UP Diliman
Oral Fish Vaccine Technology Wins Big
at the AMY Intellectual Property Awards
It was a proud moment for the UP
Diliman community when one of its
research teams bagged the grand prize for
their intellectual creation. The award was
the “2013 Ambassador Alfredo M. Yao
Intellectual Property Awards” (AMY IP
Awards), which was launched in 2009
by the Philippine Chamber of Commerce
and Industry (PCCI) in collaboration with
the Intellectual Property Office of the
Philippines (IPOPHL) and the
Department of Science and Technology
(DOST). The Award aims to support the
development and commercialization of
locally-developed intellectual properties—
patents, utility models, industrial designs,
and trademarks—that have contributed, or
show strong potentials to contribute, to
economic development and social
awareness.
The winning invention, an oral fish
vaccine technology, was created by a team
of researchers led by Dr. Anacleto M.
Argayosa of the Institute of Biology. His
co-researchers are Dr. Chelo S. Pascua of
the National Institute of Geological
Sciences, Dr. Florentino C. Sumera of the
Institute of Chemistry, and John Anthony
D.L. Yason and Alpha Rae M. Espigar,
both of the Institute of Biology. The
invention is a revolutionary process that
improves the effectiveness of the fish
vaccine through the inactivation and
succeeding clay micro-encapsulation of
the antigen. The oral vaccine, 66