Presentation options available at the 3rd ICMBB:
Keynote Speaker
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PROFESSOR EMERITUS DR. JOHN BEARDALL
The Beardall Research Group
School of Biological Sciences
Monash University, Australia
John studied Microbiology at Queen Elizabeth College, University of London, prior to moving across town to University College (also University of London) for his PhD. His PhD work (1973-1976) introduced him to the biology of phytoplankton and he focused on ways in which these photosynthetic organisms adapt to their light environment and acquire inorganic carbon for photosynthesis. This included a 10-month stint at the Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences seeing if results from lab cultures could also be applied to natural marine phytoplankton populations.
Post-doctoral studies followed – first at University College of North Wales operating out of the Marine Science Laboratories in Menai Bridge and looking at phytoplankton populations and productivity in Liverpool Bay and the Irish Sea, then (Jan 1979-June 1982) with John Raven at University of Dundee examining mechanisms of inorganic carbon uptake by algae. This latter posting has continued into a life-long research collaboration with John Raven that persists to the present day. He moved to Australia in 1982, taking up a Lecturer position at La Trobe's Department of Botany. He and his team moved across to Monash in 1988 when John was appointed Senior Lecturer in the, then, Department of Botany. He currently holds a Professorial position in SBS.
John's research group focuses on the physiology of algae in relation to environmental factors such as ocean acidification. A major interest is related to understanding the ways in which marine and freshwater microalgae, including the cyanobacteria responsible for toxic blooms in inland and coastal waters, will be influenced by global change.
Other studies relate to the impacts of heavy metals on algae and possible ways to utilise these organisms in waste-water purification and the uses of algae for production of lipids for biodiesel.
Keynote Speaker
PROFESSOR DR. ABHI VEERAKUMARASIVAM
Provost
Sunway University
Malaysia
Professor Abhi Veerakumarasivam is a Universiti Putra Malaysia- and University of Cambridge-trained geneticist, educator and science communicator. Before taking on his current role as the Provost of Sunway University, he was the Dean of the School of Medical and Life Sciences. His research in genetics involves the elucidation of components of the regulatory pathways that drive tumour recurrence and invasion as well as dissecting Asian genetic variations that confer differences in disease-risk and response to therapy.
The Merdeka Award Grant in 2013 provided him with a fantastic opportunity to expand his global research network and align his academic portfolio to support the science-policy-society nexus. In recognition of his achievements, he has been awarded multiple awards including the National Cancer Council Malaysia Cancer Research Award, and the Gen.T List. In 2016, he became the first Asian to be crowned as the Best Science Communicator at the International FameLab Finals at the Cheltenham Science Festival, UK.
He is currently the Co-Chair of the ASEAN Young Scientists Network that represents top young scientists in the region who not only demonstrate academic excellence but also contribute towards nation-building through STEM promotion and advocacy. He also currently chairs the International Network for Government Science Advice Asia that aims to support the use of scientific evidence in informing policy at all levels of government; including pandemic/crises responses. He also sits on various national and regional science and educational policy committees and has co-authored various policy papers and reports. He also co-initiated and led Malaysia’s first nationwide programme on Responsible Conduct of Research to create awareness and educate the Malaysian scientific community on the importance of research integrity.
Abhi truly believes that the greatest challenges facing us in the 21st century can only be addressed through an interdisciplinary approach that promotes effective communication and policies that support the translation of scientific discoveries and enabling technologies to improve the quality of life and promote social justice.
Plenary Speaker
Yasmin completed her BSc at University of Surrey and MSc at University of Malaya then received a Chevening scholarship to pursue a Ph.D. in Plant Virology at the John Innes Institute U.K. She joined UM as a lecturer in the Department of Genetics and Cellular Biology and was appointed a full Professor in 2005. She retired officially from UM in 2021 and currently continues to serve UM as an honorary Professor at the Institute of Advanced Studies UM. She is also an adjunct professor at IUMW and an honorary fellow of the Tun Ghazali Shafie Institute for Strategic leadership at UCYP. She continues to be part of a dynamic research group and still publishes actively, focusing on utilising modern biotechnology strategies to tackle fundamental problems in agriculture as well on issues related to BioPolicies, Bioethics and Biosafety.
Recently she was involved in ASMs Science Outlook 2020 review and the National Biotechnology Policy II. She has filed more than 10 patents and graduated more than 20 PhD and 25 MSc students. She is a Fellow of the Academy of Sciences Malaysia and is listed as in the Top Research Scientist Malaysia database. She was a founding trustee of the National Institutes of Biotechnology Malaysia, a founding member of the Asian Network for Biosafety Education and a two-term expert member of the National Biosafety Board. Yasmin was the first head of the Centre for Research in Biotechnology for Agriculture and chair of the University’s Biotechnology and Bioproduct Cluster (UMBIO). She was also chief editor of the Asia-Pacific Journal for Molecular Biology and Biotechnology. In 2009 she left UM for a 3-year secondment to the Ministry of Science Technology and Innovation Malaysia as Undersecretary of the National Biotechnology Division.
