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Professor Mangala Srinivas

Professor Mangala Srinivas

Professor of Cell Biology and Immunology, Wageningen University & Research (WUR);
Member of the Group of Chief Scientific Advisors to the European Commission

Mangala Srinivas is Professor of Cell Biology and Immunology at Wageningen University & Research (WUR), where she served as Head of Department until 2025. She earned an accelerated B.Sc. (Hons.) at the National University of Singapore and a PhD at Carnegie Mellon University (USA). Before joining WUR, she worked at GE Healthcare, developing a global imaging strategy, and led a research group at Radboud University Medical Center. She also co-founded the spin-off Cenya Imaging B.V., serving as CSO.

Her research focuses on nanotechnology for various in vivo applications. She pioneered the use of 19F MRI for quantitative cell tracking and now develops customisable nanoparticles for imaging and immunomodulation, including oxygen-delivery systems. Produced at GMP grade, these agents will soon advance to a first-in-human clinical trial through an EIC Transition project she coordinates. Her team integrates MRI, PET, SPECT, ultrasound, fluorescence, and photoacoustic imaging. This work has been supported through ERC, NWO VENI, ERA-NET, H2020, EIC, and Venture Challenge funding. In brief, her career bridges industry and academia, and she will be taking a nanotechnology-based imaging agent from development in a lab to clinical application.

Mangala is deeply engaged in science policy and leadership. As former Chair of the Young Academy of Europe, she championed Open Science, diversity, and fair recognition in academia, and continues to serve on the Scientific Advisory Board of Open Research Europe. She has delivered over 70 invited lectures worldwide, and has served on evaluation panels for the EC, NWO, and international agencies.

In 2025, she was appointed to the Group of Chief Scientific Advisors to the European Commission, part of the Scientific Advice Mechanism (SAM), becoming the first scientist from WUR and only the third from the Netherlands to hold this role. The SAM provides evidence-based policy advice at the highest level of the European Commission.

Outside science, she finds balance and perspective in raising her three young children, and seriously misses Singaporean makan.

Ms Geraldine Kan

Ms Geraldine Kan

Senior Director, Strategic Communications,
NCS Group

Geraldine Kan helps leaders become more influential, powerful communicators.

Currently Senior Director of Strategic Communications at NCS, Singtel’s technology services arm, she has led Pan Asia Corporate Communications teams in tech multinationals including HP Inc, Lenovo, and IBM.

In between corporate roles, she started her own Leadership Communications practice to make a more direct impact. At The Communications Catalyst, she consulted with senior executives to build their leadership narratives, deepen their executive presence and to achieve their business and culture outcomes.

Geraldine is also a passionate advocate for diversity and inclusion and served as the Executive Sponsor of the HP Singapore Women's Impact Network (WIN). She’s a board member of Nanyang Technological University's POWERS program, which aims to attract and retain female talent into its STEM programmes.

Geraldine began her career as a journalist at The Straits Times news desk in Singapore, where she covered social services and wrote a weekly column. In 2021, she was named to the "Singapore 100 Women in Tech" list, and in 2022, she was recognized as a DEI Champion by Campaign Asia.

She has a bachelor’s degree in Communications from UCLA and a graduate degree from Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism, where she was the first recipient of the S Rajaratnam Scholarship. She is an ICF certified coach (ACC) and an alum of the INSEAD Coaching Certificate programme.

Professor Ivy Ng

Professor Ivy Ng

Singapore Health Services Pte Ltd
Senior Advisor, SingHealth Board

Professor Ivy Ng is Senior Advisor, SingHealth Board. From 2012 to 2024, she was Group Chief Executive Officer, SingHealth, Singapore’s largest public healthcare group, comprising 3 Acute Hospitals, 1 Specialist Hospital, 5 National Specialty Centres (Cancer, Eye, Neurosciences, Dental and Heart), 2 Community Hospitals, 9 polyclinics, and the upcoming Eastern General Hospital.

She was inducted into the Singapore Women’s Hall of Fame in 2025 by Singapore Council of Women’s Organisations (SCWO). She has been conferred the National Day Award Public Administration Medal (Gold)(Bar) 2024, President’s Science & Technology Medal 2021, National University of Singapore (NUS) University Outstanding Service Award 2020, NTUC May Day Medal of Commendation (Gold) Award 2020. She chairs the SingHealth Fund and KKH Fund Committees, Deputy Chair of Precision Health Research Singapore (PRECISE) Board Oversight Committee and sits on the Boards of SGH Fund Committee, Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore Management University, Temasek Trust, Temasek Foundation and National Research Foundation Singapore.

