Page 9 - IMR Annual Report 2022: Institute for Medical Research

Annual
IMR Annual
IMR
Report 2022 9 vii
Report2022
INSTITUTE FOR MEDICAL RESEARCH
INSTITUTE FOR MEDICAL RESEARCH

It is my pleasure to present to you the Institute
for Medical Research (IMR) Annual Report
2022. The year 2022 has seen many countries
winning the war against the COVID-19 pandemic.

As more countries opened its borders, lifted
lockdowns and eased restrictions, many activities
resumed more normally. IMR continued its
commitment to impactful biomedical research in

the areas of infectious disease, cancer, allergy,
immunology, nutrition, metabolism, cardiovascular,
environmental health, genetics, biomedical
epidemiology, herbal medicine and specialised

diagnostic research.

Research highlights in 2022 include stem cell, regenerative medicine
and genomic research. The Ministry of Health (MOH) Biobank, located
at IMR, began a national level biobanking initiative to organise, manage
and oversee the collection of biospecimens from consenting donors
at MOH facilities. To support nutrient-related research in the country,
IMR continued its efforts to improve the Malaysian Food Composition
Database (MyFCD) with other agencies. The institute also participated
in the Drugs for Neglected Diseases Initiative (DNDi) Dengue Alliance
with other nations and are conducting in vitro efficacy studies to curb the
dengue virus. The institute continued delivering research-related training,
consultations and sharing of expertise with other health professionals and
scientists.

In the middle of the year, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Complex,
was launched by Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin
Al-Mustafa Billah Shah in an event attended by the Health Minister,
Director-General of Public Service, Director-General of Health, Health
Ministry Secretary-General and directors of the six institutes of NIH,
including IMR. Our institute was also visited by many scientists and
students from various universities throughout the year for opportunities to
collaborate in research and training.

I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to all staff for their
continuous support to achieve the institute’s vision and mission. May IMR
continue to pursue excellence in biomedical research in improving the
health of the nation.