Ting Hsuan Chao

Ms. Ting Hsuan Chao

orcid

Research Focus & Metrics

Academic Career Length

1Year (2026-Present)

(Calculated once Scilit publication data is synced: current year − year of first publication + 1)

Representative Publications

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3 July 2026 in Preprints.org
Verified
Preprint
Open access
PDF file
CCChun Chieh Chao
Chun Chieh Chao
HSHsieh-Tsung Ethan Shen
Hsieh-Tsung Ethan Shen
BZBo-Xiang Zhang
Bo-Xiang Zhang
TCTing Hsuan Chao
Ting Hsuan Chao
CWChing-Dong Wang
Ching-Dong Wang
CWChung-Che Wu
Chung-Che Wu
Glioblastoma remains the most lethal primary malignancy of the central nervous system, and the modest gains achieved with maximal surgery, radiotherapy and temozolomide have not been matched by the immune checkpoint inhibitors and antigen-specific vaccines that reshaped the treatment of many extracranial cancers. The recurrent disappointment of these approaches has been attributed less to a single molecular lesion than to a confluence of obstacles: profound intratumoural heterogeneity, a densely immunosuppressive and myeloid-rich microenvironment, sequestration and exhaustion of conventional T cells, and the practical difficulty of delivering effectors across the blood-brain barrier. Against this background, γδ T cells have attracted interest as an unconventional effector population that recognises transformed cells through stress-associated and metabolic cues rather than peptide-major histocompatibility complex (MHC) complexes, that kills in an MHC-unrestricted manner, and that can be expanded from healthy donors for allogeneic, off-the-shelf use with little expectation of graft-versus-host disease. This narrative review examines, with a deliberately critical lens, the biological rationale and the experimental evidence for γδ T-cell-based immunotherapy of glioblastoma. We summarise the developmental biology and functional subsets of human γδ T cells, the NKG2D-, DNAM-1- and T-cell-receptor-dependent mechanisms through which they engage glioma cells and glioma stem-like cells, and the in vitro and animal-model studies that underpin the field, taking care not to overstate efficacy that has so far been demonstrated only in preclinical or early-phase settings. We then weigh the principal opportunities—locoregional and repeated dosing, combination with chemoradiotherapy, checkpoint blockade and antibody-based redirection—against barriers that include limited persistence, uncertain intratumoural trafficking, donor and manufacturing variability, and the unsettled requirements of potency testing and trial design. Throughout, γδ T cells are presented as a biologically plausible but still investigational strategy whose clinical value will be determined by adequately powered trials rather than by mechanistic appeal alone.

24 July 2026 in Bioengineering
Verified
Journal Article
Open access
PDF file
CCChun Chieh Chao
Chun Chieh Chao
HSHsieh-Tsung Ethan Shen
Hsieh-Tsung Ethan Shen
BZBo-Xiang Zhang
Bo-Xiang Zhang
TCTing Hsuan Chao
Ting Hsuan Chao
CTChien-Yi Tu
Chien-Yi Tu
CTChen-hsin Tsai
Chen-hsin Tsai
Background: Keratoconus is a progressive corneal ectasia characterised by extracellular matrix (ECM) loss and an emerging inflammatory component, for which no disease-modifying molecular therapy exists. Exosomes derived from limbal and mesenchymal stem cells are an attractive cell-free therapeutic modality, but the cargo that should be delivered is undefined, and no curated limbal stem-cell (LSC) exosome cargo dataset currently exists. Methods: We reanalysed a public keratoconus corneal RNA-sequencing dataset (GEO: GSE77938; discovery and replication cohorts) with DESeq2, defined a replicated differentially expressed gene (DEG) set, and performed Gene Ontology, KEGG and Reactome enrichment. A high-confidence protein–protein interaction (PPI) network (STRING) identified hub genes. We integrated keratoconus disease-gene evidence (Open Targets Platform) and documented extracellular-vesicle cargo (ExoCarta, Vesiclepedia) and computed a transparent Cargo Prioritization Score (CPS) to nominate candidate LSC-exosome therapeutic cargo. Results: A total of 1677 DEGs were detected in discovery (152 up, 1525 down) and 1380 were replicated. Enrichment was dominated by extracellular matrix organisation; adaptive immune response; and mononuclear cell differentiation. Network analysis nominated ECM and immune hub genes. The CPS prioritised COL1A1, FN1, COL4A1, COL3A1, COL5A1, MMP1 as leading restoration-cargo candidates, all documented as EV cargo and present in the mesenchymal stem-cell EV reference proteome. Conclusions: This fully reproducible, real-data framework provides a ranked, evidence-traceable shortlist of candidate LSC-exosome cargo for keratoconus and an explicit account of current data gaps to guide experimental validation.

