MD-PhD Molecular Medicine Program

The MD-PhD (Molecular Medicine) Program successfully held the 𝐕𝐈𝐑𝐎𝐇 𝐂𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐒𝐲𝐦𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐢𝐮𝐦: 𝐕𝐢𝐫𝐮𝐬𝐞𝐬, 𝐎𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐜 𝐈𝐧𝐟𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐇𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐑𝐞𝐬𝐩𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐞 last July 1, 2026 at the UNILAB Conference Room, Henry Sy Sr. Medical Sciences Building, UP Manila College of Medicine.

The symposium opened with inspiring remarks from 𝐃𝐞𝐚𝐧 𝐃𝐫. 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐥𝐨𝐭𝐭𝐞 𝐌. 𝐂𝐡𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐠, setting the stage for an engaging exchange of knowledge on infectious diseases, host immunity, and advances in molecular medicine.

We were honored to welcome 𝐃𝐫. 𝐂𝐡𝐞𝐧𝐠-𝐋𝐮𝐧𝐠 𝐊𝐮 as our guest speaker, who delivered a lecture entitled "𝐴𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑦𝑡𝑜𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑒 𝐴𝑢𝑡𝑜𝑎𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑏𝑜𝑑𝑖𝑒𝑠 𝑎𝑠 𝑎 𝑁𝑜𝑣𝑒𝑙 𝐸𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑙𝑜𝑔𝑦 𝑜𝑓 𝐼𝑛𝑓𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑢𝑠 𝐷𝑖𝑠𝑒𝑎𝑠𝑒𝑠." His lecture highlighted the emerging role of anticytokine autoantibodies in susceptibility to infectious diseases and underscored the importance of integrating immunology into clinical research and patient care.

The symposium also featured presentations from distinguished researchers and clinicians from UP Manila, highlighting ongoing initiatives that leverage molecular medicine to address infectious diseases and other complex health conditions. 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐫 𝐃𝐫. 𝐌𝐢𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐞𝐥 𝐋. 𝐓𝐞𝐞 shared updates on the 𝑆𝑀𝐼𝐿𝐸 𝐹𝑖𝑙𝑖𝑝𝑖𝑛𝑜 𝑃𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 𝑃𝑟𝑜𝑗𝑒𝑐𝑡 (Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms, Microbiome, and Inflammatory Biomarkers in Filipino Patients with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus), a multidisciplinary initiative investigating the genetic, immunological, and microbial factors underlying systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) in Filipino patients. The project aims to deepen our understanding of disease mechanisms and support improved patient care. 𝐃𝐫. 𝐅𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐢𝐬𝐜𝐨 𝐌. 𝐇𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐥𝐝𝐞 𝐈𝐈𝐈 discussed the molecular aspects of stem cells, biomarkers, and infectious agents, emphasizing how 𝑎𝑑𝑣𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒𝑠 𝑖𝑛 𝑚𝑜𝑙𝑒𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑟 𝑚𝑒𝑑𝑖𝑐𝑖𝑛𝑒 𝑐𝑎𝑛 𝑏𝑒 𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑛𝑠𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑜 𝑖𝑚𝑝𝑟𝑜𝑣𝑒𝑑 𝑑𝑖𝑎𝑔𝑛𝑜𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑐 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑝𝑒𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑐 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑔𝑖𝑒𝑠.

𝐃𝐫. 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐠𝐚𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐞 𝐑. 𝐂𝐚𝐩𝐢𝐫𝐨𝐬𝐨 shared updates on the 𝐿𝑒𝑝𝐴𝑅𝑀𝑆 𝑃𝑟𝑜𝑗𝑒𝑐𝑡, highlighting efforts to strengthen research and surveillance for leprosy in the Philippines. 𝐃𝐫. 𝐒𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐡 𝐋𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐌. 𝐝𝐞 𝐏𝐚𝐳-𝐒𝐢𝐥𝐚𝐯𝐚 shared updates from the 𝐷𝐸𝐹𝐸𝐴𝑇 𝐻𝑃𝑉 𝑆𝑡𝑢𝑑𝑦, a research initiative that investigates the determinants of oncogenic human papillomavirus (HPV) infection among Filipino women to advance molecular risk assessment and inform strategies for cervical cancer prevention. Meanwhile, 𝐃𝐫. 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐚 𝐋𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐉. 𝐂𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐚 featured updates on the 𝑅𝐸𝑆𝑇𝑂𝑁-𝑃𝐻 𝑃𝑟𝑜𝑗𝑒𝑐𝑡, which focuses on the surveillance and characterization of emerging viral pathogens to enhance the country's preparedness for infectious disease threats.

