The Sunney and Irene Chan Lecture in Chemical Biology was established by the PolyU and the CUHK in 2013 to spark interests among young scientists in Hong Kong to work at the interface between Chemistry and Biology and to cultivate research collaboration and intellectual ties between the two institutions. The lectureships are being funded from an endowment created by the Chan family that aims to enlighten the significance of multi-disciplinary research embracing chemistry, biology and physics, and to highlight the recent advancements of solving fundamental scientific challenges.