6 August 2026 in Biomedicines
Verified
Journal Article
Open access
PDF file
CCChun Chieh Chao
Chun Chieh Chao
HSHsieh-Tsung Ethan Shen
Hsieh-Tsung Ethan Shen
BZBo-Xiang Zhang
Bo-Xiang Zhang
TCTing Hsuan Chao
Ting Hsuan Chao
CWChing-Dong Wang
Ching-Dong Wang
CWChung-Che Wu
Chung-Che Wu
Glioblastoma remains the most lethal primary malignancy of the central nervous system, and the modest gains achieved with maximal surgery, radiotherapy and temozolomide have not been matched by the immune checkpoint inhibitors and antigen-specific vaccines that reshaped the treatment of many extracranial cancers. The recurrent disappointment of these approaches has been attributed less to a single molecular lesion than to a confluence of obstacles: profound intratumoural heterogeneity, a densely immunosuppressive and myeloid-rich microenvironment, sequestration and exhaustion of conventional T cells, and the practical difficulty of delivering effectors across the blood–brain barrier. Against this background, γδ T cells have attracted interest as an unconventional effector population that recognises transformed cells through stress-associated and metabolic cues rather than peptide–major histocompatibility complex (MHC) complexes, that kills in an MHC-unrestricted manner, and that can be expanded from healthy donors for allogeneic, off-the-shelf use with little expectation of graft-versus-host disease. This narrative review examines, with a deliberately critical lens, the biological rationale and the experimental evidence for γδ T cell-based immunotherapy of glioblastoma. We summarise the developmental biology and functional subsets of human γδ T cells, the natural killer group 2 member D (NKG2D)-, DNAX accessory molecule 1 (DNAM-1)- and T-cell-receptor-dependent mechanisms through which they engage glioblastoma cells and glioma stem-like cells, and the in vitro and animal-model studies that underpin the field, taking care not to overstate efficacy that has so far been demonstrated only in preclinical or early-phase settings. We then weigh the principal opportunities—locoregional and repeated dosing, combination with chemoradiotherapy, checkpoint blockade and antibody-based redirection—against barriers that include limited persistence, uncertain intratumoural trafficking, donor and manufacturing variability, and the unsettled requirements of potency testing and trial design. We give particular weight to what becomes of γδ T cells inside a hostile tumour—the exhaustion-like dysfunction that follows chronic stimulation, the oxygen and glucose dependence of their effector programme, the interleukin-17-polarising signals generated by activated microglia and by genotoxic therapy, and the confounding effect of corticosteroids—together with the engineering and pharmacological strategies proposed to counter them. The first peer-reviewed phase 1 report of intracranially delivered, drug-resistant γδ T cells has now appeared and documents tolerability in a small, single-arm cohort without establishing survival benefit. Throughout, γδ T cells are presented as a biologically plausible but still investigational strategy whose clinical value will be determined by adequately powered trials rather than by mechanistic appeal alone.

