Singapore, November 4, 2011 – The Institute of Bioengineering and Nanotechnology (IBN), is pleased to announce that its disease diagnostics technology, the MicroKit, has won the Silver Award at the Asian Innovation Awards 2011 organized by The Wall Street Journal Asia. The result was announced yesterday evening at the awards ceremony held at the Four Seasons Hotel in Hong Kong, which was officiated by Sir John Major, former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. The Asian Innovation Awards recognize innovations that break with conventional processes in creative ways.

Developed in Singapore by IBN Executive Director, Professor Jackie Y. Ying and her team members, Guolin Xu and James Tseng-Ming Hsieh, the MicroKit is an automated diagnostic device that can detect viruses rapidly and accurately within two hours. Current efforts to contain infectious diseases are often hampered by the time it takes to diagnose and isolate those carrying the virus. Conventional diagnostic tests can take up to half a day and can only be conducted in dedicated biosafety laboratories by clinical personnel, who might risk accidental exposure to the virus.

Designed to enable diagnosis outside the laboratory, the MicroKit is portable and easy to use for non-clinical personnel.TheMicroKit simplifies disease detection by integrating the sample preparation, amplification and detection processes in a disposable polymer cartridge. As everything takes place within the completely sealed cartridge, the risk of potential virus exposure is minimized. This portable device can be used at airports, borders, checkpoints and clinics to help contain the rapid spread of infectious diseases and prevent pandemics.

“We are delighted to receive the Silver award for the MicroKit. Our device aims to diagnose infectious diseases safely and quickly. Such diagnostic kits really help towards curbing the spread of diseases such as H1N1. This invention is the result of multidisciplinary research and reflects IBN’s mission to develop innovative biomedical devices that will improve healthcare and benefit society,” said Professor Jackie Y. Ying. 

Now in its 12^th year, The Wall Street Journal’s Asian Innovation Awards attracted 256 entries from 18 countries and territories in the Asia Pacific region this year. The Asian Innovation Awards is committed to finding the next big technological ideas in Asia. This year’s entries have been shortlisted based on three criteria: level of creativity or degree of innovation, quality of execution, and potential impact on quality of life or productivity. The awards were open to individuals, small businesses, large corporations or academia in Asia Pacific. IBN’s MicroKit was one of the 12 finalists selected, and one of 5 finalists from Singapore. Please refer to the Annex for information on the judging panel for the awards.

IBN licensed the MicroKit technology to SG Molecular Diagnostics Pte Ltd in January 2009 to develop a range of diagnostic devices. The Institute is also working on the next-generation MicroKit, which will process 20 samples for 25 different diseases simultaneously.

Figure 1: Designed to enable diagnosis outside the laboratory, the MicroKit is portable and easy to use for non-clinical personnel.

Figure 2: TheMicroKit simplifies disease detection by integrating the sample preparation, amplification and detection processes in a disposable polymer cartridge.

Elena Tan                                                                    Nidyah Sani

Phone: 65 6824 7032                                                  Phone: 65 6824 7005

Email: elenatan@ibn.a-star.edu.sg                             Email: nidyah@ibn.a-star.edu.sg

 

 

The Institute of Bioengineering and Nanotechnology (IBN) was established in 2003 and is spearheaded by its Executive Director, Professor Jackie Yi-Ru Ying, who was a Professor of Chemical Engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (1992 - 2005).

 

In 2008, Professor Ying was recognized as one of “One Hundred Engineers of the Modern Era” by the American Institute of Chemical Engineers for her groundbreaking work on nanostructured systems, nanoporous materials and host matrices for quantum dots and wires.

Under her direction, IBN conducts research at the cutting-edge of bioengineering and nanotechnology. Its programs are geared towards linking multiple disciplines across engineering, science and medicine to produce research breakthroughs that will improve healthcare and our quality of life.

 

IBN’s research activities are focused in the following areas:

IBN's innovative research is aimed at creating new knowledge and intellectual properties in the emerging fields of bioengineering and nanotechnology to attract top-notch researchers and business partners to Singapore. Since 2003, IBN researchers have published over 710 papers in leading journals.

 

IBN also plays an active role in technology transfer and spinning off companies, linking the research institute and industrial partners to other global institutions. The Institute has a portfolio of over 744 patents/patent applications on its inventions, and welcomes industrial and clinical partners to collaborate on and co-develop its technologies. IBN has successfully commercialized 33 patents/patent applications.

 

IBN's current staff and students strength stands at over 160 scientists, engineers and medical doctors. With its multinational and multidisciplinary research staff, the institute is geared towards generating new biomaterials, devices, systems and processes to boost Singapore’s economy in the medical technology, pharmaceuticals, chemicals, consumer products and clean technology sectors.