During her tenure, Malaysia launched the Bioeconomy Initiative Malaysia designed to spur the growth of the biotechnology industry. Whilst there, she spearheaded the committee which led to the formation of the National Bioethics Council. She has sat on the Board of Directors of MARDI, the Board of Governors of ICGEB, Trieste and was the National Point of Contact (NPC) for UNESCO’s Microbial Biotechnology Network and SEA-EU-NET (Biotech). Prior to retirement, she was Associate vice chancellor (Industry & Community) & the Director of the University of Malaya Centre for Innovation & Commercialisation. In these roles, she focused on building the university's entrepreneurial ecosystem and fostering engagement and collaboration with industry and the community. She is also the founding vice president of the Innovation and Technology Managers Association Malaysia. She has sat on the Board of MaGIC (mymagic.my) and more recently on the boards of UMInnovations SB, UMPlantations SB, UMCapital Berhad and Xeraya Capital. She is also a fellow of ICDM.
HONORARY PROFESSOR DR. ROFINA YASMIN OTHMAN
Institute of Advanced Studies
Associate, Centre for Research in Biotechnology for Agriculture
Advisor, Centre for Innovation and Commercialisation
Universiti Malaya
Malaysia
Plenary Speaker
Professor Dato’ Dr. Ts Azhar has been a university lecturer since 1996, with a diverse range of job functions encompassing lecturing, student supervision, and research. He has conducted extensive research in the design and development of functional food and protein function enhancement, while also providing consulting services in the area of functional food and protein functionalities. Dr. Azhar is an accomplished author, referee, and publisher of scientific papers and reports, as well as an experienced evaluator of grant proposals and theses.
Dr. Azhar's teaching portfolio is comprehensive and includes Introduction to Food Science and Technology, Food Commodity, Food Processing and Preservation, Biochemistry, Nutrition, Thinking Skills, Quality Management of Food, Functional Food, and Persuasive Oral Presentation. He also serves as a program advisory committee member for the Ministry of Plantation Industries and Commodities, a grant evaluator for the Ministry of Higher Education, and a visiting scholar for an international university. From 2014 to 2021, Dr. Azhar has served as a Food Science Program examiner for various food science programs of public and private universities in Malaysia.
Dr. Azhar's research interest lies in protein functionality and the design and development of functional foods, or "almost-illegal products"/ingredients. He adds value to foods by converting them into functional or health-enhancing products, aligning with the university's emphasis on sustainability. As of January 2022, Dr. Azhar has successfully supervised 9 PhD and 7 MSc graduates.
PROFESSOR DATO’ DR. AZHAR MAT EASA
Food Technology Division
School of Industrial Technology
Universiti Sains Malaysia
Malaysia
Plenary Speaker
Meisam Tabatabaei is a Professor of Environmental Biotechnology at the Universiti Malaysia Terengganu, Malaysia. Over the last decade, Meisam has been working closely with the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) to promote waste-oriented biofuels in the developing world. Since 2016, he has been the lead collaborator of the Lancet Commission on Health and Climate Change, also known as the Lancet Countdown (UCL, UK), an international collaboration of 99 scientists from 51 universities, research institutes, and UN organizations, including the WHO and World Bank.
Dr. Tabatabaei has been leading the "marine food security and undernutrition" indicator of The Lancet Countdown. He has published over 400 publications, including original research papers and reviews in journals such as The Lancet (Impact Factor: 202.731), Joule (Impact Factor: 46.048), Nature Food (Impact Factor: 20.43), Progress in Energy and Combustion Sciences (Impact Factor: 35.339), Trends in Biotechnology (Impact Factor: 21.942), Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews (Impact Factor: 16.799), etc. (Citations: > 23,000, h-index: 75, i10 index: 266; March 2023, Google Scholar). He is currently also a Visiting Professor at the Henan Agricultural University (China) and holds the Global Ambassador position at the University of Saskatchewan (USask, Canada).
Dr. Tabatabaei is listed on the Web of Science Highly Cited Researchers List (Top 0.1% of scientists in the world) in Engineering Category. He is the Editor of the Book Volumes "Biogas: Fundamentals, Process, and Operation", "Biodiesel: from Production to Combustion", and "Fungi in Fuel Biotechnology", which have been published by Springer Nature and is in the Editorial/Advisory Board of Scientific Reports (Nature Publishing Group), International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment (Springer), Data in Brief (Elsevier), and Energy Sources, Part A: Recovery, Utilization and Environmental Effects (Taylor & Francis). Meisam is the Associate Editor of Critical Reviews in Biotechnology (Taylor & Francis; Impact Factor: 9.062) and Resources, Environment and Sustainability (Elsevier), and Senior Editor of e-Prime (Elsevier). Meisam is the Co-Editor-in-Chief of the Elsevier's Book Series on Biomass and Biofuels. Meisam has successfully supervised/co-supervised 36 Ph.D. (11; 9 as the main supervisor) and MSc. (25; 20 as the main supervisor) students. As a project leader or lead collaborator, Dr. Tabatabaei has actively contributed to successful international grant applications amounting to over 7 million USD. Prof. Meisam Tabatabaei is a member of the Clarivate Malaysia Hall of Fame (https://clarivate.com/webinars/malaysia-highly-cited-researchers/).
