DAVAO CITY (PIA)— A Balik Scientist is advancing biomolecular engineering studies, further strengthened by the opening of the University of Mindanao (UM) Biomolecular Engineering Laboratory (UMBEL) in Davao City.
Dr. Angelo Bañares, a short-term Balik Scientist at UM, was instrumental in establishing UMBEL, which is touted as the first laboratory in the country dedicated to synthetic biology and metabolic engineering.
“The purpose of the laboratory is dedicated to the use of metabolic engineering and synthetic biology to address different problems in our society, for example, environmental waste, pest management, and other such things,” Bañares said.
Metabolic engineering involves modifying genetic and regulatory processes within cells to increase the cell’s production of a certain substance, while synthetic biology, as a field of science, involves redesigning organisms for useful purposes by engineering them to have new abilities.
Banares says the P8-million laboratory is also for training and research.
From November 6, 2023, to May 31, 2024, Bañares already held workshops, lectures, and training sessions alongside initiating research collaborations and facilitating industry partnerships.
During his exit report on July 23, with the title “Rewiring the Genetic Blueprint: Building a Sustainable Future for the Philippines through Metabolic Engineering and Synthetic Biology,” he said that through metabolic engineering and synthetic biology, they can mitigate environmental problems such as climate change by using microorganisms as nature’s chemical factories to produce the needed molecules for our industries.
Bañares says that after his stint as a Balik Scientist, he plans to go back to the University of Mindanao to continue what they started.
“My engagement as a ‘Balik Scientist’ has ended, and my plan is to go back to UM and continue what we started because they needed someone to guide them, until such time that my skills will be transferred,” Bañares said.
The Balik Scientist Program of the DOST-PCIEERD (Philippine Council for Industry, Energy, and Emerging Technology Research and Development) aims to promote science and technology information exchange and accelerate the flow of new and critical research and development in the country by inviting Filipino (or of Filipino descent) experts based abroad to lend their knowledge and skills. (PIA11)
