The international conference with the theme “International Conference on Natural Products and Chronic Diseases 2022”, was held online and offline at the Unas Cyber Library Auditorium.
This is the first International Conference in 2022, which was held in collaboration with the National University Research and Community Service Institute (LPPM) with Pancasila University, and the Center for Botanicals and Chronic Diseases (CBCD) School of Environmental and Biological Sciences, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey.
Head of LPPM Unas, Ir. Nonon Saribanon, M.Si., said that this conference aims to bring together academics and researchers to exchange ideas and share experiences on research results on aspects of natural products and chronic diseases.
“This forum was attended by academics and researchers to present and discuss innovations, trends, and concerns and solutions in the field of natural products and chronic diseases. The theme carried is Natural Products for Quality of Life, Good Health, and Well-being,” said Nonon in his speech on Wednesday (06/07).
He added that this conference is a collaboration between Unas and Pancasila University, and the Center for Botanicals and Chronic Diseases (CBCD) School of Environmental and Biological Sciences, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey. The conference also ended with a parallel session filled with presentations from researchers.
In his remarks, the Vice Rector for General Administration, Finance, and Human Resources of Unas, Prof. Dr. Drs. Eko Sugiyanto, M.Si., said that this collaboration is proof of Unas’ concern for collaborating with Pancasila University and CBCD Rutgers University on natural products and chronic diseases.
“We hope that this seriousness can be sustained in the following years and can encourage useful publications on natural products and chronic diseases that are not yet known to the public,” he said.
The Vice Chancellor continued, this conference discussed presentations on topics regarding the exploration of medicinal plants, natural product-based medicines, chronic diseases, conservation of natural resources, as well as other topics related to plants or chronic diseases.
Professor Department of Plant Biology School of Environmental and Biological Sciences, Rutgers University, Prof. Dr. Ilya Raskin said that the collaboration between Rutgers University and Unas was initiated to share and publish insights from the results of research that has been carried out on plants for health.
“This is a good opportunity for me, especially Rutgers University to be able to collaborate with the Unas campus which has researchers with their best works. Hopefully, the collaboration from the beginning of the activity to today’s conference can provide benefits for all of us,” he said.
Present as a keynote speaker, Raskin also explained his research on ‘The Future of Research in Botanical Medicines’.
Another resource person in this activity was Prof. Dr. Ernawati Sinaga, M.S., Apt., from Unas, Indonesia. He discussed the ‘Underutilized Potential of Indonesian Fruits as Functional Drinks’.
The second speaker was Prof. Dr. Syamsudin, M.Biomed., Apt. from Pancasila University who explained about ‘Antidiabetic Potential of Polyherbal Formulation, Preclinical Development, Safety and Efficacy Studies’.
Presentation by the third speaker, Prof. Saidbeg Satorov delivered by Assistant of the Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Virology Mirzoeva F.D. from Avicenna Tajik State Medical University, Tajikistan, explained about ‘Correlation Between Content of Polyphenols and Fungicidal Activity Endemic Onions Tajikistan’.
Later, Prof. Dr. Endang Sukara from Unas also presented the results of his research on ‘Fermentation of Ziziphus Mauritiana Fruit and Its Potential as Raw Material for Functional Beverage Formulations’. The exposure was closed by the Assoc. Prof. Ts. Khamsah Suryati Mohd., Ph.D. from the School of Agriculture Science and Biotechnology Faculty of Bioresources and Food Industry Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin, Malaysia., who explained about ‘Natural Products As Anti-Uterine Fibroids Potential’.
The discussion session was guided by Unas Lecturer, Fadlan Muzzaki, S.IP., M.Fil., LL.M. as moderator. In addition, certificates were handed over to trainees from Unas who had completed the Capacity Building Program for researchers, which is a collaboration between Unas and Rutgers University. The certificates were handed over to Alvira Noer Effendi, Rina Trifani, and Bunga Anggreani Sari. (NIS)