PROFESSOR DR. MEISAM TABATABAEI
Institute of Tropical Aquaculture and Fisheries
Universiti Malaysia Terengganu
Malaysia
Plenary Speaker
Prof. Dr. Mohammad Noor Amal Azmai obtained his PhD (Epidemiology) from the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, UPM in 2012 and started his academic journey as a Senior Lecturer in Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, UPM in the same year. Currently, he is the Head of Aquatic Animal Health and Therapeutics Laboratory, Institute of Bioscience, UPM. His research focus on the fish diseases epidemiology and development of feed-based vaccines against fresh and marine water fish diseases. Dr. Amal and his research team has several innovations related to control and prevention of fish diseases in aquaculture. One of his research team’s patents - ViVaC UPM, a newly developed feed-based killed vaccine against marine vibriosis in fish, has won several national and international awards. His research team also working on the development and commercialization of polyvalent feed-based vaccine against streptococcosis, aeromoniasis and Tilapia Lake Virus in cultured freshwater fishes.
Dr. Amal has collaborative partners which mostly related to diseases in aquaculture, including Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, National University of Singapore, Hokkaido University of Japan, Kasetsart University of Thailand, Chulalangkorn University of Thailand, Airlangga University of Indonesia, MSD Animal Health Singapore, Malaysia Department of Fisheries Malaysia, Bio-Angels Vacs Sdn. Bhd, KS Aquaculture Sdn. Bhd., Intervet (M) Sdn. Bhd. and many more.
Dr. Amal received several academic awards throughout his academic career, including Vice-Chancellor's Fellowship Award, UPM in 2019 under Research and Innovation Category for Young Researcher (Science and Technology) and Recipient of Outstanding Young ASEAN-FEN Scientists Award 2018. He has been appointed as a Reference Specialist by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations on zoonotic problems borne by aquaculture animals and the Southeast Asian Group B Streptococcus Network (SEA-BeaST Network). Currently, he is the Adjunct Professor (Contract) with Faculty of Fisheries and Marine, Universitas Airlangga Indonesia, and Vice President of the Malaysian Fisheries Society.
PROFESSOR DR. MOHAMMAD NOOR AMAL AZMAI
Head of Aquatic Animal Health and Therapeutics Laboratory
Institute of Bioscience
Universiti Putra Malaysia
Malaysia
Plenary Speaker
Professor Dr Wong Tin Wui obtained his PhD degree from the National University of Singapore in 1999. He is presently the lecturer and principal fellow at the Faculty of Pharmacy and Smart Manufacturing Research Institute, Universiti Teknologi MARA. His research areas are primarily focused on precision oral, skin and pulmonary nanodrug delivery. He has published over 120 peer reviewed articles. He is the editorial board member of Asian Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Associate Editor of Drug Development and Industrial Pharmacy, Drug Design, Development and Therapy, Frontiers in Pharmacology and Technology in Cancer Research and Treatment.
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Professor Wong is the founder of Non-Destructive Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Research Centre, Malaysia and Sino-Malaysia Molecular Oncology and Traditional Chinese Medicine Delivery Joint Research Centre, Medical College, Yangzhou University, China. He is the jury for Maurice-Marie Janot Award and Lecture, and founder and chief jury for Malaysia Technology Expo Sustainable Development Goals International Innovation Awards. He serves as the visiting/adjunct/lecture professor of UCSI University, Taylor’s University and Universiti Malaya, Malaysia; National University of Singapore; Yangzhou University, China; Nirma University, India and is the postgraduate faculty member of Chulalongkorn University, Thailand.
PROFESSOR DR. WONG TIN WUI
Faculty of Pharmacy
Principal Fellow, Smart Manufacturing Research Institute
Director, Non-Destructive Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Research Centre
Universiti Teknologi MARA
Malaysia
Plenary Speaker
Dr. Ramasamy earned her PhD in Clinical Medicine Research Programme (specialisation: human embryonic stem cell research) from the Department of Surgery and Cancer, Hammersmith Hospital, Imperial College London, UK. She is heading the Stem Cell Biology Laboratory, Department of Molecular Medicine, a research group focussing on Regenerative Medicine, Stem Cell Technology and Cancer Stem Cell research. Her passion for developing and driving industrial partnerships has steered to a number of successful MOAs and collaborative endeavours through her management of, including, Cell & Molecular Biology Laboratory (CMBL), Central Research Laboratories (CRL) Faculty of Medicine (FOM). During her leadership role as head of the Internationalisation Unit, FOM (IUFOM), many collaborative and networking activities were embarked at the national and international arena paving the path towards excellence in the research and academic portfolio of the faculty and university. She also has been serving the Industrial and Community Engagement (UMICE) portfolio as the chief liaison officer for FOM.
