Three outstanding scientists awarded L'Oréal-UNESCO Prize For Women in Science
Attending the ceremony were Prof. Acad. Chau Van Minh, President of Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology, President of the L'Oréal – UNESCO Scientific Council for the Development of Women in Science in Viet Nam; Mr. Benjamin Rachow, General Director of L'Oréal Vietnam; Mr. Olivier Brochet, Ambassador of the French Republic to Vietnam; representatives of leaders of ministries and branches; and leaders of institutes, universities and scientists.
Since 2009, the L'Oréal – UNESCO Science Prize for Women in Science has been introduced to Vietnam to support the promotion of scientific knowledge, creativity and passion from "half of the world" who are female scientists worldwide. Over the past 14 years, this women's science award has honored 38 outstanding Vietnamese female scientists whose research has been of scientific significance, contributing to improving and transforming the lives of communities and demonstrating their passion for scientific research.
L'Oréal– UNESCO Prize for Women in Science to 3 Outstanding Female Scientists in 2023
Speaking at the ceremony, Prof. Acad. Chau Van Minh, President of Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology shared, the L'Oréal – UNESCO Award for Women in Science is an opportunity to honor and encourage female scientists throughout the country to make efforts, strive for outstanding achievements in scientific research and application of research results to serve life, serving the cause of national construction and development in the period of international integration.
Prof. Acad. Chau Van Minh, President of Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology, President of L'Oréal – UNESCO Scientific Council for Women in Science in Vietnam, Nam speaks at the ceremony
He also said that the world is shaped by the boundless curiosity of scientists, by their strong drive to explore the unknown and by their deep desire to unravel the mysteries of the universe. The contributions of celebrated female scientists over the past 14 years have gone beyond the boundaries of the lab and research papers to delve into daily life, changing our understanding about the world.
Mr. Benjamin Rachow, General Director of L'Oréal Vietnam speaks at the ceremony
The journey of doing science is not easy, especially for female scientists. It is marked by trials, setbacks and countless hours of hard work, as well as demonstrating resilience and passion to push the boundaries of existing knowledge. However, it is through this process of inquiry and discovery that we have made leaps forward. On behalf of the L'Oréal – UNESCO Scientific Council for Women in Science in Vietnam, Prof. Acad. Chau Van Minh would like to congratulate the success of the honored female scientists in 2023 and hope that Vietnamese female scientists will continue to be passionate and continue to pursue the scientific path to contribute to the progress of Vietnamese science.
The three candidates honored as Outstanding Women Scientists in 2023 come from the Institute of Materials Science of Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology, Vietnam National University Ho Chi Minh City and University of Science of Hue University with research projects related to the development of a process for detecting antibiotic resistance genes by technique Digital droplet PCR, understanding the antimicrobial ability and inhibition of disease syndrome from endemic medicinal plants in Vietnam, and research on multivalent metal ion batteries using hybrid MnO2 nanomaterials with graphene as positive electrode materials.
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After its launch more than 3 decades ago, lithium ion batteries (LIBs) have attracted many researchers because of their high energy reserve density and durability of charge/discharge cycles. Up to now, 2 types of LIB batteries and lead acid batteries (LAB) are 2 types of batteries that are dominating the energy storage and renewable energy device market. However, recent reports show that there are many fires and explosions from the charging/discharging process currently in use, especially in the composition of commercial batteries, there are also toxic substances, so when burned, it will create gases harmful to the environment and human health. Therefore, research to improve battery technology to achieve safety, cost-effectiveness and environmental friendliness with non-lithium rechargeable batteries in power storage technology is an important research direction in Materials Science. The aim of Dr. Tran Thi Kim Chi's research is to understand the properties of the new generation of multivalent metal ion batteries, using hybrid MnO2 nanomaterials with graphene as a positive electrode material to replace current batteries due to low production costs and abundance of polyvalent metals. The working mechanism of the metal ion battery shows that the electrode material is an important determinant of the electrochemical performance of the device, and graphene hybrid transition metal oxide materials show storage potential and a fairly fast electrochemical reaction rate (fast charging). With a variety of structural designs, synthesized from inexpensive starting materials, this will be an environmentally friendly class of positive electrode materials, responsible for the environmentally polluting mining of toxic transition metals such as cobalt in lithium ion batteries and lead in lead acid batteries in use today. Dr. Tran Thi Kim Chi is the author of 52 international articles, 23 domestic articles and chaired 8 scientific research projects at grassroots and national levels with a focus on the field of optics and electronics, and recently researched manufacturing electrochromic windows combined with energy storage. |