She graduated from NUS Medicine. She is a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians (FRCP, Edinburgh), Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (FRCPCH, London) and Academy of Medicine, Singapore (FAMS). She is Clinical Professor, Duke-NUS Medical School and Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, NUS.
Prof. Loh Xian Jun

Professor Loh Xian Jun

Executive Director,
A*STAR Institute of Materials Research & Engineering ( A*STAR IMRE )

Professor Loh Xian Jun is a Singaporean polymer chemist who serves as the Executive Director of A*STAR's Institute of Materials Research and Engineering (IMRE). He is globally recognized as a leading expert in the field of biodegradable thermogels and supramolecular biomaterials, which have diverse applications in drug delivery, tissue engineering, cosmetics, personal care, and the food sector. In addition to his leadership at IMRE, Prof. Loh holds concurrent Adjunct Professorships at Nanyang Technological University (NTU) and the National University ofSingapore (NUS).

His pioneering research on thermogels, which self-assemble in response to body warmth, was recognized as one of the IUPAC Top 10 Emerging Technologies in Chemistry in 2025. His innovations extend to developing "anti-cancer smart 'bombs'" for targeted therapy, inventing customizable fabric-like power sources for wearable electronics, and co-inventing a smart mask for remote vital sign monitoring during the COVID-19 pandemic. Prof. Loh is also highly active in commercialization; he co-founded the spin-off company Vitreogel Innovations to develop thermogels for retinal regeneration and has licensed technologies to companies like the Ikeda Group and Est.Lab.

An exceptionally prolific and influential scientist, Prof. Loh has authored over 500 publications, holds 38 patents, and has amassed over 46,000 citations with an H-index of 115. He is consistently named a Highly Cited Researcher by Clarivate Analytics. He earned both his B.Appl.Sc (First Class Hons) in Applied Chemistry and his Ph.D. in Bioengineering from the National University of Singapore. He was later a Visiting Fellow at the University of Cambridge and was elected a Fellow of Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge, in 2011. His significant contributions have been recognized with numerous honors, including election as a Fellow of the Singapore National Academy of Science, the Royal Society of Chemistry, the Institute of Materials, Minerals & Mining, and The Institution of Engineering and Technology. In 2022, he received the Singapore Public Administration Service National Award (Silver) for his contributions during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Assoc. Prof. Shefaly Shorey

Assoc. Prof. Shefaly Shorey

Vice Dean (Administration), Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine
Director, Yeo Boon Khim Mind Centre,
National University of Singapore

Dr Shefaly Shorey is a globally recognised nurse scientist, educator, and academic leader whose work has significantly advanced maternal, paternal, and family mental health across the perinatal period. She serves as Associate Professor and Vice Dean (Administration) at the Alice Lee Centre for Nursing Studies, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, and as Director of the Yeo Boon Khim Mind Science Centre at the National University of Singapore (NUS).

Dr Shorey's research programme focuses on the development and translation of psychosocial, digital, and peer-supported interventions to improve parenting outcomes, early child development, and family well-being. Her work is distinguished by its strong emphasis on implementation and policy relevance, with several interventions adopted into clinical practice, national public health programmes, and policy frameworks in Singapore, including antenatal education at NUH, parenting support initiatives with MSF, and national screen time guidelines led by MOH.

A prolific scholar, Dr Shorey has published over 270 peer-reviewed articles in high-impact international journals and has been consistently ranked since 2021 among the world's top 2% most-cited scientists by Stanford University. Her research has been widely featured in national and international media, including television, radio, and major news outlets.

Dr Shorey provides regional and global leadership as Chair of the Southeast and East Asian Nursing Education and Research Network (SEANERN) and as a member of the Global Working Group on Salutogenesis, representing Singapore in advancing health-promoting, family-centred care across diverse populations.

An award-winning educator, Dr Shorey is deeply committed to lifelong learning and mentorship. She employs a student-centred, evidence-based approach to education and has supervised over 70 research students and examined more than 100 research theses. Her excellence has been recognised through numerous prestigious honours, including the President's Nurse Award (2021), Singapore's highest nursing accolade, and the NMRC HPHSR Clinician Scientist Award (Senior Category, 2023).

Prof. Benjamin Seet

Professor Benjamin Seet

Group Chairman of Medical Board (Research),
NHG Health

Ben Seet manages research and innovation at NHG Health. He drives strategic planning, oversees key research programmes and enablers, as well as academic partnership with Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine and Nanyang Technological University.