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Dr. Ramasamy has been actively engaged in stem cell research for more than a decade now and recently embarked on cancer stem cell research, the research field that she has so much passion. Her research group has set their focus to strive for innovative and creative cutting edge research in developing effective stem cell therapy and target cancer stem cells by developing scientific programs of exceptional merit in collaboration with multiple institutions and industries at national and international levels. She has been leading and involved in many research programmes/grants at national and international levels. She has been invited to present the research findings in many national and international meetings as keynote and invited speaker. Her passion for bringing the impact of regenerative research in Malaysia to a great height is very much evident through her leadership role as the President of Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine Society of Malaysia (TESMA) [2015-2019], Advisory Committee for Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine International Society (TERMIS) World Congress 2021 and many other national and international meetings. As the founding advisor of the Malaysian Society for Extracellular Vesicles (MySEV) and Co-founder of the Innovation Forum-Kuala Lumpur (IFKL) Chapter, she is aspired to build the network with international institutions and societies. Collaborative Intelligence is what Dr. Ramasamy firmly believed in.
DR. THAMIL SELVEE RAMASAMY
Head, Stem Cell Research Laboratory
Universiti Malaya, Malaysia
Special Officer to the Minister of Health, Malaysia
Invited Speaker
ASSISTANT PROFESSOR DR. FEDERICO DAJAS-BAILADOR
Faculty of Medicine & Health Sciences
University of Nottingham
United Kingdom
After working on neurodegeneration at the IIBCE Institute in his graduate research project, Dr. Federico took his PhD at the University of Bath, working on the investigation of Ca2+ signals and neuroprotection in hippocampal neurons. Following this, he moved to the Faculty of Life Sciences in Manchester, where his research focused on the regulation of neuronal differentiation and polarisation. Work in the lab of Alan Whitmarsh demonstrated that scaffold proteins could act as signal integrators in the regulation of axon development by chemotropic molecules. In this process, the scaffold protein JIP1 was identified as a fundamental player in the netrin-dependent regulation of axonal growth (Dajas-Bailador et al., 2008. Current Biology).
Dr. Federico’s expertise in the area of axon biology contributed to several successful collaborations and allowed him to continue his research career in the lab of Prof. Nancy Papalopulu, where he secured Co-Investigator MRC funding to investigate novel aspects of axonal polarisation in mouse cortical neurons. During this time, the group discovered the critical role of microRNAs in the regulation of axonal extension and branching (Dajas-Bailador et al., 2012. Nature Neuroscience), unravelling the role of miR-9 as a functional target for the signalling processes controlling axon development. Since moving to Nottingham in 2013, he has been the Principal Investigator of the newly formed Axon Biology Lab and member of the School of Life Sciences in the University of Nottingham.
His lab has continued to investigate neuronal function and RNA biology at the cellular and molecular level, focusing on the mechanisms regulating axons in health and disease (Loreto et al., 2020. Neurobiology of Disease; Di Paolo et al., 2020. RNA), and the role of non-coding RNAs in neuronal function, from development to activity and communication (Lucci et al, 2020. Development; Mesquita-Ribeiro et al., 2021. RNA Biology). At present, they continue to investigate the molecular mechanisms underpinning neuronal development and have expanded our work into pain and degeneration processes.
Invited Speaker
Dr. Than specialises in the field of Medical Mycology. Currently, he serves as the coordinator of Mycology Lab and Medical Microbiology Culture Collection (MMCC) in his department. He is also playing the role as his department Research Coordinator. At the university level, he serves as a Committee Member in the Institutional Biosafety and Biosecurity Committee (IBBC) UPM. His main research interests include fungal pathogenesis of Candida glabrata, specifically looking into its metabolic flexibility role and its physiological response to host immunity during infection; he is also into the development of fungal diagnostics. Late last year, he was awarded an investigator sponsored research (ISR) grant by Pfizer on laboratory diagnosis of invasive candidiasis. In addition, he is very active in probiotics and leptospirosis research.
