UTAR the biggest winner

Fourth from left: Chan, Cha, and Chia posing with the other five winners of the oral and poster competitions and the organisers

Paving further the way to success, UTAR emerged as the biggest winner at the 7^th Malaysian Symposium of Biomedical Science 2016 held from 14 to 15 March 2016, at Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM).

Themed “Unlocking the Basis of Health and Diseases”, the UPM-organised symposium was a platform that enabled students to present their final year projects, exchange ideas through constructive dialogues, expand their academic network, foster and nurture the importance of research and development, and seek potential research collaborations.

UTAR’s contingent from the Department of Biomedical Science under the Faculty of Science consisted of 32 students and two lecturers, who competed with 400 participants from other participating universities, namely University of Malaya, UPM, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Universiti Sains Malaysia, International Islamic University of Malaysia, International Medical University, Taylor University, Nilai University, Politeknik Malaysia Nilai, Universiti Kuala Lumpur, Open University Malaysia, UCSI University, Newcastle University, and Management and Science University.

Of the eight awards in the oral and poster presentation competitions, three final year UTAR Biomedical Science students were awarded the Best Presenter Award, making UTAR the biggest winner in that major competition.

Cha Yong Hong was awarded the Best Poster Presenter in the Biochemistry, Molecular Biology/Cell Biology, and Bioinformatics category. “I believe the reason my poster stood out was my good performance at the Q&A session, which earned praises from the judges. Receiving this award has definitely boosted my confidence and I am immensely grateful to those who helped me throughout this journey,” mentioned Cha.

Supervised by Assoc Prof Dr Chew Choy Hoong, Cha’s winning poster, titled “Multiplex PCR Detection of blaOXA-23, blaOXA-51, and Class 1 Integrase Genes Associated with Carbapenem Resistance in Clinical Isolates of Acinetobacter baumannii and Pseudomonas aeruginosa”, explains on identifying the presence of three resistance genes in Acinetobacter baumannii and Pseudomonas aeruginosa bacteria. These drug-resistant bacteria are viewed as threats to the available antibiotics and usually infect humans with compromised immune system. With his research, Cha will be able to obtain preliminary insight into the main mechanism of resistance in the bacteria towards the antibiotics, and hopefully help solve the concerns of the medical community. Expressing his gratitude to his supervisor, Cha also thanked UTAR for the education he received that has moulded him to be a competent person.

Winning the Best Poster Presenter in the Pharmacology, Toxicology, and Physiology category was Chia Shiow Ling. Surprised to be announced as the winner in that category, Chia mentioned that she was doing her best to convince the judges on the poster she was presenting. “The award gave me more confidence and I am truly motivated knowing that there is room for further improvement in the future,” said Chia.

Under the supervision of Biomedical Science Lecturer Ng Wen Jie, and co-advisor Dr Ee Kah Yaw of the Department of Agricultural and Food Science, Chia expressed her gratitude to them for the guidance in thesis writing and presentation skills. Her winning poster, titled “Physicochemical, Enzymatic Properties, and Antioxidant Capacity of Stingless Bee (Trigona spp.) Honey”, studies the antioxidant capacity of Trigona honey, and the effects of the Trigona physicochemical and enzymatic properties on the antioxidant. “UTAR’s conducive study environment and state-of-the-art laboratory equipment have actually enabled me to conduct my research project more effectively,” enthused Chia.

Best Oral Presenter award in the category of Microbiology, Virology, and Immunology was awarded to Chan Szn Yi. Chan participated in the competition with inspiration to share her research project and to inform the public about the issue of the antibiotic resistance that has been worsening over the years. Remembering the words of her supervisor Biomedical Science lecturer Yuen Hawk Leong, “Present as if you are selling a product; be passionate and convince your audience. Do not present for the sake of presentation”, Chan presented well. With issues pertaining E. coli as part of Chan’s research interests, her research, titled “Screening of broad-spectrum antibacterial effects of synthetic peptide PAM-5 against selected pathogenic bacteria”, aims to study the potency of PAM-5 against various bacteria and hopes that the PAM-5 can be developed into a novel antibacterial agent.

“Winning the award has definitely given me confidence and I am all the more determined to pursue my postgraduate studies. I am really grateful to my supervisor for his patience, guidance, and teaching, that have helped me in completing the research,” mentioned Chan, who also added that the team of dedicated and passionate lecturers have nurtured her passion to be a competent biomedical scientist. 

UTAR contingent posing after the symposium