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| Poster for the event provided by the Chemical Engineering Society - Logistics Committee |
On 8 October
2014, I attended a biomedicine and pharmacy seminar titled “Leveraging Diverse
Medical Science to Fortify Humanity”. Spearheaded by the UST Chemical
Engineering Society, the seminar invited reputable speakers in the field of
biomedicine and pharmacy to discuss advancement and innovations in technologies
in the field of medical science. Different medical innovations were discussed
by the speakers of the event, specifically the clinical trials of PVP-Chitosan
Hydrogels for Vesicouretinal Reflux, new wound dressings made of carrageenan
hydrogel, and irradiation process for food sterilization.
The first
speaker, Ms. Marie Mizal-Merza, discussed the reliability in the measurement of
the concentration of drugs present in humans specifically through liquid means
(e.g. blood and urine). I remembered much about Analytical Chemistry during the
discussions. The next speaker was Dr. Arturo Estuita MD, a medical professional
who discussed the innovative intravenous Chelation Therapy which is said to be effective against Hepatitis B. At the beginning of his lecture, I was a bit interested after
hearing that his innovation can cure a disease long believed to be incurable.
He explained that infusion chelation therapy kills hepatitis B virus while it
is in the body of an infected person. For me, this is probably something that
many medical professionals should research further as his amazing discovery has
the potential to save countless lives. I was pleased when Dr. Estuita claimed
that he offers the therapy to impoverished families for free, this shows the
ethical side of his innovation.
The penultimate
speaker, Zenaida de Guzman, a member of the Research Division of the Philippine
Nuclear Research Institute (PNRI), discussed about the basic aspect of
irradiation (radiation sterilization) of food (including pasteurizing uncooked
meats with radiation) I find her discussion informative like the others, but I
became interested as she debunked (disprove) the myths associated with
irradiated food. I was inspired by her lecture as it gave me some options for
my thesis topic. She also discussed medical gauzes made of polyvinyl pyrolidone
and carrageenan hydrogel. Both are interesting in my opinion.
The last
speaker, Mr. Byron Romero, discussed about pharmacovigilance or drug safety.
The speaker spoke clearly and engagingly, and I liked the topic too since I
have family members whose professions are related in the medical industry. The
last speaker’s discussions about drug safety coupled with incidents regarding
pharmaceutical companies were very interesting to listen to. Overall, I enjoyed
the seminar because it was very informative and interesting as it spans topics
from Chemistry, Chemical Engineering, Biology, and Pharmacy.
Postscript:
The event was sponsored by Jack 'n Jill, Cafe-Uk Co., Clothesline and Quice Review. The organizers would like to thank the active involvement of the Chemical Engineering, BioChemistry, Clinical Pharmacy, Pharmacy, and Graduate School students.
