While the imposition of movement controls globally has served to reduce pollution for a time, daily human activity even in its simplest forms can add to environmental risks.
INTI’s dedicated Biotech Labs provide suitable equipment and safe spaces for research
Metal nanoparticles, entities made of pure metals or their compounds, are often found in various products and processes. Common household items, cosmetics and skin care products, biomedical products, consumer goods, and even food leave traces of these metals, which we often do not give a second thought to as we use them in everyday life.
When released into the environment through waste and discharge, these nanoparticles, which are 600 to 800 times smaller than the diameter of human hair, make their way into land and aquatic ecosystems and will over a long-term impact life on the planet – starting with some of its smallest living entities, microalgae and cyanobacteria.
“Within industry applications, microalgae have become increasingly popular in the production of food, biofuels and other bio products. These microorganisms might help us to solve some of the biggest challenges in the world. Closer to individual life, if you’re a fan of Chlorella and Spirulina supplements, you’re among the population that ingest microalgae on a daily basis,” shared Professor Dr Wong Ling Shing, Dean of the Faculty of Health and Life Sciences at INTI International University.
The current president of the Einstein Research Academy, Professor Wong continues: “At the most fundamental level, however, microalgae and cyanobacteria are responsible in sustaining oxygen levels while reducing atmospheric nitrogen and carbon dioxide.”
In fact, cyanobacteria were attributed as the catalyst of the Great Oxygenation Event during the Paleoproterozoic era, and were responsible for changing the Earth’s atmosphere into an oxidising one that enabled the subsequent development of multicellular life forms.
Suffice to say that while miniscule, these microbes pack a mighty punch on the sustainability of the planet.
Working in collaboration with fellow Malaysian counterparts UNITEN and UTAR, as well as international university partners Pondicherry University in India, Professor Wong’s research has been recognised by the Malaysian Ministry of Higher Education and has received their support through the Fundamental Research Grant Scheme (FRGS).
Professor Dr Wong Ling Shing, Dean of the Faculty of Health and Life Sciences at INTI International University
Having researched the effect of nanoparticles on the environment for more than four years, Professor Wong explained, “So far, toxicity studies of metal nanoparticles on microalgae and cyanobacteria are limited to their exposure over a longer term – a few hours to a few days.”
“These photosynthetic microbes are abundantly available throughout various ecosystems and they are extremely sensitive to environmental changes. Our hypothesis is that even when exposed to pollutants for a very short period of time, there will already be an effect on these microbes, which can cause changes to the surrounding environment,” he added.
In order to identify the impact of metal nanoparticles on the environment, Professor Wong has studied the responses of several types of algae and cyanobacteria after long-term exposure to different concentrations of metal nanoparticles, such as titanium dioxide and zinc oxide. Over the next two years, he will embark on a journey to learn and identify the responses of these photosynthetic microbes towards short-term exposure to metal nanoparticles.
Leveraging INTI’s well-equipped laboratories that have been set up specifically for biotechnology studies, Professor Wong hopes the knowledge from this research can be used to establish new environmental protection policies for the treatment and release of these pollutants into the environment.
“Foregoing human and industrial development is not possible – many of the products and processes that generate these pollutants are essential to individual and community life. But as we develop in one area, we must assess the impact of these products and processes, and work towards a balance between the use of products with metal nanoparticles and the future of our planet Earth,” he warns.
The ongoing challenges impacting Sungai Selangor, one of Malaysia’s prominent rivers and among its largest sources of fresh water supply, is one example of incessant polluting and its impact to communities. While enforcers are currently addressing pollutants that are well known today, this research will help them face new pollutants that might seem harmless initially, but have profound long term effects on human and environmental wellbeing.
Over the long term, the outcomes of the research can also be used in the development of environmental assessment tools for the detection of metal nanoparticles. This option, if made possible, would help governments and industries to assess the quality of waste and hopefully move towards cleaner processes.
In addition to his role as researcher with more than 100 published scientific articles, and Editor-in-Chief for the INTI Journal, Professor Wong serves as a dedicated teacher who embraces student-centric approaches in his teaching, providing blended learning and gamification learning experiences to his students.
An INTI student uses real time data streaming to measure the results of his research
Awarded INTI’s Vice Chancellor Award for Innovative Teacher and The Most Promising Young Researcher in 2016, Professor Wong’s close connection with young learners has also fuelled his passion to research this environmental phenomenon.
“When you work with young people you are inspired to find solutions that will also benefit their futures. At the same time, this generation of learners are deeply astute towards environmental issues. Listening and learning from their perspectives has also served as a motivation for my study. For researchers who actively teach, the learning experience really comes full circle for us and that is the beauty of working at a university,” he concludes.