Ben takes on multiple roles in Singapore’s biomedical ecosystem. He serves on national committees for medical research, clinical trials, cohorts and research enablers; chairs the national platform for drug discovery and development; and helped found research centres and programmes for skin, rehabilitation medicine, ageing, vaccines, artificial intelligence and precision medicine. He sits on the Governing Board for LKCMedicine. Ben further works closely with a number of local biotech and medtech start-up companies. Prior to joining NHG Health, Ben held senior leadership appointments in A*STAR (as Executive Director of the Biomedical Research Council), in the Singapore Armed Forces (as Chief of the Medical Corps and Chief Army Medical Officer), and at the United Nations (as Chief Medical Officer for the Department of Peacekeeping Operations). He holds an MPH from Johns Hopkins University, Master of Medicine in Ophthalmology from NUS, and a Fellowship from the Royal College of Surgeons in Edinburgh.

Dr Lim Kia Yong

Dr Lim Kia Yong

Assistant Chief Executive (Operational ICT),
Home Team Science and Technology Agency (HTX)

Dr Lim Kia Yong is the Assistant Chief Executive (Operational ICT) at Singapore’s Home Team Science and Technology Agency (HTX). Having joined HTX during its inception in December 2019, he was appointed to his current role in November 2023 to oversee the sustainment of cutting-edge digital and ICT solutions across the Home Team. Prior to joining HTX, he worked in the industry from 1996 and later joined the Police Tech Department in 2001. He was transferred to the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) HQ tech division in 2008.

Dr Lim has work experience in various ICT/engineering/ops-tech projects, involving development, integration and sustainment of complex systems. Examples include incident management systems for Singapore Police Force and Singapore Civil Defence Force, surveillance systems for Police Coast Guard, MHA-wide ICT Systems and ICT Infra Sustainment.

Dr Lim majored in computer engineering at the National University of Singapore and obtained a Master of Engineering (Electrical) degree and PhD from the Nanyang Technological University.

Angela Ng

Angela Ng

Chief Operating Officer,
Impact Investment Exchange (IIX)

Angela Ng is the Chief Operating Officer (COO) of Impact Investment Exchange (IIX), a global impact investing pioneer transforming how capital is mobilized for social and environmental impact. Based in the Singapore headquarters, she plays a central role in shaping IIX’s organizational strategy and operational excellence, enabling the organization to scale innovative financial structures that channel capital toward women, underserved communities, and climate solutions across Asia and beyond.

Angela oversees key organizational functions and works closely with cross-functional teams to advance IIX’s flagship platforms, including Impact Partners™, the Women’s Livelihood Bond™ series, and the Orange Movement™. Her leadership supports product innovation, market development, impact measurement, and investor engagement—ensuring that IIX’s solutions are both commercially viable and impact-driven.

Angela’s career spans corporate finance, strategic planning, and international development. She has served as a Program Budget Officer at the United Nations Headquarters in New York City, where she contributed to planning and budget proposals across major UN programs. Prior to IIX, she held senior finance and planning roles across the private sectors, building deep expertise in organizational leadership and financial strategy.

Angela holds a Bachelor of Accountancy with Second Class Upper Honors from Nanyang Technological University (NTU). Her work is driven by a conviction that capital markets can be harnessed to drive equitable and sustainable impact at scale.

Dr Maleena Suppiah

Dr Maleena Suppiah

Former Chief of Learning and Culture,
Tsao Foundation

Dr. Maleena Suppiah served in the philanthropy and social services sector with the Tsao Foundation. Much of her role as Chief, Learning and Culture, involved building capacity, ensuring sustainability, and promoting impactful change in the areas of Productive & Meaningful Longevity and Healthy Ageing. Until January 2024 Dr. Suppiah worked in healthcare with the National University Health System, NUHS. For more than a decade she held several roles: Chief Wellbeing Officer; administrative director for medical education; faculty, and President of Women in Science and Healthcare. She continues academic work as an adjunct assistant professor at the NUS School of Medicine

Dr. Suppiah’s work experience spans over 38 years across six countries, encompassing diverse roles, in Food Security and Food Science, Higher Education, and aviation. In her pursuit of promoting preventive health and longevity, she is a founding member and Board member of the Singapore Society of Lifestyle Medicine. She was a Board Director of Rotary Club Queenstown and of a non-profit organisation that supports and protects unsupported mothers and their children.

In 1987, Dr. Suppiah graduated in Food Science (BSc.) from King’s College London and went on to complete an international MBA at ESSEC Business School in Paris. Her Doctorate in Education research focused on Empathy and optimizing its practice in medicine. She is an alumnus of Raffles Institution, Singapore.

