Three IPB Professors Unveil Innovations to Tackle Global Challenges
Bogor Regency (ANTARA) - Three professors from IPB University have presented research offering solutions to global challenges in the fields of food, health, and the environment through scientific orations to be held at the IPB Dramaga campus in Bogor Regency, West Java.
At an online press conference ahead of the scientific orations on Thursday, Professor at the IPB University Faculty of Fisheries and Marine Sciences, Julie Ekasari, highlighted the importance of improving aquaculture efficiency through the concept of nutritional ecology.
According to Julie, as the world’s third-largest aquaculture producer, Indonesia needs to begin orienting itself towards efficient nutrient management rather than merely increasing production volume.
She explained that the concept of nutritional ecology views feed, farmed organisms, microorganisms, and the environment as one interconnected system, so that nutrients can be utilised more efficiently to boost productivity whilst reducing environmental impact.
Meanwhile, Professor at the IPB University Faculty of Food Science and Technology, Endang Prangdimurti, emphasised that the benefits of healthy food are determined not only by its active compound content, but also by the ability of those compounds to survive the digestive process and be absorbed by the body.
Through in vitro digestion techniques, Endang said, researchers can evaluate the bioaccessibility of food components more quickly and efficiently before testing on animals or humans is carried out.
“The benefits of food do not stop at its content, but are determined by what is available and utilised by the body after digestion,” she said.
Professor at the IPB University Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Charlena, presented the potential of apatite compounds as functional materials to address challenges in the health and environmental fields.
According to Charlena, hydroxyapatite and fluorapatite can be used as bone implant materials, coatings for metal implants, and even absorbents for heavy metals such as lead and chromium in polluted environments.
She added that the development of apatite-based composite materials also has the potential to support health technology whilst enabling environmental remediation.
Through the three scientific orations, the IPB University professors underscored the importance of strengthening research and innovation as the foundation for technological development to support food security, improved health quality, and environmental sustainability amid global challenges.