Session 2 - Technologies and Food Innovations to Advance Gut Microbiota and Health (14:00 - 15:50 hr)
Session chair:
Prof Lay Ching CHAI, School of Medical and Life Sciences, Sunway University, Malaysia
ABOUT THE SPEAKERS
Prof Lay Ching Chai, School of Medical and Life Sciences, Sunway University, Malaysia
Prof Lay Ching Chai is Professor at the School of Medical and Life Sciences and Pro Vice-Chancellor (Education) at Sunway University. Her research on food safety and microbiological risk assessment has led to appointments in key national and regional committees under the Ministry of Health and in ASEAN, where she serves as a notable food safety expert. She currently serves as interim committee member of the ASEAN Young Scientists Network to promote scientific excellence in the region. In addition to her past role as Chair of the Academy of Science Malaysia Young Scientists Network, Prof Chai was appointed as a member of National Science Council Malaysia. Her numerous awards and recognitions include the prestigious L’Oréal-UNESCO Women in Science Award in 2018, Marie Claire’s Amazing Woman in Malaysia 2019, Prestige’s 40 under 40 Malaysia 2019, and the Asian Women Entrepreneurs Leadership Award 2019.
Dr Jun Li is Associate Professor in Bioinformatics in the Department of Infectious Diseases and Public Health and Affiliate Associate Professor in the Department of Data Science, City University of Hong Kong. Dr Li is interested in developing statistical models and using computational skills in multi-omics, structural and phenotypic data analyses to understand the intrinsic/mathematical nature of biological processes and systems in relation to human health and environmental microbiome. His current research examines how dietary or therapeutic interventions reshape the gut microbiota and affect physiology or disease status (e.g. obesity, cancer); and also investigates antimicrobial resistance and pathogenesis and other health-related issues based on machine learning and big data mining techniques. Dr Li received his PhD from the University of Hong Kong (HKU) for his works on comparative genomics/transcriptomics for viruses and bacteria. He was postdoctoral researcher at HKU and the Hans Knoll Institute in Germany, studying the microbiome from human, animal and other environments.
Prof Patricia Conway is Visiting Professor of the Singapore Centre for Environmental Life Sciences Engineering (SCELSE), Singapore and CEO of PC Biome Pte Ltd. She was Professor at the School of Chemical and Biomedical Engineering and in the Nanyang Technological University (NTU) Food Technology Centre, NTU. She has extensive research and industry R&D experience, including authorship on over 100 scientific papers in international journals, monographs or book chapters, and numerous plenary or keynote lectures at international meetings. She is inventor on over 20 patent applications and Principal Investigator on grants in Sweden, Australia and Singapore. Prof Conway’s research interests are gastrointestinal microbiology, functional foods including probiotics and prebiotics. She has a particular focus on bacterial colonization of the gastrointestinal tract and mechanisms of bacterial adhesion, pathogen inhibition and immune modulation in animals and humans in order to develop ways of modulating the microbiome for health.
Dr Chia Wei Phan is a Senior Lecturer at Universiti Malaya and an expert in mycology and neuroscience. He is also Wellous Medicinal Mushroom Expert, Medical & Research Board of Advisor, Wellous Group. Dr Phan earned a degree in Microbiology from Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), followed by a master’s in environmental engineering from the University of Nottingham, UK, and a PhD in Medical Biotechnology from Universiti Malaya, Malaysia. His research focuses on medicinal mushrooms for neurodegenerative disease prevention. He was the Director of the Clinical Investigation Centre at Universiti Malaya Medical Center from 2019 to 2024 and is involved in various scientific organizations and editorial boards. Dr. Phan is also a member of the Young Scientists Network-Academy of Sciences Malaysia and has won numerous awards including KNOVASI, IUCEL, and most recently ITEX 2024. His current research includes metabolic syndromes like Type 2 diabetes and obesity.