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Antibiotic resistance is now considered a serious medical problem because it creates a tremendous impact on treatment efficacy and survival rates while increasing healthcare costs and creating additional social burdens. By 2050, antibiotic resistance is estimated to cause 10 million deaths per year without effective intervention. One of the solutions to help reduce antibiotic resistance and increase the effectiveness of treatment is to develop fast, timely and accurate diagnostic methods for antibiotic resistance to support the development of effective treatment regimens, and at the same time to isolate and reduce the spread of multiresistant strains, full resistance. Research direction of Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nguyen Thi Thu Hoai is developing a process for detecting antibiotic resistance (ARG) genes of Pseudomonas aeruginosa green pus bacillus directly from clinical samples using digital droplet PCR technique. The blue pus bacillus P. aeruginosa is a bacterium that causes many infections, both acute and chronic, and in some reports it is the No. 1 cause of pneumonia and respiratory failure. This bacterium is also 1 of 6 groups/species on the WHO ESKAPE list that pose a serious public health threat due to its multi-drug resistance. This ability comes from many different genes, some of which are outstanding determinants of resistance to important drugs in treatment. This research will apply digital droplet PCR which is a recently developed nucleic acid amplification technology. This is a technology with high sensitivity, accuracy, steering, the ability to quantify microbiology even at very low concentrations and the ability to work well with patient samples. Research by Assoc. Prof. Dr. Thu Hoai aims to develop new tests to quickly detect the presence of antibiotic resistance genes right on clinical samples, better support doctors in diagnosing drug resistance and suggesting drug use, thereby supporting the treatment process, reducing the development and spread of antimicrobial resistance, making an important contribution to the protection of public health. Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nguyen Thi Thu Hoai is the author and co-author of 3 book chapters and 72 articles with 25 ISI/Scopus articles in the field of proteomics and drug resistance. |
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Antibiotic resistance is reducing the ability to prevent and treat infectious diseases caused by bacteria, viruses and parasites. Meanwhile, current drugs are often not effective enough to overcome the mutation rate of pathogens, bacteria, viruses, and antibiotic resistance. Therefore, finding natural compounds with antibacterial potential, inhibiting viruses, acting as natural antibiotics capable of replacing current drugs is becoming the focus of research on synthesis and preparation of special drugs to help prevent and support effective treatment of diseases. Research by Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nguyen Thi Ai Nhung aims to research on antimicrobial ability and inhibition of disease syndrome from endemic medicinal plants in Vietnam, finding the correlation between natural compounds and protein structure. The goal of the study is to screen natural compounds from a number of new and endemic medicinal plants in Vietnam such as Black Ginger, Spider Egg, Phong Dien Stone Garlic, Vietnamese Dandelion, Medicinal Mushrooms and detailed investigation of the structure, chemical properties, pharmacological properties and bioactivity of natural compounds. From there, evaluate the ability of natural compounds to inhibit bacteria and disease syndromes (Alzheimer's, diabetes, ...) and compare with control drugs by quantum chemical calculations combined with modern simulation techniques to find the correlation between the chemical structure and biological activity of these compounds. The research results of the project aim to build a dataset on the structure and properties of potential natural compounds in inhibiting bacteria and some disease syndromes, as a reliable scientific basis for in-depth studies on natural pharmaceuticals and medicinal chemicals to prepare drugs of natural origin applied in the room and support help treat diseases, help improve public health. The subject of Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ai Nhung is considered significant in contributing biologically active substances to the chemical treasure trove of natural compounds, suggesting interesting problems for theoretical and experimental research and, creating a basis for the application of computational data applied to compounds in biomedical research and pharmacy. Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nguyen Thi Ai Nhung has published 37 international works, including 27 works under the first name, is the co-author of 03 specialized books, leader of 04 scientific research topics. |
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nguyen Thi Ai Nhung
Translated by Phuong Ha
Link to Vietnamese version