19 August 2026 in Nutrients
Verified
Journal Article
Open access
PDF file
SFShih-Chin Fang
Shih-Chin Fang
MHMeng-Kai Huang
Meng-Kai Huang
HSHsieh-Tsung Ethan Shen
Hsieh-Tsung Ethan Shen
BZBo-Xiang Zhang
Bo-Xiang Zhang
TCTing Hsuan Chao
Ting Hsuan Chao
CWChung-Che Wu
Chung-Che Wu
Background: Population aging is driving a convergent rise in three disorders historically managed in isolation: cardiovascular disease, neurocognitive decline, and osteoporotic bone loss. Mechanistic data indicate that these systems are coupled through shared regulators of calcium trafficking, inflammation resolution, vascular integrity, and inflammaging. On this basis, a “Heart–Brain–Bone” axis has been proposed; it should be understood as an integrative conceptual framework that organizes evidence drawn from three separate studies, not as a validated physiological entity with agreed diagnostic criteria or demonstrated modifiability. Three lipid-soluble nutrients—long-chain omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (EPA/DHA), vitamin D3 (cholecalciferol), and vitamin K2 (menaquinone-7 [MK-7])—act on overlapping nodes of this network. Methods: We performed a structured narrative review. PubMed/MEDLINE, Embase, the Cochrane Library, and Web of Science were searched from database inception to 25 June 2026 using predefined term blocks for each nutrient, each organ domain, and each candidate mechanism, and the search was updated on 7 August 2026. Records were screened against prespecified inclusion and exclusion criteria by two authors independently, with disagreements resolved by a third. The strength of evidence for each nutrient–organ relationship was graded with an explicitly defined four-level scheme ((−) to (+++)) applied separately to preclinical, observational, randomized and meta-analytic evidence. Results: Vitamin K2-dependent gamma-carboxylation of matrix Gla protein (MGP) and osteocalcin has been proposed to influence whether calcium is incorporated into the bone matrix or deposited in the arterial wall, offering a candidate mechanistic account of the “calcium paradox” associated with isolated vitamin D3 supplementation; EPA/DHA-derived specialized pro-resolving mediators may support resolution of endothelial and neuronal inflammation; and bone-, vascular- and brain-derived signals (osteocalcin, FGF23, the neurovascular unit) interconnect the three organs. These mechanisms are biologically plausible but remain insufficiently confirmed in humans. The clinical evidence is heterogeneous, formulation- and population-dependent, and comprises positive, neutral and null results: cardiovascular omega-3 trials are discordant (REDUCE-IT, which used icosapent ethyl [an EPA ethyl ester], positive; VITAL/STRENGTH/ASCEND null, predominantly in lower-risk or replete cohorts); cognitive trials are largely null or subgroup-dependent (MAPT, DO-HEALTH, VITAL); and MK-7 improves surrogate bone and calcification biomarkers and slowed coronary artery calcification in one recent randomized imaging trial (VitaK-CAC), whereas combined MK-7 plus vitamin D3 did not slow aortic valve or coronary calcification in AVADEC and MK-7 did not reduce bone loss in early menopausal women. Recognized safety signals include a dose-dependent increase in atrial fibrillation with high-dose omega-3, adverse skeletal effects of high-dose or bolus vitamin D, and clinically relevant interference of even low-dose MK-7 with vitamin K antagonist therapy. Conclusions: No adequately powered randomized trial has demonstrated that the combination of long-chain omega-3, vitamin D3 and MK-7 is superior to its individual components or to placebo for any clinical endpoint. The combined regimen is therefore mechanistically rational and hypothesis-generating rather than clinically established; benefit appears most plausible in individuals with elevated risk or demonstrable nutritional insufficiency, and least in replete, low-risk populations. Findings should be interpreted within a broader healthy-aging context that includes lifestyle and psychosocial factors. Adequately powered factorial randomized controlled trials stratified by baseline Omega-3 index, 25(OH)D and vitamin K status, with prespecified mechanistic biomarkers and hard endpoints, are required.