Currently on a sabbatical, Dr. Suppiah has gone ‘back to school’. In her leisure time, she loves grandmothering.

Dr Jaslyn Lee

Dr Jaslyn Lee

Chief Technology Officer
N&E Innovations

Dr Lee completed her PhD in NTU’s Interdisciplinary Graduate School in 2015. Her research is committed to upcycling food waste such as durian seed, soybean waste and cashew nut waste into value added materials such as food stabilisers, antibacterial food packaging to extend shelf life, and natural antimicrobials. She has created the patented Vikang99 technology, a natural antimicrobial which is made from upcycled cashew nut waste.

Vikang99 technology is a patented platform technology to develop new sustainable materials. It is the active ingredient behind three main product lines in the market: eco cleaning line, biodegradable and antibacterial food packaging line and is has been successfully licensed out to produce antibacterial pet products. The technology has generated over SGD $2.5 million revenue and helped reduce more than 2 tonnes carbon emissions.

Schutz Lee

Schutz Lee

Board Member,
Daughters Of Tomorrow

With more than 25 years of service in the non-profit sector, Schutz Lee has contributed extensively to organisations advancing women's development and gender equality in Singapore. She has served on the various Subcommittees and the Executive Committee of AWARE, as well as on the Boards of Singapore Council of Women's Organisations (SCWO), the national umbrella body of women's organisations and Society for WINGS, which empowers women aged 40 and above to age with confidence and dignity.

Since 2022, Schutz has served on the Board of Daughters Of Tomorrow (DOT), which envisions a destination of hope and agency for women in Singapore — where women from low-income households are supported to build confidence, capability and forward momentum for their families. Since 2014, DOT has walked alongside thousands of women through practical, sustained support attuned to the realities of their lives. Its pathway-based approach recognises that women’s move through different seasons, integrating guidance, skills, relationships and access to opportunities to enable long-term progress.

Within this vision, Schutz contributes strategic oversight and stewardship to ensure the organisation remains sustainable and impact-focused. She previously served as Chair of DOT's Fundraising Committee (2020–2024) and as Board Secretary (2022–2025), strengthening governance and resource mobilisation to advance DOT's mission.

She is also a member of the Fundraising Advisory Committee of PPIS (Singapore Muslim Women's Association).

In 2021, Schutz founded Women+Invest Singapore, a non-profit community initiative that supports women in building financial awareness and confidence. Its flagship programme, Financial Awareness and Confidence Training (FACT), provides structured workshops where women can safely learn, discuss and build financial agency.

Professionally, Schutz is an investment marketing and investor relations specialist. Since 1997, she has focused on positioning private investment funds and companies for fundraising, and she has been an angel investor in Asian-based, including women-led, ventures since 2018.

Dr Kenneth Lee

Dr Kenneth Lee

Regional Medical Affairs Director for Diabetes Care
Abbott

  • Regional Medical Affairs Director for Abbott's diabetes care business in Asia Pacific
  • M.B.,B.S., DLSHTM, MSc (Epidemiology), PGDip (Distinction)
  • Post-graduate from the prestigious London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, University of London under the mentorship of Sir Andrew J. Hall, Professor of Epidemiology.
  • Consulting projects with the WHO, Johns Hopkins and Harvard School of Public Health.
  • More than 25 years in clinical medicine, research; with 15 years in corporate pharmaceutical, diagnostics, medical device Medical Affairs leadership across Asia-Pacific
  • Healthcare technology advocate
Assoc. Prof. Valerie Chew

Associate Professor Valerie Chew

Principal Investigator
Translational Immunology Institute (TII), SingHealth Duke-NUS
Associate Professor, Duke-NUS Medical School

Assoc Prof. Valerie Chew, PhD, Translational Immunology Institute (TII), Singapore, is a Principal Investigator at TII and Associate Professor at Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore. A key opinion leader in liver cancer immunology, Dr. Chew's research focuses on elucidating the complex and diverse immune contexture within the tumor microenvironment of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). She leverages advanced single-cell and spatial technologies including CyTOF, single-cell RNA sequencing, and spatial transcriptomics, to perform multi-dimensional immune profiling and identify clinically relevant biomarkers and therapeutic targets. Dr. Chew serves as Associate Editor for the Journal of Hepatology and Clinical and Molecular Hepatology, and is an advisory board member for Nature Reviews Gastroenterology & Hepatology. She is also the Treasurer and a Governing Board Member of the International Liver Cancer Association (ILCA), where she contributes to global efforts in liver cancer research, education, and policy development.

