Newsletter: UP Geologists Report Subsidence Rates in Select PH Metropolitan Cities

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By: Eunice Jean C. Patron

Land subsidence, or the gradual sinking of the ground, threatens not only Metro Manila but also other cities.

Extreme damage running along the length of a road in Marilao, Bulacan is visible. (Photo credit: Sulapas et. al., 2024)

Excessive groundwater extraction, rapid urbanization, tectonic motion, and the natural compaction of sediments contribute to land subsidence worldwide. This issue is worsened by rising sea levels due to climate change, leading to frequent and severe flooding especially during high tides or typhoons, as well as local contexts of hazard management regulations.

Newsletter: CS Researchers Receive UPD 2024 REPS Chair and REPS Awards

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By: Eunice Jean C. Patron

Researchers from the University of the Philippines – Diliman College of Science (UPD-CS) are recipients of the University’s first-ever recognition for its Research, Extension, and Professional Staff (REPS).

Researchers from UPD-CS will be recognized at UP Diliman’s first-ever recognition focused on its Research, Extension, and Professional Staff (REPS). (Photo credit: Craig Soroño).

The UP Diliman REPS Chair and REPS Awards aims to recognize the achievements of the REPS in the fields of research and creative work, extension services, and professional public service. These awards also aim to encourage REPS to advance knowledge and learning in their respective fields, establish scientific and thought laboratories, and develop collaborative programs that support UP’s mandate as the nation’s leading research university.

Newsletter: Save Philippine Seas and UP Diliman College of Science Host 2-Day Workshop on Science Communication

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By: Eunice Jean Patron

Participants and organizers take a photo in front of the UPD-CS Admin Building. (Photo credit: SPS)

Selected students and researchers from the University of the Philippines – Diliman (UPD) participated in the Commservation Workshop, a two-day event focused on the basics of science communication and conservation. The workshop was organized by the UPD College of Science (UPD-CS) in collaboration with the non-profit organization Save Philippine Seas (SPS) and took place on October 12 and 14.

Newsletter: Documentary on UP Marine Science Institute’s work on plastics wins at Bantog Awards

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By: Eunice Jean Patron

MSI researchers are collecting sediment samples from coastal areas, which will be analyzed in their laboratory to detect the presence of microplastic particles. (Photo credit: Microbial Oceanography Laboratory)

A documentary featuring projects of the University of the Philippines – Diliman College of Science’s Marine Science Institute (UPD-CS MSI) received the Best Science and Technology Investigative Story (Audio-Visual) trophy at the Department of Science and Technology’s 2024 Bantog Awards for Science Communication.

Newsletter: UP Scientists Create Thermoresponsive Polymers for Potential Biomedical Use

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By: Eunice Jean Patron

Thermoresponsive polymers are molecules that undergo significant changes in their properties in response to temperature changes and are widely used in biomedicine, such as drug delivery, tissue growth, and gene transfer, as noted by researchers Ward and Georgiou in their 2011 study.

Newsletter: UP Researchers Investigate E. coli Levels in Urban Farm Vegetables

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By Eunice Jean C. Patron

Researchers gather samples of mustasa, or mustard greens (Brassica juncea), at New Greenland Farm in Bagong Silangan, Quezon City. (Photo credit: The Research Team)

A type of bacterium called Escherichia coli (E. coli), found in the feces of humans and animals, is often released into bodies of water such as streams. Although most E. coli strains are harmless, some can cause foodborne diseases such as gastroenteritis, typhoid fever, and dysentery. Feces are a major source of microbial contamination in fresh produce. With the rise of urban farming in the Philippines during the COVID-19 pandemic, it is essential to monitor fresh produce from urban farms to recognize and address food safety issues immediately.

Newsletter: Why Do Science? CERN Physicist Answers

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By Harvey Sapigao

Dr. David giving a talk at UPD-CS (Photo credit: Maria Alexandra Marmol).

There are scientists whose works are immediately appreciated by people: molecular biologists and pharmaceutical scientists who develop medicines and vaccines and find cures for cancer; climatologists and environmental scientists who monitor the weather and fight climate change; engineers who invent thinner gadgets and faster electric cars. And then there are those like particle physicist Dr. André David, whose work veers into the more unfamiliar realms of science, the kinds that elicit unimpressed comments like “What for?” and “How will this help me in my everyday life?”.

Newsletter: Staff Spotlight - Tala of the Dean’s Office

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By Harvey Sapigao

Everything starts with coffee. That’s how Marie Kristine Alice Dela Rama, known as Tala, also starts her day. “I’d say coffee, hot or cold, is vital in my office routine.” Tala is an administrative staff member at UP Diliman College of Science (UPD-CS) Dean’s Office, where she processes and digitizes documents, and forecasts and updates contracts. But outside work, she and a couple of researchers had been working tirelessly for the past three years to write a textbook for senior high students. The book was finally published on April 1, 2024.

Newsletter: UPD College of Science Kickstarts Innovation-Research Fair 2024

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By Harvey Sapigao

Organizers and participants of the Innovation-Research Fair 2024 (Photo credit: Craig Soroño).

The UPD College of Science (UPD-CS) Innovation Committee, under the Science and Society Program (SSP) and led by SSP Director Dr. Lerrie Ann Ipulan-Colet, hosted the two-day Innovation-Research Fair on 29 and 30 April 2024 in celebration of World Creativity and Innovation Day.

Newsletter: UP Chemists Modify Anticancer Compound to Improve Safety and Efficacy

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Chemical structure of deguelin. (Photo credit: Francisco, J. A., & Paderes, M. C. Inhibitory effects of B-, C-, and E-ring-truncated deguelin derivatives against A549, HCT116, and MCF-7 Cancer Cells. ACS Omega, 8(45): p. 43109–43117)

Scientists from the University of the Philippines – Diliman College of Science (UPD-CS) have transformed the anticancer compound deguelin into a novel class of compounds that show promise as safer and more effective treatments for colon, lung, and breast cancer.

Newsletter: Skin like butterfly wings: UP scientists investigate rare deadly disease

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by Eunice Jean Patron, UPD-CS SciComm

As rare and deadly as it is poetically named, “Butterfly’s Disease” (scientifically known as “epidemolysis bullosa” or simply “EB”) has no known cure. But a handful of Filipino scientists are working their way towards a treatment.