8 July 2026 in Preprints.org
Verified
Preprint
Open access
PDF file
SFShih-Chin Fang
Shih-Chin Fang
MHMeng-Kai Huang
Meng-Kai Huang
HSHsieh-Tsung Ethan Shen
Hsieh-Tsung Ethan Shen
BZBo-Xiang Zhang
Bo-Xiang Zhang
TCTing Hsuan Chao
Ting Hsuan Chao
CWChung-Che Wu
Chung-Che Wu
Background: Population aging is driving a convergent rise in three disorders historically managed in isolation: cardiovascular disease, neurocognitive decline, and osteoporotic bone loss. Accumulating mechanistic data indicate that these systems are coupled through shared regulators of calcium trafficking, inflammation resolution, vascular integrity, and inflammaging, supporting the concept of an integrated "Heart-Brain-Bone" axis. Three lipid-soluble nutrients-long-chain omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (EPA/DHA), vitamin D3 (cholecalciferol), and vitamin K2 (menaquinone-7 [MK-7])-act on overlapping nodes of this network. Methods: We conducted a structured narrative review of mechanistic, observational, and randomized controlled trial (RCT) evidence, grading the strength of support for each claim. Results: Vitamin K2-dependent gamma-carboxylation of matrix Gla protein (MGP) and osteocalcin is proposed to reciprocally direct calcium away from the arterial wall and toward the bone matrix, offering a candidate mechanistic resolution of the "calcium paradox" associated with isolated vitamin D3 supplementation; EPA/DHA-derived specialized pro-resolving mediators may support resolution of endothelial and neuronal inflammation; and bone-, vascular-, and brain-derived signals (osteocalcin, FGF23, the neurovascular unit) interconnect the three organs. Human clinical evidence, however, is heterogeneous and formulation- and population-dependent: cardiovascular omega-3 RCTs are discordant (REDUCE-IT, which used icosapent ethyl [an EPA ethyl ester], positive; VITAL/STRENGTH/ASCEND null, predominantly in lower-risk or replete cohorts), cognitive trials are largely null or subgroup-dependent (MAPT, DO-HEALTH), and MK-7 improves surrogate bone and calcification biomarkers, with only a single recent hard-endpoint coronary calcification RCT (VitaK-CAC). Conclusions: The combined use of long-chain omega-3, vitamin D3, and MK-7 is mechanistically rational and hypothesis-generating rather than clinically established; benefit appears most plausible in individuals with elevated risk or demonstrable nutritional insufficiency, and least in replete, low-risk populations. Findings should be interpreted within a broader healthy-aging context that includes lifestyle and psychosocial factors. Adequately powered factorial RCTs stratified by baseline Omega-3 Index, 25(OH)D, and vitamin K status, with prespecified mechanistic biomarkers and hard endpoints, are required.

2 July 2026 in Preprints.org
Verified
Preprint
Open access
PDF file
CCChun Chieh Chao
Chun Chieh Chao
HSHsieh-Tsung Ethan Shen
Hsieh-Tsung Ethan Shen
BZBo-Xiang Zhang
Bo-Xiang Zhang
TCTing Hsuan Chao
Ting Hsuan Chao
CTChien-Yi Tu
Chien-Yi Tu
CTChen-hsin Tsai
Chen-hsin Tsai
Background: Keratoconus is a progressive corneal ectasia characterised by extracellular matrix (ECM) loss and an emerging inflammatory component, for which no disease-modifying molecular therapy exists. Exosomes derived from limbal and mesenchymal stem cells are an attractive cell-free therapeutic modality, but the cargo that should be delivered is undefined, and no curated limbal stem-cell (LSC) exosome cargo dataset currently exists. Methods: We reanalysed a public keratoconus corneal RNA-sequencing dataset (GEO: GSE77938; discovery and replication cohorts) with DESeq2, defined a replicated differentially expressed gene (DEG) set, and performed Gene Ontology, KEGG and Reactome enrichment. A high-confidence protein-protein interaction (PPI) network (STRING) identified hub genes. We integrated keratoconus disease-gene evidence (Open Targets Platform) and documented extracellular-vesicle cargo (ExoCarta, Vesiclepedia) and computed a transparent Cargo Prioritization Score (CPS) to nominate candidate LSC-exosome therapeutic cargo. Results: 1677 DEGs were detected in discovery (152 up, 1525 down) and 1380 were replicated. Enrichment was dominated by extracellular matrix organization; adaptive immune response; mononuclear cell differentiation. Network analysis nominated ECM and immune hub genes. The CPS prioritised COL1A1, FN1, COL4A1, COL3A1, COL5A1, MMP1 as leading restoration-cargo candidates, all documented as EV cargo and present in the mesenchymal stem-cell EV reference proteome. Conclusions: This fully reproducible, real-data framework provides a ranked, evidence-traceable shortlist of candidate LSC-exosome cargo for keratoconus and an explicit account of current data gaps to guide experimental validation.