Assoc. Prof. Valerie Chew

Asst. Prof. Theresia Mina

Assistant Professor in Health Informatics and Chronic Disease Epidemiology
Population & Global Health, LKCMedicine

Theresia Mina is a researcher working at the intersection of behavioural sciences, health informatics, and chronic disease epidemiology, with a focus on how lifestyle and metabolic factors shape health outcomes in Asian populations. Born and educated in Indonesia, she completed her undergraduate studies at Nanyang Technological University (NTU Singapore) and obtained an MSc in Reproductive Sciences and a PhD in Cardiovascular Sciences from the University of Edinburgh's College of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine.

She joined Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine, NTU Singapore as part of the team that established the Health for Life in Singapore (HELIOS) Study, now known as the SG100K Study. She currently serves as Lead in Health Informatics for Singapore's National Precision Medicine SG100K Study, and leads the Data Harmonisation Team within the Singapore Strategic Cohort Consortium. In addition, Theresia is a Senior Data Scientist in the Health-Driven Design for Cities (HD4) programme, a National Research Foundation initiative in collaboration with the University of Cambridge, and leads pilot studies focused on characterising eating behaviours in multi-ethnic Asian populations.

Theresia is passionate about mentoring and advancing STEM education, particularly in supporting female students across ASEAN.

Assoc. Prof. Valerie Chew

Asst. Prof. Andrea Pavesi

Assistant Professor
Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine (LKCMedicine) Nanyang Technological University (NTU)

Dr. Andrea Pavesi is an Assistant Professor of Cancer Biology at the Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine, Nanyang Technological University, and Principal Investigator at A*STAR’s Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology in Singapore and Mechanobiology institute (MBI) at NUS.   Trained as a biomedical engineer, he earned his MSc from Politecnico di Milano and completed a PhD in Biomedical & Biomechanical Engineering.

As an entrepreneurial scientist, Pavesi is a co-founding team member of AIM Biotech, an organ-on-chip company that commercialized microfluidic tumor models; he now serves on its Scientific Advisory Board.   At NTU and IMCB, he directs the Pavesi Lab, integrating patient-derived organoids, perfusable vasculature, and autologous immune compartments to decode tumor–immune crosstalk and tumor microenvironment characteristics.

Current projects span blood-brain-barrier glioblastoma models, matrix- stiffness regulation of immune checkpoints, and high-content single- cell profiling of CAR-T infiltration in solid tumours. Beyond the bench, Pavesi is Vice-President of the Singapore Society for Cell Biology, championing trainee outreach and industry–academia partnerships.

Assoc. Prof. Valerie Chew

Ms Georgette Tan

Board Member, and Immediate Past President of United Women Singapore,
Board Member of SHE (SG Her Empowerment)
Board Member of CHIJ Sanctuary for Children
Co-Chair of BoardAgender
Co-Chair of the School Council of Alexander Primary School

Georgette is Board Member and Immediate Past President of United Women Singapore, an NGO advocating gender equality and women's empowerment. Prior to her retirement, she was Senior Vice President heading up Communications, CSR and Corporate Reputation at MasterCard Asia Pacific. Her career included senior communications functions in both private and public sectors in Singapore and Hong Kong. She currently serves on the boards of SHE (SG Her Empowerment), CHIJ Sanctuary for Children, and is Co-Chair of BoardAgender, and, of the School Advisory Council of Alexander Primary School. Georgette serves on the International Advisory Council of APCO Worldwide, and also advises and mentors start-up ventures and social enterprises in the region, headed by women entrepreneurs.

Asst. Prof. Kong Li Ren

Asst. Prof. Kong Li Ren

Assistant Professor of Cancer and Stem Cell Biology,
Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine (LKCMedicine), Nanyang Technological University (NTU)
Adjunct Assistant Professor, Cancer Science Institute of Singapore (CSI Singapore)

Li Ren Kong received his Ph.D. in Cancer Pharmacology from the National University of Singapore, where he studied resistance mechanisms in chemo-refractory tumours. He completed postdoctoral training at the Cancer Science Institute of Singapore, focusing on profiling cancer-specific phenotypes to guide targeted drug repurposing and improve patient outcomes. As part of the joint NUHS-Cambridge initiative, he furthered his training at the MRC Cancer Unit, University of Cambridge. In 2022, Li Ren was awarded the prestigious Lee Kuan Yew Fellowship and returned to Singapore to investigate the cell-autonomous functions of population-specific, cancer-associated germline mutations, with the goal of informing precision cancer therapies. He is currently an Assistant Professor at the Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine, where his laboratory focuses on understanding how stress-induced adaptation drives cancer progression. By integrating advanced omics technologies with conventional molecular approaches, his work aims to improve early diagnosis and intervention strategies for cancers prevalent in Asian populations. Li Ren’s research is supported by the Ministry of Education, the National Medical Research Council, and the NUSMed Translational Research Programme. He has published extensively in leading scientific and clinical journals, including Cell, Nature Communications, Lancet Oncology, and Annals of Oncology, with his findings contributing to biomarker-driven clinical trials.

