He paid with his life for his ground-breaking research
It is with great sadness that I reminiscence about my late cousin, Ananda Amarasiri, who passed away in November 2014 at a relatively young age of 49 years. At the time of his passing away Ananda was a lecturer attached to the Institute of Technology, University of Moratuwa.
Born into a prominent political family from the South, Ananda deviated from the path selected by his late father, M.S. Amarasiri, former Minister of Trade and Shipping and former Chief Minister of the Southern Province, and joined the academic field after a short stint with the Sri Lanka Army. Ananda studied at Kalutara Vidyalaya and later at Ananada College, Colombo from where he entered the University of Ruhuna and graduated with a B.Sc degree.
His chosen academic field was Polymer Science. He completed his M.Sc in Polymer Technology in 2004 at the University of Moratuwa and continued with research in the field and obtained the M.Phil in August 2014. His specific research area was protein allergy problems of natural rubber products among healthcare professionals. Due to the outbreak of many contagious diseases like HIV and hepatitis B, there is a high demand for rubber gloves among healthcare professionals. Local manufacturers using natural rubber are in the forefront of manufacturing gloves and other related items required by the healthcare sector. These gloves are dusted with starch for easy donning and removal. The air-borne starch powder with bound protein causes allergic symptoms ranging from Type 1 Anaphylaxis to type Iv Contact Dermatitis. The allergic level of a human is 100ug/g of the glove and hence caused a downturn in the demand and usage of natural rubber gloves by healthcare professionals.
The University of Moratuwa and the Rubber Research Institute of Sri Lanka launched a joint research project to solve the problem and in this endeavour Ananda was one of the lead researchers in the team who worked hard to develop better quality gloves with adequate protection from the allergic problem. After three years of difficult research Ananda and his research team were able to develop a rubber composite with an undetectable protein level which was below 50ug/g of the glove with outstanding physical properties and with excellent barrier protection, which eradicates the above mentioned allergic problem. This tenacious and unique material was tested at a factory trial and was successful.
This was a major breakthrough and an application for a joint patent between the University of Moratuwa and the Rubber Research Institute was made. It is needless to emphasise the importance of this new discovery to the local rubber industry, healthcare work in general and glove manufacturers in particular, saving valuable foreign exchange to the country while providing a large number of employment opportunities.
Though the research was a success, Ananda had to pay a heavy price for it. He succumbed to a rare disease, Anterior Horn Cell Disease (AHD) which has no known cure and which gradually affects the central nervous system of the human body. I quote from his writings, “During this period I had to work with chemicals such as Toluene, a solvent absorbent used to test for rubber composites. I learnt later that Toluene can affect the muscles directly”. It seems either the safety measures were not adequate or he was somewhat careless of the safety precautions during long hours of work. He gradually lost control of the muscular system which affected his movements and speech. He wrote, “Gradually the strength of my hand was simply dwindling. I had difficulty in starting the car or holding a cup of tea long enough to finish it. My speech was getting slurry. Minor motor activities became a nightmare. Gradually most of my physical abilities deserted me leaving me, bound to a wheelchair, dependent and helpless; my privacy compromised; with a collar around my neck, braces around my trunk and strapped up legs. I feel imprisoned.”
His academic paper on the research appeared in the Sri Lanka Journal of Science of the National Science Foundation and two more papers on the research are pending publication in international journals. He was invited to present his research findings at a global science conference. He was close to completing his doctoral studies, but could not proceed due to the disabilities.
Ananda was such a courageous person that with all these difficulties he continued teaching at the university. He was wheelchair-bound and the management, staff and students of the institute extended their fullest cooperation to his teaching activities during the final phase of his life. The family tried to persuade him not to engage in the teaching work when his condition became severe, but he was ever-more determined to work as he could not think of a life without teaching or research. Many times he told me how much he enjoyed interacting with students and that he was using more and more audio-visual materials e.g. slides, films, etc during his teaching sessions to compensate for his vocal difficulties.
No doubt his untimely death created a large void in the polymer technology research field. We sincerely hope that both the University of Moratuwa and the Rubber Research Institute will obtain the patent for the product and send the much-needed lifeline for the local healthcare gloves manufacturers. This will also reiterate the paramount importance of adequate safety measures of the researchers, adhering to strict safety standards in laboratories.
Ananda was a devoted husband and father. His untimely death has shattered the entire family and my sympathies are extended to his beloved wife Rukma and much loved and cherished daughter Mayuree.
May he attain Nibbana.
He was invited to present his research findings at a global science conference. He was close to completing his doctoral studies, but could not proceed due to the disabilities.