22.5.2026 – UMBI Research Updates Series (RUS) in Molecular Medicine

22 May 2026 | The weekly ๐”๐Œ๐๐ˆ ๐‘๐ž๐ฌ๐ž๐š๐ซ๐œ๐ก ๐”๐ฉ๐๐š๐ญ๐ž ๐’๐ž๐ซ๐ข๐ž๐ฌ ๐ข๐ง ๐Œ๐จ๐ฅ๐ž๐œ๐ฎ๐ฅ๐š๐ซ ๐Œ๐ž๐๐ข๐œ๐ข๐ง๐ž ๐๐จ. ๐Ÿ๐Ÿ‘/๐Ÿ๐ŸŽ๐Ÿ๐Ÿ” featured two insightful presentations by UMBI Research Fellows, highlighting the dynamic landscape of scientific research, innovation and adaptability in molecular medicine.

The first session by Assoc. Professor Dr. Nadiah Abu titled โ€œ๐“๐ก๐ž ๐€๐ง๐š๐ญ๐จ๐ฆ๐ฒ ๐จ๐Ÿ ๐€๐๐š๐ฉ๐ญ๐š๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง โ€“ ๐๐ข๐ฏ๐จ๐ญ๐ข๐ง๐  ๐ข๐ง ๐’๐œ๐ข๐ž๐ง๐œ๐žโ€ explored the evolving nature of scientific careers and the importance of strategic adaptability in research. Her presentation discussed the concept of intellectual freedom, structural pillars of academic survival, and the many dimensions of research pivoting including hypothesis, methodological, model-system, career and translational pivots. Drawing from notable scientific success stories such as the discovery journey of Minoxidil, Dr. Nadiah also shared important reflections on โ€œpivot penaltiesโ€, the Dunning-Kruger Effect, Nobel Disease, and the challenges faced by non-pivoters. She further inspired the audience through her personal experience in securing the ๐‹๐จ๐ง๐ -๐“๐ž๐ซ๐ฆ ๐‘๐ž๐ฌ๐ž๐š๐ซ๐œ๐ก ๐†๐ซ๐š๐ง๐ญ ๐’๐œ๐ก๐ž๐ฆ๐ž (๐‹๐‘๐†๐’) ๐Ÿ๐ซ๐จ๐ฆ ๐ญ๐ก๐ž ๐Œ๐ข๐ง๐ข๐ฌ๐ญ๐ซ๐ฒ ๐จ๐Ÿ ๐‡๐ข๐ ๐ก๐ž๐ซ ๐„๐๐ฎ๐œ๐š๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง (๐Š๐๐“). The session concluded with a meaningful take-home message that the best scientists are often those who know when to persist and when to pivot.

The second session was delivered by Ts. Dr. Mohamad Aimanuddin Mohtar entitled โ€œ๐…๐ซ๐จ๐ฆ ๐’๐œ๐ข๐ฌ๐ฌ๐จ๐ซ๐ฌ ๐ญ๐จ ๐’๐ž๐ง๐ฌ๐จ๐ซ๐ฌ: ๐‚๐‘๐ˆ๐’๐๐‘ ๐š๐ฌ ๐š ๐๐ฅ๐š๐ญ๐Ÿ๐จ๐ซ๐ฆ ๐Ÿ๐จ๐ซ ๐ƒ๐ข๐ฌ๐œ๐จ๐ฏ๐ž๐ซ๐ฒ, ๐ƒ๐ข๐š๐ ๐ง๐จ๐ฌ๐ญ๐ข๐œ๐ฌ ๐š๐ง๐ ๐“๐ก๐ž๐ซ๐š๐ฉ๐ž๐ฎ๐ญ๐ข๐œ๐ฌโ€. The presentation provided a comprehensive overview of CRISPR technology, tracing its origins from bacterial immune defense systems to one of the most transformative tools in biotechnology. The audience gained insights into how scientists repurposed the bacterial memory spacer system into synthetic guide RNA technology, enabling broad applications across multiple fields. Dr. Aimanuddin highlighted the growing impact of CRISPR in plant biotechnology, livestock improvement, genetic and metabolic disease correction, infectious disease control, drug discovery, biofuel production and the food industry. He also shared updates on CRISPR therapeutics currently in clinical trials, alongside ongoing UMBI research applications including targeted gene knockout studies in breast cancer cells and CRISPRi genetic screening targeting upregulated cell surface genes in glioblastoma (GBM).

The session reflected UMBIโ€™s continued commitment towards advancing molecular medicine research and fostering a culture of scientific excellence and collaboration. Appreciation is extended to both speakers for their informative and engaging sharing sessions, as well as to all participants for their active participation and encouraging discussions throughout the programme.

 

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