 

IBN is also committed to nurturing young talents. Besides the training of PhD students, IBN has a Youth Research Program (YRP) for students and teachers from secondary schools, junior colleges, polytechnics, and universities. Since its inception in October 2003, IBN’s YRP has reached out to more than 48,000 students and teachers from 274 local and overseas schools and institutions. Over 1,400 students and teachers have completed research attachments at IBN for a minimum period of four weeks.

For more information, please log on to: www.ibn.a-star.edu.sg.

Matt Berg - ICT Director, Millennium Villages Project, The Earth Institute at Columbia University

Matt Berg is a technology practitioner and researcher in the Modi Research Group at the Earth Institute at Columbia University and serves as the ICT Director for the Millennium Villages Project. Mr. Berg was born and grew in up Africa and is a respected thinker in the mobile-for-development space and helped create ChildCount+, a child and maternal mobile health platform. He was a Pop!Tech 2010 Social Innovation Fellow and was named to the 2010 Time 100 List of Most Influential People for his technology work in Africa.

Charles Chao - President and Chief Executive Officer, Sina

Charles Chao has served as the president and CEO of Sina Corp. since May 2006. Mr. Chao joined Sina as vice president of finance in September 1999 and has served various managerial positions, including chief financial officer, co-chief operating officer and president. Mr. Chao has played a vital role in building Sina into an Internet media and online advertising giant in China. He started his career as a news correspondent at Shanghai Media Group. After that he joined PwC where he served as an experienced audit manager providing audit and business consulting services to hi-tech companies at Silicon Valley. He is currently the co-chairman of China Real Estate Information Corporation, a company providing online and offline real estate information and consulting services, a director of Focus Media, an out-of-home media and advertising network company, and a director of NetDragon Websoft Inc., a company providing technology for online gaming. Mr. Chao received his Master of Professional Accounting from University of Texas at Austin. He also holds an MA degree in Journalism from University of Oklahoma and a BA degree in Journalism from Fudan University in Shanghai, China. He was named to the 2011 Time 100 List of Most Influential People.

Ashvini Hiran - Chief Operating Officer, Consumer Products, Tata Chemicals

Ashvini Hiran is the chief operating officer for Tata Chemicals’s Consumer Products unit, which is engaged in marketing living essentials for consumers, including edible salt and water purifiers. It has a pan-country operation, and its iodized salt reaches over 60 million households every month. Its water purifier, Tata Swach, won the gold prize at the 2010 Asian Innovation Awards. Mr. Hiran has more than 27 years of management, sales, marketing and supply-chain experience at leading Indian and multinational groups such as Unilever, AV Birla and GCMMF. He sits on the board of Okhai Centre for Development at Tata Chemicals and the Network for Sustained Elimination of Iodine Deficiency.

Magdeline Pokar - Managing Director, ResearchSEA

Magdeline Pokar is a research scientist with a keen interest in journalism. In 2005, she set up ResearchSEA – Asia Research News, a platform to help connect research in Asia with journalists around the world. ResearchSEA now works with universities and research institutions in Hong Kong, Japan, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore and Thailand. Dr. Pokar’s personal awards include the British High Commission Chevening Award, Tun Razak Youth Leadership Award and Japan Airlines Foundation Award. She is part of the National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts (NESTA) Crucible Award for creative, enterprising young scientists in the United Kingdom and a Salzburg Global Fellow (21st Century Trust). She was assistant editor to the European Geophysical Society newsletter and contributed to the popular science magazine New Scientist. She freelanced as a writer for the New Straits Times and sub-editor for Business Times.

Adam Smith, Head Judge - Director, Product Management JAPAC, Google

Adam Smith is responsible for Google’s product management efforts in Japan, China, India, Korea, Southeast Asia and Australia. He joined Google in 2003 and played an integral role in launching and growing Google Book Search. In addition, he has managed several Google search products including News, Finance, Scholar, and Blog Search. Prior to Google, Adam was a VP of New Media for Random House Inc. (Bertelsmann), where he was responsible for digital strategy and new technology initiatives including digital distribution and venture capital. He also worked in media and telecommunications investment banking in New York and Hong Kong. Mr. Smith serves on the board of REDF (www.redf.org), a nonprofit organization in California that helps create jobs and job opportunities for people who face the greatest barriers to work. He received an MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business and a B.S. from the University of California at Berkeley. 

Pindar Wong - Chairman, VeriFi (Hong Kong)

Pindar Wong serves on the Digital 21 Strategic Advisory Committee of the Hong Kong government and the task force that promotes Hong Kong as a hub for innovation, cooperation and trade in ICT (Information and Communications Technologies). In 1993, he cofounded one of Asia's early commercial Internet service providers and in 1999 served as one of the region's early appointments to the ICANN Board. As a former trustee of the Internet Society, Pindar actively promotes the adoption of open standards-based technologies. He is particularly interested in fostering Asia's creative talents and in 2008 helped introduce Creative Commons to Hong Kong.