Assoc. Prof. Christine Cheung

Assoc. Prof. Christine Cheung

Assistant Dean, PhD studies and Professional Development
Associate Professor of Vascular Biomedicine
Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine (LKCMedicine), Nanyang Technology University (NTU)

Assoc Prof Christine Cheung is an Associate Professor of Vascular Biomedicine, the Assistant Dean (PhD Studies and Professional Development), and holds the Provost's Chair in Medicine at the Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine, Nanyang Technological University. She received her PhD in Cardiovascular and Stem Cell Medicine from the University of Cambridge and graduated with First Class Honors in BEng from Imperial College London. Her research in vascular disease biology has garnered recognitions within the scientific community. In 2019, she became a member of the World Economic Forum Young Scientists Community and was recognised as an Honoree of the Ten Outstanding Young Persons of Singapore (Medical Innovations). Her contributions to the field earned her the Human Frontier Science Program (HFSP) Young Investigator Grant, Life Sciences Fellowship from L'Oréal Singapore For Women in Science Fellowship 2018, and the Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology Independent Fellowship in 2012. She was also honoured with the Young Investigator Prize from the British Society for Cardiovascular Research and the Paul Dudley White International Scholar Award by The American Heart Association. Currently, she serves as an executive committee member of the Stem Cell Society Singapore.

Assoc. Prof. Deidre Anne De Silva

Assoc. Prof. Deidre Anne De Silva

Senior Consultant Neurologist, Associate Designated Institutional Official (Research),
SingHealth Graduate Medical Education
Academic Vice Chair (Faculty affairs) Neuroscience
Director, Health Services Research Unit, Singapore General Hospital (SGH)
Secretary, World Stroke Organisation

Deidre is a clinical neurologist who has subspecialty interest in stroke. She is involved in academic research, innovation and education. She is Associate Professor with Duke NUS medical school and is actively involved in stroke, neurology and health services research. As ADIO (Research), she leads efforts to attract, nurture and support resident researchers and residents’ research. She is an advocate for people development, and has mentored medical students, young clinicians, local and international fellows. She is on multiple local and international boards including the Singapore National Stroke Association, Asia Pacific Stroke Organisation, as well as the World Stroke Organisation where she serves on the executive committee as secretary.

Asst. Prof. Ann-Marie Chacko. PhD

Asst. Prof. Ann-Marie Chacko. PhD

Head, Laboratory for Translational and Molecular Imaging
Duke-NUS Medical School

Assistant Professor Ann-Marie Chacko is a translational scientist, innovator and leader in nuclear molecular imaging, who trained in Pharmacological Sciences at the University of Pennsylvania. Her expertise spans radiochemistry and pharmacology, nano drug delivery, small animal imaging, and clinical translational medicine. She joined Duke-NUS Medical School in 2015 in the Cancer and Stem Cell Biology Programme where she leads the Laboratory for Translational and Molecular Imaging (LTMI), which focuses on the design, synthesis and preclinical validation of molecularly-targeted systems for translational imaging applications. These systems include small molecules, peptides, proteins, and nanomaterials. Her research programme is dedicated to developing in vivo imaging approaches to noninvasively assess biologic, prognostic and therapeutic biomarkers for cancer, and viral infection. A major focus of her work is on understanding the molecular pharmacology of non-invasive imaging biomarkers in inflammation and immune response in living systems.

Since 2015, Prof Chacko has successfully secured over S$15M in direct research funding from national, institutional and industry sources. Moreover, her contributions have been instrumental in securing an additional ~S$40M in research funding for individual and collaborative teams across Singapore. She leads a national consortium, the Cancer ImmunoTherapy Imaging (CITI) Programme, which received a S$22M grant from Singapore Health and Biomedical Sciences (HBMS) Industry Alignment Fund Pre-Positioning (IAF-PP) Programme in late 2018.

Prof Chacko is also committed to educating a new generation of scientists, through outreach, teaching, and mentorship. To address some of the unique challenges faced by women scientists, Prof Chacko leads the SingHealth Duke-NUS Women in Science (WinS) network to support the career development of female research scientists across all professional and training levels. Her flag-ship effort is the Career Advancement Programme (WinS-CAP) for early career scientists, providing in-depth training workshops, and faculty-peer mentor sessions.

