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IRL Philippines
UP Diliman, the largest campus of the University of the Philippines, is home to over 22,000 scholars. Within its Science and Technology cluster, the College of Science fosters the generation of novel scientific knowledge through research and mentors the next generation of scientists.
One of the units of the science complex of the College of Science is the Institute of Biology, where our laboratory is housed. This is the Immunopharmacology Research Laboratory, led by our principal investigator, Dr. Joyce Ibana.
Despite the challenges of building a lab, IRL was built in just a year.
We moved from our humble beginnings to a new lab at the Institute of Biology with funding from USAID STRIDE and the University of the Philippines. We increased our research capacity and expanded our laboratory.
Research has always been part of the UP culture. Through innovation and collaboration, we implement research and dissemination of our work that may be beneficial to society. This culture helps cultivate creativity and love for science in an environment that allows students to have the freedom to ask difficult questions and pursue their passions in conducting scientific research. We align all our activities with our three main missions.
To conduct innovative data-driven research in the fields of Microbiology, Cell biology, and Immunology.
To train students and contribute to the pool of scientists in the Philippines.
To help in developing health care and agricultural products, processes, and policies.
Our group started with only two master’s degree students and one doctoral student. Over the years, the lab has expanded and produced three doctorates, seven master’s degree graduates, and thirteen bachelor’s degree graduates.
In our lab, we emphasize teamwork. As a team, our achievements include having our research recognized nationally and internationally. We believe, together, everyone achieves more.
This year, IRL is ready to enter into a new phase. We are now translating our innovative ideas and opening avenues for industry partnerships to contribute to products, processes, and policies to provide innovative solutions for our country’s development and the public good.
We are venturing into collaborations with industry and other government agencies. We recognize the need for academe and industry partnerships to strengthen our innovation.
Every person consumes food to sustain life. Thus, agricultural food production is one of the human activities that makes a very significant impact on our environment, health, and economy. As the impact of antibiotic resistance rapidly becomes a forefront problem in medical practice, we need to be more mindful of the eco-footprint of the non-therapeutic use of antibiotics in our farming industries.
Human interactions with microorganisms represent one of the most intimate and long-lasting inter-species relationships in history; some are mutually beneficial, while others are antagonistic.