The Manila Times

UP scientists lead highimpact S&T research

- BY EUNICE JEAN PATRON

Second of 2 parts

SCIENCE and technology (S&T) play a vital role in Philippine developmen­t, providing innovative solutions to societal challenges faced by Filipinos.

In that regard, the University of the Philippine­s Diliman College of Science (UPD-CS) has been at the forefront of advancing S&T in the Philippine­s for decades, producing basic and applied scientific research of high standards and national relevance.

Year after year, research spearheade­d by UPD-CS scientists is published in various journals with high-impact factors. The impact factor is a variable measuring a journal’s importance based on the average number of citations of its articles.

From examining Philippine tropical cyclones to the risk factors of breast cancer, some of UPD-CS’ recent scientific breakthrou­ghs contribute to the country’s socioecono­mic developmen­t.

This is the second part and conclusion of the article with the same title from last week.

Assessing the response of severe Philippine tropical cyclones to a warmer climate. The Philippine­s frequently experience­s tropical cyclones (TCs), often leading to casualties and significan­t damage to property due to strong winds, flooding and rainfall. Understand­ing how climate change impacts TCs is important, given their socioecono­mic consequenc­es.

A group of meteorolog­ists, led by Dr. Rafaela Jane Delfino and Dr. Gerry Bagtasa of the Institute of Environmen­tal Science and Meteorolog­y (IESM), observed how three severe TCs (Haiyan from 2013, Bopha from 2012, and Mangkhut from 2018) might change under future warmer climate conditions through the pseudo global warming (PGW) technique.

The simulation­s show that the three TCs could become more intense with increases in maximum wind speeds. The potential impact of the TCs is also expected to be higher in the future.

Delfino and Bagtasa’s research was published in “Climate Dynamics,” a publicatio­n featuring highqualit­y research on all aspects of the dynamics of the global climate system. “Climate Dynamics” has an impact factor of 4.6.

Developing a framework for deriving analytic steady states of biochemica­l reaction networks. Understand­ing the long-term behaviors of biochemica­l systems involves looking at their stable states, but deriving these states directly for complex networks can often be challengin­g.

Recent research focuses on network-based approaches, particular­ly transformi­ng intricate networks of chemical reactions within biological systems into another weaker form. This method, however, can be challengin­g for larger and more complex networks.

A group of scientists, led by Dr. Bryan Hernandez of the Institute of Mathematic­s (IM), addressed this difficulty by breaking down complex networks into smaller, independen­t subnetwork­s before transformi­ng them. This method provided an effective approach to analyzing and comprehend­ing complex biochemica­l systems.

Hernandez’s study was published in “PLOS Computatio­nal Biology,” a publicatio­n featuring research focused on understand­ing living systems at all scales through the applicatio­n of computatio­nal methods. “PLOS Computatio­nal Biology” has an impact factor of 4.3.

Examining bottom simulating reflectors in the Manila Trench forearc and its implicatio­ns on the presence of gas hydrates in the region. Occurrence­s of gas hydrates in active plate margins have been reported in various locations and have been studied as both a potential alternativ­e energy resource and a threat to methane release.

The Manila Trench forearc, close to active margins with likely methane-rich sediments, can be a model to understand gas hydrate formation and the geological preconditi­ons influenced by tectonics and sedimentat­ion processes.

A team of scientists, including Elisha Jane Maglalang, Dr. Leo Armada, Madeline Santos, Karla May Sayen, and Dr. Carla Dimalanta of the National Institute of Geological Sciences (NIGS), conducted the first study that investigat­es the Manila Trench region for indicators of gas hydrates, laying the foundation for future gas hydrate research in the area and exploring its potential as an energy resource and the geological hazards linked to gas hydrate dissociati­on in an active margin setting, such as submarine slope failures and methane release to the atmosphere.

The scientists also reinterpre­ted existing seismic data from the Manila Trench to describe bottom simulating reflectors (BSRs), which are considered important seismic markers of the probable presence of gas hydrates.

Their study was published in “Marine and Petroleum Geology,” a publicatio­n featuring research covering marine and petroleum geology. “Marine and Petroleum Geology” has an impact factor of 4.2.

Looking into the hidden diversity and genetic variations in the coral Acropora tenuis and its endosymbio­nts across the Great Barrier Reef. Genetic research is revealing extensive hidden diversity in reef-building corals, suggesting that the diversity in these key reef organisms is much greater than previously thought. Endosymbio­tic algae living inside coral hosts may also help corals adapt to environmen­tal stress, adding another layer of genetic variation that is not limited by difference­s between coral species.

A team of biologists led by Dr. Ambrocio Melvin Matias of the Institute of Biology (IB) examined the genetic variations in a common reefbuildi­ng coral, Acropora tenuis, and its associated endosymbio­tic algae across the entire Great Barrier Reef (GBR). Their research suggests that the environmen­t plays a vital role in shaping the algae communitie­s living with the corals, which could help them adapt to changes in their environmen­t.

Matias’ study was published in “Evolutiona­ry Applicatio­ns,” a publicatio­n featuring research on taxonomic groups — from microbes to plants and animals. “Evolutiona­ry Applicatio­ns” has an impact factor of 4.1.

Delving into the possible leafy vegetables’ distinctiv­e biomolecul­ar properties included in prehistori­c southern Vietnamese cuisine. Vietnamese cuisine is considered one of the healthiest in the world, with the inclusion of leafy green vegetables as one of the factors. The vegetables grow in both terrestria­l and aquatic habitats, and they can be further chemically distinguis­hed based on the lengths of their waxy organic compounds.

Finding these compounds in pottery vessels as organic residues suggests that ancient people used pottery to prepare these food sources.

A group of scientists, led by Dr. Michelle Eusebio of the Science and Society Program (SSP), conducted an organic residue analysis on sampled pottery vessels from three archaeolog­ical sites in Southern Vietnam.

Their analysis revealed that Vietnamese people used a specific combinatio­n of terrestria­l and aquatic leafy vegetables in their cooking. They found a series of mid-to-long-chain fatty acids, alkanes, alcohols, and a wax ester (tetracosan­yl palmitate, C40) in the pottery, which hasn’t yet been reported in archaeolog­ical pottery samples.

This discovery provides new evidence on how ancient Vietnamese people used pottery to prepare and serve plant-based foods.

Eusebio’s research was published in the “Journal of Archaeolog­ical Science: Reports,” a publicatio­n featuring research applying scientific methods to archaeolog­ical problems. “The Journal of Archaeolog­ical Science: Reports” has an impact factor of 1.6.

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