Further highlighting the breadth of ongoing research, 𝐃𝐫. 𝐀𝐧𝐚 𝐉𝐨𝐲 𝐏. 𝐏𝐚𝐝𝐮𝐚-𝐋𝐨𝐳𝐚𝐧𝐨 presented work on 𝐻𝐼𝑉 𝑖𝑚𝑚𝑢𝑛𝑜𝑝ℎ𝑒𝑛𝑜𝑡𝑦𝑝𝑖𝑛𝑔 to identify potential therapeutic targets, while 𝐃𝐫. 𝐂𝐡𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐚𝐧 𝐍. 𝐅𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐢𝐬𝐜𝐨 shared insights into the 𝑒𝑣𝑜𝑙𝑣𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑐𝑙𝑖𝑛𝑖𝑐𝑎𝑙 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑚𝑜𝑙𝑒𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑟 𝑒𝑝𝑖𝑑𝑒𝑚𝑖𝑜𝑙𝑜𝑔𝑦 𝑜𝑓 𝑚𝑢𝑙𝑡𝑖𝑑𝑟𝑢𝑔-𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑡 and hypervirulent 𝐾𝑙𝑒𝑏𝑠𝑖𝑒𝑙𝑙𝑎 𝑝𝑛𝑒𝑢𝑚𝑜𝑛𝑖𝑎𝑒.

The VIROH Collaborative Symposium provided a valuable platform for interdisciplinary collaboration, scientific exchange, and meaningful discussions on current and emerging challenges in infectious diseases. Through initiatives like this, the MD-PhD (Molecular Medicine) Program continues to foster collaboration and advance research that bridges basic science and clinical practice to improve human health.

📸 Photo credits: Jericho Paolo Mabansag

The MD-PhD (Molecular Medicine) Program invites you to join us at the VIROH Collaborative Symposium — Viruses, Opportunistic Infections, and Host Response, a scientific forum exploring the latest advances in infectious diseases, immunology, and translational medicine.

The symposium will feature a keynote lecture by Prof. Cheng-Lung Ku, PhD (Chang Gung University, Taiwan) on “Anticytokine Autoantibodies as a Novel Etiology of Infectious Diseases,” as well as research presentations from UPCM MD-PhD alumni, faculty, and researchers.

📅 July 1, 2026
🕓 10:00 am - 12:00 nn
📍 6th Floor, UNILAB Conference Room, UP College of Medicine

If you would like to attend, please register through this link: https://bit.ly/49NgfKI

We hope you can join us!

We proudly celebrate the publication of “NOVAGene: A Nonlinear Approach to Improve Biological Resolution in Weighted Gene Co-expression Networks for Low-Variability Datasets” published last May 2026 in Frontiers in Bioinformatics, featuring Junelle Rey C. Bacong (MD-PhD Batch 12 student) under the mentorship of Dr. Jose Jr. B. Nevado, MD-PhD program committee member at the time of this study, together with the other co-authors, for their contribution to advancing gene co-expression analysis through a novel and innovative approach.

You can read the research paper here: https://doi.org/10.3389/fbinf.2026.1813626

We proudly present the paper entitled “Challenges in Community-Based Recruitment of Alzheimer's Disease Cases: Experience of the Monitoring Drug Efficacy Through Multi-Omics Research Initiative in Alzheimer's Disease (MEMORI-AD) Study,” co-authored by MD-PhD students and alumni of the University of the Philippines Manila, together with esteemed collaborators and researchers.

Recently published in the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease Reports in March 2026, the study highlights the experiences and challenges encountered in recruiting Alzheimer's disease cases through community-based screening initiatives in Manila. The findings provide valuable insights into the economic, psychosocial, and health-related barriers affecting research participation among vulnerable populations and offer important considerations for future dementia research in the Philippines.

Read the full paper here: https://doi.org/10.1177/25424823261431318





(The MD-PhD (Molecular Medicine) Program is a joint collaboration between the UP College of Medicine and DOST-PCHRD.)

The MD-PhD Program would like to congratulate 𝑴𝒓. 𝑴𝒊𝒄𝒉𝒂𝒆𝒍 𝑹𝒐𝒚 𝑽𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒆𝒓 𝑴𝒂𝒍𝒂𝒍𝒖𝒂𝒏 for successfully defending his dissertation entitled, “𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒓𝒂𝒄𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒛𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒐𝒇 𝑺𝒆𝒙-𝑫𝒆𝒑𝒆𝒏𝒅𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝑯𝒚𝒑𝒐𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒍𝒂𝒎𝒊𝒄 𝑮𝒆𝒏𝒆 𝑬𝒙𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒊𝒏 𝒂 𝑴𝒐𝒖𝒔𝒆 𝑴𝒐𝒅𝒆𝒍 𝒐𝒇 𝑺𝒕𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒔 𝒊𝒏 𝑬𝒂𝒓𝒍𝒚-𝑳𝒊𝒇𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑨𝒅𝒖𝒍𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒐𝒅" on May 18, 2026.

His dissertation advisers are 𝑫𝒓. 𝑳𝒆𝒔𝒍𝒊𝒆 𝑴𝒊𝒄𝒉𝒆𝒍𝒍𝒆 𝑴. 𝑫𝒂𝒍𝒎𝒂𝒄𝒊𝒐 from the UP College of Medicine, University of the Philippines Manila, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, and 𝑫𝒓. 𝑨𝒏𝒊𝒌𝒐 𝑲𝒐𝒓𝒐𝒔𝒊 from Swammerdam Institute for Life Sciences, University of Amsterdam.





(The MD-PhD in Molecular Medicine program is a joint collaboration between the UP College of Medicine and DOST-PCHRD).