"What we now call NSRI (Natural Science Research Institute) has consistently been at the forefront of scientific research and extension services at the University of the Philippines (UP) Diliman," said UP Diliman Chancellor Edgardo Carlo Vistan II. "The NSRI plays a crucial role in the UP Diliman community as the research and extension arm for the natural sciences."
Partners from academe, government, and the private sector filled the NSRI Conference Room at UP Diliman's Miranda Hall on June 25, 2024, to celebrate the Institute's 60th anniversary. The NSRI was established in 1983 through Presidential Executive Order No. 899 and was then named the Natural Sciences Research Center.
Throughout its 60 years of existence, the dedicated staff of the NSRI has performed excellent research in Chemistry, Biology, Mathematics, and the Atmospheric and Environmental Sciences. Perhaps more importantly, however, many of these research endeavors have been translated into meaningful training, technical and analytical support, consulting and other extension services, as well as government policies, that helped improve the nation and its institutions.
Despite reaching what, in human terms, would be its senior years, Dr. Maria Auxilia T. Siringan, NSRI Officer-in-Charge and head of the Microbiological Research and Services Laboratory (MRSL), affirmed that the Institute would not be resting on its laurels. "The NSRI will not retire," she affirmed, "but will keep on moving forward as it navigates through the advances in science and technology during this stage of genomics, data science, and artificial intelligence."
Employees of the NSRI, along with officials of UP Diliman, pose in a photo for posterity, marking the the Institute's 60th anniversary. Photo by Bong Arboleda, UP MPRO.
The Four Laboratories
The highlight of the half-day celebration was a series of presentations by representatives of the four laboratories composing the NSRI. In addition to the MRSL, the Biological Research and Services Laboratory (BRSL), the DNA Analysis Laboratory (DAL), and the Research and Analytical Services Laboratory (RASL) were also represented.
The BRSL was represented by Dr. Pierangeli G. Vital. She said that the laboratory, together with the whole of NSRI, are gunning for following international certification, starting but not ending with their already-accomplished ISO accreditation, as well as firming up the laboratory's overall capacities. These include finishing their renovations and launching the BRSL Animal Research and Resource Facility, among other things.
The DAL was represented by Dr. Maria Corazon de Ungria. She gave an extensive history of how the DAL used their research not only to understand the genome of Filipinos, but also how this translated into meaningful policies like the 2007 Rule on DNA Evidence. She also noted how all members of the laboratory had taken up their respective research niches and are now blazing their own trails. These developments, she said, came from her realization of the importance of mentoring. "This is what we need to learn, we need to learn to mentor," she said. "Because we won't always be there."
Dr. Siringan likewise gave a history of how her laboratory navigated the struggles of the decades, including the pandemic, to contribute to key initiatives in areas like drug discovery. It eventually joined the DAL and RASL in winning the Galing 2024 UP Diliman Honor and Awards Program. Among other future initiatives, they are preparing to investigate how the bacteria in fermented foods affects human psychobiology, moving forward.
Finally, Dr. Charita S. Kwan gave a history of the RASL, including its previous ISO 7025 accreditation, its role in big projects like the United Nations University-Shimadzu funded project on endocrine-disrupting compounds in Asia, as well as its continuing commitment to the UP Charter and the University's role as a leading research university. She credited the role of her admin and research staff, recalling how they got their first PhD holder in the lab in 1997, and how its members, like Dr. Jonah Bondoc, went on to win recognition and awards for their excellent work.
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