Research Activities

COVID-19

COVID-19 is an infectious disease caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). We are focusing in peptide discoveries that inhibits the binding of virus to the host. We are also analyzing how an individual's genetics effects the severity of the disease.

Stroke

Stroke is the third most common cause of death in developed countries and it is the second leading cause of death in Malaysia. It can happen to anyone and as many as six people experience a stroke per hour in this country, regardless of their age, gender, and ethnicity. We are analyzing the changes in gene expression and metabolites in stroke survivors to understand the molecular mechanism of stroke.

Obesity

In Malaysia, nearly 17.7% of Malaysians are obese. We are investigating the gene-environmental interaction towards obesity in the population. We are also investigating the effect of different plant extracts in adipogenesis.

Melioidosis

Melioidosis is a health issue affecting both the human as well as the animal population in Sabah. Cases of melioidosis both in animal and human have been reported even to this day. However, in spite of the recorded human and animal cases of melioidosis and the confirmed environmental presence of Burkholderia pseudomallei in Sabah, there are still many gaps in our current understanding of melioidosis epidemiology in the state. We are studying the geographical distribution of B. pseudomallei in Sabah and genotype characterization of B. psudomallei to understand the features of melioidosis epidemiology in Sabah.

Malaria

Malaria is the most common vector-borne parasitic disease in Malaysia, responsible for 20-40 deaths per year, and it is estimated that 3% of total Malaysian population live in malaria risk areas. We have developed sensitive diagnostic methods for human malaria detection up to five species. We are also studying the evolution of the parasites in human malaria. We also collaborate with other research group to screen for potential extracts and secondary metabolites from plants and microorganisms in treating malaria. Examining the foldase activity and chaperon function of P. knowlesi provides platform for malaria drug development as well as to study their resistant.

Colorectal Cancer

Colorectal cancer is the second most deadly cancer which often detected at late stages in Malaysia. We are targeting the interaction between gut microbiome and metabolites in different clinical stages of colorectal cancer. Our final aim is to develop biomarkers for early detection of colorectal cancer.

Immunomodulating Activities

Agents exerting immunomodulating activities are becoming an important field, especially in their potentials in medicine and functional food. We are studying the molecular mechanism of potentials of these agents from natural resources of Sabah in modulating the immune activities using mice model and cell culture.

Paddy

Fungal infection in paddy causes yield reduction of 50-70% in Malaysia. We are transforming fungal resistance gene into Sabah's traditional paddy (Tadong) and evaluating the resistance efficiency and nutrient profile of our transformed paddy towards fungal infections. We are also studying the soil microbial activity and community in the paddy fields.

Mangrove

Malaysia has been ranked sixth in most mangrove-rich country with more than 0.5 million hactars are covered with mangrove plants. Of these, 59% of the mangrove areas are located in Malaysian Borneo. Although Malaysian Borneo is rich in mangrove resources, little is known about the mangrove microbials in this region and their secondary metabolites as potential antimicrobial drugs. We are investigating microbials of the pristine mangrove in the Malaysian Borneo for potential new anti-microbial substances.