He is particularly keen on researching on the application of probiotics for vaginal health and infections. He has published more than 50 research articles in high-impact journals and holds several intellectual properties. He secured several competitive public and private research grants namely e-Science Fund, FRGS, LRGS (as a subproject leader), PRGS and Pfizer. He currently serves as an Academic Editor (Microbiology) in Biomed Research International journal. He is currently the Honorary Treasurer of the Malaysian Society for Lactic Acid Bacteria (MSLAB) and a member of the Malaysian Mycology Working Group (MMIG), a working group under the Malaysian Society for Infectious Diseases and Chemotherapy (MSIDC). He was previously a member of the International Society of Human and Animal Mycology (ISHAM) and American Society for Microbiology (ASM).
ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR DR. LESLIE THAN THIAN LUNG
Department of Medical Microbiology
Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences
Universiti Putra Malaysia, Malaysia
Malaysia
Invited Speaker
DR. TANG YIN QUAN
Deputy Director of Medical Advancement for Better Quality of Life Impact Lab
School of Biosciences
Faculty of Health & Medical Sciences
Taylor’s University
Malaysia
Dr Tang Yin Quan is currently the Deputy Director of Impact Lab - Medical Advancement for Better Quality of Life. He is also a senior lecturer from School of Biosciences, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, Taylor’s University. He holds PhD degree from the Universiti Malaya (2013) whereby his research focused on targeting cancer signaling pathways by natural products.
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Prior to joining the Taylor’s University, Dr Tang has four years of postdoctoral experience in a variety of multidisciplinary research fields, including cancer theragnostics, regenerative medicine, medical pharmacology, genetic engineering, bioinformatics, virology, and cardiovascular biology He has a broad research interest in biomedical sciences and collaborates with national and international institutes such as Universiti Malaya (Malaysia), Universiti Kebangsaan Malaya (Malaysia), Sunway University (Malaysia), Monash University Malaysia, Universiti Brunei Darussalam, ICGEB (Italy), Mae Fah Luang University (Thailand) and the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine (U.S.) to pursue his research.
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Dr Tang has 10 years of experience as a biomedical scientist and is passionate about developing advanced diagnostic tools and new therapeutic strategies for the treatment of human diseases. His primary research interest lies in using bioinformatics approaches for anti-cancer drug discovery. He has received recognition and funding for his projects from various organizations such as MOHE-FRGS 2014 and 2020, the MAKNA Cancer Research Award 2021 by Majlis Kanser Nasional, and Science & Technology Research Grant 2021 from Malaysia Toray Science Foundation. Currently his laboratory is focused on three research topics: 1) Cell-Penetrating Peptides in Diagnosis and Treatment of Human Diseases, 2) Integrating Transcriptome and Network Analysis to Identify Diagnostic and Prognostic Biomarkers in Human Diseases, and 3) Developing of Peptide-Based Immunotherapeutics and Vaccines.
Invited Speaker
Dr Cheng Siang Tan is an Associate Professor in Virology at the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Malaysia Sarawak. With over 20 years of experience in infectious disease research, he has contributed significantly to the laboratory diagnosis of several epidemics and pandemics, including enterovirus 71, SARS-CoV, and SARS-CoV-2 in Sarawak.
Dr Tan's research focuses on providing local data for global consumption, addressing the lack of crucial epidemiological data on various infectious diseases in Sarawak. He primarily focuses on the molecular epidemiology of emerging, neglected, and vaccine-preventable diseases. Currently, his research includes the study of antibody kinetics due to SARS-CoV-2 vaccination, serosurveillance of SARS-CoV-2 in animals, molecular epidemiology of Rotavirus, zoonotic coronaviruses, human papillomavirus, and avian malaria.
In 2017, Dr Tan was awarded the prestigious SEAOHUN fellowship, and he is well-versed in One Health. He is a Registered Biosafety Professional (RBP) by the Malaysian Biosafety and Biosecurity Association (MBBA) and has received four certifications from the International Biosafety and Biosecurity Association (IFBA). He is also a national biorisk management trainer and provides personalized biosafety training and consultation.
ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR DR. TAN CHENG SIANG
Head, Centre for Tropical and Emerging Diseases
Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences
Universiti Malaysia Sarawak
Malaysia
PROFESSOR DR. SUBHA A/P BHASSU
Head of Animal Genomics and Evolutionary Biology Lab
Institute of Biological Sciences
Faculty of Science
Universiti Malaya
Malaysia
Invited Speaker
Professor Dr. Subha Bhassu is the Head of Animal Genomics and Evolutionary Biology Lab (AGAGEL), which is affiliated to Institute of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Science, University Malaya and also Head of Terra-Aqua Lab of Center for Biotechnology in Agriculture (CEBAR). She has a PhD in Molecular Biology specialization in molecular, population and quantitative genetics.
She has been awarded the One of Established Scientist in 2018 and also won many awards in the field on molecular biology. She is currently part of national framework on biosafety and biosecurity committee for health under the Ministry of Public Health, she is also part of Institutional of Biosafety and Biosecurity of University Malaya which is called IBBC and now serving under the JBK which is Jawatankuasa Bio-Keselamatan under the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.
