Biosciences PhD Student Wins Most Excellent Paper and Best Oral Presenter Awards at International Conference

Biosciences PhD Student Wins Most Excellent Paper and Best Oral Presenter Awards at International Conference

Ms Lim Su Wen, who is the National Science Fellowship (NSF) scholar and PhD student under the supervision of Dr Sandy Loh in the School of Biosciences has won the Most Excellent Paper and Best Oral Presenter awards at the International Conference of Biotechnology and Food Science which was held in Beijing, China from 21^st-22^nd April 2013.

Her paper and presentation were judged and placed at highest ranking in the event. Her winning paper entitled “Acalypha wilkesiana ethyl acetate extract enhances the in vitro cytotoxic effects of alpha-tocopherol in human brain and lung cancer cells” had been published in International Journal of Bioscience, Biochemistry and Bioinformatics (IJBBB) 3(4): 335-340.

This paper describes part of the project which is led by Dr Sandy Loh aiming at developing an alternative anticancer treatment by the combinatorial application of vitamin E isomers and Acalypha wilkesiana fractions. This novel combinatorial approach has been proven to enhance the anticancer potency and reduce the drug toxicity and therapeutic window. Hence, the remedy could be used in a long-term anticancer drug treatment that is readily effective not just for chemotherapeutic purposes, but also for the prevention of secondary metastasis and recurrence of cancer.