Adrian Teo

Assistant Professor Adrian Teo

Senior Principal Investigator, Division Director, Director of Graduate Affairs Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology (IMCB), A*Star
Associate Professor, Department of Biochemistry, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, NUS

A/P Adrian TEO obtained his B.Sc. (1st Class) from the National University of Singapore (NUS). He completed his Ph.D. on stem cell biology with Prof Ludovic Vallier at the University of Cambridge, under an A*STAR Scholarship. Concurrently, he was also an Honorary Cambridge Commonwealth Trust Scholar. He then trained with Prof Rohit Kulkarni at Joslin Diabetes Center, Harvard Medical School, as a Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF) fellow, on pancreatic islet biology and diabetes.

Adrian is currently a Senior Principal Investigator at the Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology (IMCB), A*STAR; Division Director of the Cellular Engineering and Therapy (CET) Division; Division Director of the Biomolecular Engineering and Technologies (BET) Division at IMCB, A*STAR; a tenured Associate Professor at Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore; and Director of Graduate Affairs (DGA) of the Biomedical Research Council (BMRC), A*STAR. His laboratory uses human pluripotent stem cells for disease modelling of diabetes, developing therapeutics and cell therapy. He is also a co-founder of BetaLife Pte Ltd focused on the use of stem cell therapy for diabetes patients. He is a member of the Oxbridge Society of Singapore, the International Society for Stem Cell Research (ISSCR) and an EXCO member/Vice-Secretary of the Stem Cell Society Singapore (SCSS).

Assoc. Prof. Angela Chow

Associate Professor Angela Chow

Senior Consultant
Tan Tock Seng Hospital, NHG Health; LKCMedicine NTU; Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health, NUS

Assoc. Prof. Angela Chow is the Clinical Director of the Office of Clinical Epidemiology, Analytics, and kNowledge (OCEAN) and Senior Consultant at the Department of Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine, at Tan Tock Seng Hospital. She also holds joint and adjunct appointments as Associate Professor at the Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine and Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health respectively.

Angela graduated in Medicine from the National University of Singapore, was trained as a Public Health specialist, and obtained a PhD in Epidemiology at the University of California, Los Angeles. Prior to joining Tan Tock Seng Hospital, Angela had assumed various positions at the Ministry of Health Singapore where she developed national communicable disease surveillance systems and strategies, influenza pandemic preparedness plans, health services development programmes and non-communicable disease interventions.

Angela oversees the socio-behavioural epidemiology and programme and outcomes evaluation services at Tan Tock Seng Hospital. She is also involved with the epidemiological surveillance and prevention and control of healthcare-associated infections and emerging infectious diseases. Angela is a clinician-scientist who is passionate about translating evidence to improving patient care and population health. Her research interests include antimicrobial resistance and stewardship, infection prevention and control, infectious disease surveillance and epidemiology, implementation science, and population health. Over the years, her SteWARdS (Steering towards the Wise use of AntimicRobials through understanding & addressing the determinants in Singapore) research group has harnessed quantitative and qualitative mixed methods to elucidate socio-behavioural factors influencing antibiotic use and preventive health behaviours to inform practices and policies to improve clinical and health outcomes.

Muhammad Raihan Jumat

Asst. Prof. Muhammad Raihan Jumat PhD, FHEA

Assistant Professor, Medical Education
Duke-NUS Medical School

Muhammad Raihan Jumat is an educationalist and programme lead with experience at the intersection of translational medicine, healthcare innovation, and education. He currently serves as an Assistant Professor at Duke-NUS Medical School, where he is closely involved in the design, delivery, and coordination of postgraduate programmes in translational medicine, including the Master of International Translational Medicine (MITM) and the Graduate Certificate in International Translational Medicine (GC-ITM).

Raihan plays a key role in teaching and coordinating courses focused on commercialization, entrepreneurship, health equity, research methods, and innovation within the translational medicine pathway. His work emphasizes bridging the gap between scientific discovery and real-world impact, with a strong focus on unmet medical needs, stakeholder alignment, and the practical realities of translating healthcare innovations from bench to bedside. He regularly collaborates with clinicians, scientists, industry partners, investors, and regulators to provide learners with authentic, multi-stakeholder perspectives.

Raihan’s teaching philosophy centers on constructivist learning with a strong emphasis on empowering learners with the necessary knowledge, skills and attitudes which are needed in their respective domains.