Her focal point to outreach the community by creating awareness on biosafety and biosecurity in aquaculture which is seen as the next blue economy. Therefore, food safety and food security are important. her future steps is always have to embark on research with ethics and integrity as her research progress in the aquatic world that involves multidisciplinary approaches and hope to instigate the scientific world on thought provoking ideas that can shift the people’s mind, heart and soul to be more aligned to the world’s needs and happiness.
Invited Speaker
Dr. Azham Zulkharnain is currently an associate professor in Department of Bioscience and Engineering, Shibaura Institute of Technology (SIT), Saitama, Japan. He received his bachelor’s degree in Life Science and Engineering from Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology, and then masters degree and PhD in Chemical Engineering from Shibaura Institute of Technology. He served as senior lecturer in Universiti Malaysia Sarawak from 2010 to 2019 before pursuing his career in Japan. He is the principal investigator for the Molecular Microbiology Laboratory in SIT.
His research interests are in the fields of microbiology, biochemistry and biotechnology, focusing on Antarctic microbes for bioremediation applications. His research activities include isolation of Antarctic bacterial strains from water, studying various characteristics of Antarctic microbes, genomic sequencing and genetic characterization, determination of bacterial metabolism pathways, and studying enzymes for bioremediation applications. Dr Azham also has been actively contributing to various activities related to biosafety and biosecurity at the national and international level since 2012, and was appointed as president for the Malaysia Biosafety and Biosecurity Association (MBBA) until 2020. He was a member of the Committee of Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) under Young Scientist Network-Academy of Sciences Malaysia (YSN-ASM).
ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR DR. AZHAM ZULKHARNAIN
Department of Bioscience and Engineering
College of Systems Engineering and Science
Shibaura Institute of Technology
Japan
Invited Speaker
Dr. Diana Chan is Deputy Centre Director of Aquaculture Innovation Centre in Singapore with at least 13 years of aquaculture working experience through consultancy, applied research and training. She had held leadership appointment in academic and technology development at Temasek Polytechnic since 1997. Diana is co-Chair of the Technical Committee for Food Production under Singapore Standards Development Organisation and has served as the President of the World Aquaculture Society-APC from 2020-2021. She is also on the Global Conference Aquaculture Working Committee for Aquaculture Innovations, FAO. Diana’s current interest in mudcrab hatchery is to supply crablets for farm grow-out and for conservation.
DR. DIANA CHAN PEK SIAN
Deputy Centre Director
Temasek Polytechnic Aquaculture Innovation Centre
Singapore
Invited Speaker
Obtained B.Sc. (Hons.) in Genetics (UKM; 1993), M.Phil. in Animal Genetics (UM; 1995) and Ph.D. in Plant Genetics (UKM; 1998). Joined Forest Research Institute Malaysia (FRIM) as Research Officer in 1995 and promoted to Senior Research Officer in 2001. Currently Head of Genetics Laboratory, FRIM, and leads a multi-disciplinary research team addressing research topics related to conservation, management and sustainable utilisation of forest genetic resources. The work on ecological genetic studies of important tropical tree species according to the life history traits predicted optimum population sizes and generated various conservation and management guidelines to strike a balance between conservation and utilisation of forest genetic resources.
The pioneering work in developing DNA profiling and barcoding databases of various tropical plant species for timber tracking and species identification has led to forensic applications to verify the legality of a suspected timber in the context of illegal logging, while supporting the wood, herbal, food and insurance industries through plant species authentication. The first reported complete genome sequence of Shorea leprosula serves as a reference genome for genomic and molecular breeding studies of other dipterocarps, the most important timber family in the tropics. He had authored or co-authored around 170 scientific publications and has been appointed as Steering Committee members of International Working Group on Identification of Timber Species and Origin (GTTN), editorial board of Biotropica (2007-2010), National Coordinator for the Asia Pacific Forest Genetic Resources Programme (AFORGEN), and received the Top Research Scientists Malaysia (TRSM) award from the Academy of Sciences Malaysia. He devotes much of his time for the scientific development of young researchers, in the hope that together they can contribute to the efforts of conservation, management and sustainable utilisation of our precious forest genetic resources.
DR. LEE SOON LEONG
Head of Genetic Laboratory
Forest Biotechnology Division
Forest Research Institute Malaysia
Malaysia
Invited Speaker
Nor Aidora Saedon began her career as a chemist in August 1998 in the Department of Chemistry Malaysia. She obtained a Bachelor of Science degree from University of Malaya in 1998 and a Master of Science (Forensic DNA) from the University of Auckland, New Zealand in 2007. She is currently the Director of the Forensic DNA division under the Forensic Science Analysis Centre, Department of Chemistry Malaysia.
Her professional contributions to the chemistry field, especially pioneering work in forensic DNA analysis was recognised internationally. She is currently the Vice-Chairman on DNA Working Group of Asian Forensic Sciences Network (“AFSN”).
