So thankful for SCSM for hosting us once more as well as our wonderful participants and attendees who are supporting us in our quest for better treatments and therapies.
Foo Lab @ Stem Cell Society Singapore Symposium
2025
Foo Lab attends the 17th Stem Cell Society Singapore Symposium, a unique symposium meant to bring together scientists across the region and the globe to share their latest research on stem cells.​
Asian Focus, Global Impact:
Understanding Heart Disease in the Asian Context
​Professor Roger Foo, Vice-Dean of Research at Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore (NUS Medicine), is leading a transformative shift in cardiovascular research with a distinctly Asian focus. By challenging global norms and pioneering tailored approaches, he is positioning Singapore at the cutting edge of precision health.
​Engaging Patients as Partners:
Reflections on the NUS Medicine PPIE Forum February 2025
On 17 February 2025, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore (NUS Medicine) held its first forum dedicated to reimagining how health research can meaningfully serve the people it seeks to benefit. Through four compelling presentations, experts from academia and clinical practice conveyed a unifying conviction: patients and the public are not mere participants but vital collaborators whose lived experiences shape research relevance, rigour and ethical integrity.
"If I Lived in the Time of Christopher Columbus, I'd Be an Explorer": Professor Roger Foo's Journey Through Medical Research
​While the age of maritime discovery may have passed, Professor Roger Foo has found his own uncharted waters in cardiovascular research. As Vice-Dean (Research) at Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore (NUS Medicine), Prof Foo embodies the spirit of exploration that has driven the institution’s advancements over its 120-year history. In celebration of this significant milestone, his pioneering initiatives in Asian heart health research represent the forward-thinking vision that has established NUS Medicine as a globally recognised leader in medical education, research and healthcare.
Into the Future –
The Research Journey at NUS Medicine
​Established in 1905 to train doctors for the country, the NUS School of Medicine (renamed Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine in 2005), has grown from a tiny Straits Settlement and Federated Malay States medical college into a leading medical academic research-engine in Asia today. With 17 departments, 10 Translational Research Programmes (TRPs), 15 Faculty Research Centres and 11 Research Cores, NUS Medicine investigators and their teams drive impactful research, pioneer breakthroughs, and seek to shape healthcare policies across the span of Medicine. As it marks its 120th year, the School moves ever purposefully to push the boundaries of medical science and innovation, reinforcing its legacy as a pillar of medical excellence.
Reset TOWNHALL
​Project RESET successfully hosted its inaugural Townhall on August 27, 2025, marking an exciting step forward in Public and Patient Involvement (PPI) for the initiative. The event brought together over a hundred participants, as well as commercial collaborators from Garmin, Atlantis Bioscience, and Buzud, fostering strong community engagement. Attendees were introduced to preliminary findings and contributed valuable feedback, particularly regarding digital wearable technology, AI-driven data analysis, and health conditions revealed through study tests. This open exchange underscored the collaborative ethos of RESET, highlighting how impactful research thrives through active partnership with participants.
​World Genome Body Lists Newly Identified Heart Gene Named by NUS Scientists
​In a first, the VHRT gene discovered by researchers at the Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore (NUS Medicine) has been added to the Human Gene Nomenclature database.
Deconstructing the GWAS library: next-generation GWAS
Foo Lab released a comprehensive physiological review in Physiological Reviews, covering the latest advances in next-generation genome-wide association study (GWAS) methodologies for cardiovascular disease. The review synthesizes recent discoveries about genetic risk mechanisms and discusses new strategies for gene prioritization that leverage functional genomics and multi-ancestry datasets. Special attention is given to how expanded datasets, integrative approaches, and population-specific findings are transforming our understanding of heart disease biology.
Metabolome-wide association identifies ferredoxin-1 (FDX1) as a determinant of cholesterol metabolism and cardiovascular risk in Asian populations
Foo Lab, as part of the SG100K project, co-authored a significant paper in Nature Cardiovascular Research revealing a causal link between a bile acid–associated gene and atherosclerosis using genetically edited iPSCs. Researchers validated the pathway by performing gene editing in cells expressing CYP27A1, showing that deleting the FDX1 gene led to a sharp reduction in 3BH5C production, while increasing FDX1 boosted its levels and promoted cholesterol removal from hepatocytes, macrophages, and vascular smooth muscle cells—crucial for atherosclerotic plaque biology.
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Foo Lab @ XXV World Congress International Society for Heart Research
(ISHR 2025) in Nara, Japan
Foo Lab attended the XXV World Congress International Society for Heart Research (ISHR 2025), an internationally distinguished conference that provides a platform for basic and clinical scientists to present their new findings and technical advancement in the field of cardiovascular health.
​Foo lab identified a novel cardiomyocyte dedifferentiation (CMDD) marker gene, asparagine synthetase (Asns)
This study from Dr. Yike Zhu was recently published in CIRCULATION.
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The team leveraged in vitro cultured adult mouse cardiomyocytes and in vivo adeno-associated virus serotype 9 cardiomyocyte–targeted delivery of reprogramming factors (Oct4, Sox2, Klf4, and Myc) in adult mice to study CM dedifferentiation.
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Asns expression level was significantly and consistently upregulated in multiple models of CMDD and cardiac regeneration, while Asns deficiency led to defective regeneration in the neonatal mouse myocardial infarction model and more cell death. We are excited to have identified this marker to better understand cardiac regeneration.
“Your Tumour Can Save Lives”: Re-examining Singapore’s Consent Procedures for the Use of De-identified Bio-specimens in Research"
​Foo Lab co-authored a bioethics opinion article evaluating Singapore's consent procedures for secondary research use of de-identified biospecimens, advocating for regulatory reforms to promote more effective biomedical research outcomes.
Foo Lab @ the Keystone Symposia Conference "Cardiovascular Epigenetics and Gene Regulation" (C5-2024)
Foo Lab attended the Keystone Symposia Conference on "Cardiovascular Epigenetics and Gene Regulation" (C5-2024)
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Mick Lee's "Genome-Wide CRISPR Screen Identifies an NF2-Adherens Junction Mechanistic Dependency for Cardiac Lineage"
accepted into CIRCULATION
Dr. Mick Lee has been using CRISPR screening to dissect mechanisms of cardiomyocyte differentiation and function. It turns out that NF2 is crucial to regulate Wnt signaling throughout this process which involves a stepwise clearance of cell fate - restricting regulators through the modulation of BMP/Wnt-signaling pathways.
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NF2 and AMOT cooperatively bind to YAP preventing YAP activation. The AMOT-NF2-YAP scaffold complex at the adherens junction is required for mesodermal lineage specification.
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This work has helped us to establish CRISPR screening with Mick and others continuing to use this powerful tool to ask other questions. We were also awarded a grant to fund our exploration of avenues to exploit NF2 and related pathways to modulate heart muscle function.
“Dulce et Decorum est - to the service we are called forth hither." - Professor Roger Foo makes statement as newly appointed Vice-Dean (Research)
Roger was asked to provide some inspiration for the new calendar year. Welcome colleagues and collaborators to 2024.
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"A new year with new beginnings. I've been asked to reflect. It is a wonderful time to be called to serve in the ecosystem as Vice-Dean (Research) at NUS Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine...."
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"I count myself very privileged indeed to be working very hard with everyone ... for the practice of better medicine tomorrow."
New Vice-Dean for Research at NUS Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine
​​Professor Roger Foo Sik Yin has been appointed as Vice-Dean (Research), at the Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore (NUS Medicine) from 1 January 2024. Prior to his new appointment, he held the role of Assistant Dean (Research) at NUS Medicine since October 2019.