She is a very active researcher, specialising in DNA forensic science analysis. She has authored and co-authored scholarly articles and journals for national and international publications and is also as a presenter in the DNA analysis field at conferences and symposiums nationally and internationally.
PUAN NOR AIDORA SAEDON
Director of Forensic DNA Division
Forensic Science Analysis Centre
Department of Chemistry
Malaysia
Invited Speaker
Sangeeta Prakash is an Associate Lecturer in the Department of Food Science at the University of Queensland where she has been a faculty member since 2010.
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Sangeeta completed her Ph.D. at University of Queensland and her Masters studies at Indian Agricultural Research Institute, an apex institution of agricultural research in India. Her research interests lie in the area of food structures, oral processing, flow and lubrication behaviour of fluids and semi-solid foods and texture, with a focus on improving the sensory quality of food and in-vitro digestibility. In recent years, she has effectively employed superior techniques for sensory evaluation of food products and has collaborated with researchers at University of Leeds, United Kingdom, University of Brawijaya, Malang, Indonesia and Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay, India.
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She has collaborated enthusiastically with researchers in other disciplines of food science including fruit, vegetables and cereals along with her extensive work in diary science. She has also efficaciously coordinated and/or taught number of food science and technology courses to post graduate and under graduate students of the university since 2010.
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After finishing her PhD in Food Science and Technology in 2007, Sangeeta spend a three years working in the Australian food industry. She has effectively implemented the Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) plan and enforced Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) in the food plants as well as gained hands-on experience of modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) used on sea-foods.
DR. SANGEETA PRAKASH
School of Agriculture and Food Sciences
The University of Queensland
Australia
Invited Speaker
DR. PUTU VIRGINA PARTHA DEVANTHI
Department of Biotechnology
Indonesia International Institute for Life Sciences
Indonesia
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Dr. Putu Virgina Partha Devanthi earned her Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from the University of Birmingham, the United Kingdom, in 2018. She received her master’s degree in Biotechnology (2013) and bachelor’s degree in Microbiology (2012) cum laude from Bandung Institute of Technoloy (ITB), Indonesia, through an accelerated program funded by the Indonesian Ministry of Education Directorate General of Higher Education (DIKTI). She became an assistant professor at i3L in 2018 and was assigned as Head of the Biotechnology Department in 2021. Since 2021, she has also been appointed as an adjunct lecturer at the UCSI University, Malaysia.
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Dr. Putu’s research interests revolve around food safety, fermentation, probiotics, and microbial encapsulation. Her research on microbial interaction and encapsulation and its applications in improving the flavor and aroma of reduced-salt soy sauce has been published in highly ranked international journals, including Food Chemistry (impact factor 7.514) and Food Research International (impact factor 6.475). Her findings have also been disseminated in many international conferences held by the Society for Applied Microbiology (SfAM) in Dublin, Edinburgh, Newcastle, and Brighton and the European Federation of Food Science and Technology in Sitges, Spain. In addition, she was awarded a research grant from the Indonesian Toray Science Foundation on a project titled “Survival of potential foodborne pathogens (Escherichia coli O157:H7 and Staphylococcus aureus) in reduced-salt soy sauce fermentation”. This work was presented in the FEMS Online Conference on Microbiology, organized by the Federation of European Microbiological Societies (FEMS) and the Serbian Society of Microbiology in 2020. Then, in collaboration with the University of the Aegean, Greece, she conducted a cross-cultural sensory analysis on Indonesian soy sauce products combined with facial expression analysis using FaceReader.
Dr. Putu’s research group is particularly interested in bacterial cellulose production and development for applications in the food and pharmaceutical industries. This three-year project is a collaboration with the University of Boras, Sweden. It is funded by the Ministry of Research and Technology of the Republic of Indonesia through the World Class Research scheme. Her finding was published in 2021 in one of the top international journals, the Journal of Fungi (impact factor 5.816). Dr. Putu’s research group is also exploring potential probiotics of local origin, focusing on functionality characterization and formulation.
Invited Speaker
Ooi Siew Eng has been involved in oil palm research at the Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB) for nearly 20 years, with a focus on gene expression, plant development and epigenetics. She started her career in oil palm research by studying the molecular aspects behind somatic embryogenesis and the mantling floral abnormality, which led her into the realm of epigenetics research.
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With a PhD from Universiti Putra Malaysia, Siew Eng joined the Malaysian Palm Oil Board as a research officer. She currently leads the epigenetics team in the Advanced Biotechnology and Breeding Centre at MPOB.
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Her team is currently focused on several projects, including deciphering the methylomes of oil palm's parental materials, dura and pisifera, developing and optimizing epigenetic research methods in oil palm, exploring the potential of DNA methylation marks to predict risky mother palms, and is also keen to investigate the role of epigenetics in abiotic stress. Her team's work in oil palm clonal propagation, with focuses on using DNA methylation markers, expression markers and other types of epigenetic marks, has involved and continues to involve collaborative efforts with partners in the oil palm industry and academic universities.
DR. OOI SIEW ENG
Epigenetics Group Leader
Breeding and Tissue Culture Unit
Advanced Biotechnology and Breeding Centre
Malaysian Palm Oil Board
Invited Speaker
ASSOCIATE PROFFESOR DR. NOR AZIMAH MOHD ZAIN
Faculty of Science
Universiti Teknologi Malaysia
Associate Professor Dr. Nor Azimah Mohd Zain is a researcher in the field of Engineering (Bioprocess) who obtained her Ph.D. from Universiti Teknologi Malaysia. Currently, she holds the position of Community (STEM Cluster) committee member at the Department of Bioscience, Faculty of Science. As an active promoter of STEM education and research, she contributes significantly to the academic community. Furthermore, Dr. Nor Azimah is a section editor for the Journal of Materials in Life Sciences (JOMALISC), a peer-reviewed scientific journal that publishes advanced research in the field of materials science. Dr. Nor Azimah has been the recipient of various awards and recognition for her research work, including the UTM Shine grant by Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM). This grant acknowledges her contributions to high-impact research and her ability to produce top-quality research output. Her international recognition extends to her membership of the Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF), awarded by the UK Research and Innovation (UKRI). Dr. Nor Azimah's research primarily concentrates on the production of value-added products from waste, wastewater treatment, and the surveillance of antibiotic-resistant bacteria. Her research work is incredibly relevant in the current global context, where environmental sustainability and antibiotic resistance are pressing concerns. Her research can significantly impact waste management and the development of sustainable and eco-friendly processes across various industries.
Invited Speaker
Siti Aqlima Ahmad has completed her PhD at the age of 29 from Universiti Putra Malaysia from Faculty of Biotechnology and Biomolecular Sciences. She is the head of the laboratory of Eco-Remediation Technology, Department of Biochemistry, Universiti Putra Malaysia. Her research focuses primarily on the application of microbes from polar regions in biotechnological processes and, particularly, in bioremediation of pollutants. This has potential application and considerable societal benefit globally, but has particular significance in the need for development of novel applications for use in the cold, polar, regions. Her research in this field has led to consistently high productivity in terms of recognized outputs over the last several years, and is a major factor in Malaysia currently being a leader in bioremediation and other bioprospecting studies in the wider international Antarctic research community. She has facilitated her work further by establishing effective and productive collaborations with researchers in the United Kingdom and Chilean Antarctic Programmes, as well as with researchers in Japan and other south-east Asian countries. She received the Young Polar Scientists awards in 2022 from Sultan Mizan Antarctica Research Foundation (Yayasan Penyelidikan Antartika Sultan Mizan, YPASM). Besides, she had published 200 journals in Scopus. Currently, her H index for 2023 in Scopus has reached 27.
ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR DR. SITI AQLIMA AHMAD
Faculty of Biotechnology and Biomolecular Sciences
Universiti Putra Malaysia
Malaysia
ASST. PROF. DR. LAM MING QUAN
Faculty of Science
Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman
Malaysia
Invited Speaker
Lam Ming Quan graduated from Universiti Teknologi Malaysia with a PhD in Bioscience. He has multidisciplinary expertise and interest, including bioinformatics, microbial, food, agricultural, and environmental biotechnology. He was an experienced post-doctoral research fellow under international collaboration research projects (with University of York, United Kingdom). Currently, he serves as an Assistant Professor in Department of Biological Science, Faculty of Science, Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman. He is a young academic staff with good track records in publication and teaching. He is also a freelance newspaper content writer (popular science topics) who helps to convey complex scientific knowledge to the general public in a simple manner. As a Yayasan Khazanah Scholar and Alumni, he is self-motivated, versatile, enjoy multitasking work with high coordination, able to work with positive and passionate mind set while facing challenges and stress, driven by greater purpose of bringing changes to society.
Technical talk
Dr. Gifford is an experienced pharmaceutical R&D IT professional with in-depth computer-assisted drug discovery, development, and pharmacovigilance knowledge. His scientific research was primarily focused on computational models useful for understanding drugs, biological targets, and physiological response relationships using a variety of Machine Learning and AI methods. He has built, developed, and led many teams during his over 25 years combined tenure with large pharmaceutical companies Pfizer and Merck. Prior to joining CDD, he was Director of Research and Development Informatics at the Singapore branch of MSD Pharmaceuticals. He strongly advocates open science and pre-competitive collaborations to leverage computational modeling and informatics solutions across industries. Dr. Gifford is now bringing awareness of the capabilities and value of CDD Vault to customers and potential customers throughout the Asia-Pacific region
DR. ERIC GIFFORD
Business Development Scientist
Collaborative Drug Discovery