Raihan is actively involved in curriculum development, educational research, and programme innovation, with interests in competency-based education, reflective practice, and the use of technology to enhance learning. Across all his roles, he is committed to cultivating thoughtful, resilient, and impact-driven practitioners who can translate ideas into meaningful outcomes for patients and society.

Anand

Dr Anand Kumar Andiappan

Principal Scientist,
A*STAR Skin Research Labs,
A*STAR Singapore Immunology Network

Dr. Andiappan obtained his undergraduate degree from St. Peters Engineering College, Anna University in 2006 where he studied Industrial Biotechnology. He started his research career in the department of Biological Sciences in NUS, specialising in genetics of atopy and allergies in Singapore. He then moved to A*STAR in 2012 where he started as a post-doc at Olaf Rotzschke laboratory where he published the comprehensive study on atopic sensitisation and allergies in Singapore. He then started his laboratory in SIgN in July 2018 on receiving the NMRC Young Investigator award (OF-YIRG) focusing on molecular profiling of biomarkers for allergies, infection and respiratory disorders (AIR biomarkers). He was also awarded a career development award (CDA) from A*STAR for “Novel Treatment Directions for Atopic Dermatitis in Asia: From Clinical Phenotypes to Molecular Endotypes”.

Recently he also joined A*STAR Skin Research Labs (A*SRL) focusing on understanding how tissue-immune interactions lead to pathogenesis of inflammatory skin disorders and skin ageing. Using multi-omics and systems immunology, his group defines molecular endotypes and actionable targets to advance precision therapies, aiming to transform patient care and guide mechanism-driven interventions in Asian populations. Beyond science, he is also passionate about nurturing the next generation of scientists. As a member of the A*STAR SIgN and A* SRL Mentoring Committees and a former member of SIgNAPs (SIgN Association of Postdocs), I actively mentor PhD students and postdoctoral fellows, both within and beyond his group—to nurture the next generation of translational immunologists. Together with clinical partners, his group works toward science-informed treatment strategies and the discovery of biomarkers and molecular signatures that can guide precision medicine in allergic and inflammatory skin diseases. He also engages in public science outreach, giving talks at schools, junior colleges, and community events to inspire young minds and foster a greater appreciation for research.

Anna Lim

Anna Lim

Deputy Director, Research (CBRNE Centre of Expertise)
Home Team Science and Technology Agency (HTX)

Anna is currently the Deputy Director, Research, of the CBRNE CoE in the Home Team Science and Technology Agency (HTX), a statutory board under the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA). In this role, she heads the research and development team in promoting and developing research initiatives, keeping abreast of the latest technologies and methodologies in the field of CBRNE, ensuring the competency of staff, and fostering research initiatives and strategic partnerships with collaborators and Home Team Departments (HTDs).

Prior to her current appointment, Anna has been working in the area of CBRNE and forensics, which includes setting up of the Home Team Investigation Laboratory for MHA, building up the first forensic DNA analysis capability to augment the operational needs of criminal investigation in HTDs. Throughout her career in Public Service, Anna has received several awards, including Minster for Home Affairs National Day Award (Individual), and Home Team Achievement Award.

Anna began her career at the Health Sciences Authority and went on to become a lecturer in the Technical Institute of Education. Anna earned her Master’s Degree in Bioinformatics from the Nanyang Technological University of Singapore (2005), as well as a Bachelor of Science (Hons) in Microbiology from the National University of Singapore (2000).

Assoc. Prof. Konstadina Griva

Assoc. Prof. Konstadina Griva

Associate Professor of Health Psychology and Behavioural Medicine
Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine (LKC Medicine),
Nanyang Technology University (NTU)

A/P Konstadina Griva is Associate Professor of Health Psychology and Behavioural Medicine at the Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, and Editor-in-Chief of the International Journal of Behavioral Medicine. She has been based in Singapore since 2018, and her work has been recognised internationally, including inclusion in Stanford's top 2% of researchers (2023–2025) and Fellowship of the European Health Psychology Society (2019). She is a founding member and inaugural President of the Society for Behavioural Health Singapore, leading its formal affiliation with the International Society of Behavioural Medicine, and serves as Chair of the Women's Health Special Interest Group of the European Health Psychology Society.

Her research focuses on chronic disease management and prevention through theory-based, pragmatic behavioural interventions co-created with patients and evaluated in real-world Asian healthcare settings. Major contributions include award-winning programmes for dialysis, diabetes, and chronic disease self-management, as well as the implementation of motivational interviewing across clinical practice. She leads the patient and public involvement (PPI) initiatives within CREPSing, which applies collective reflective equilibrium to inform ethical and culturally grounded policy for genomic and emerging health technologies. She contributes to behavioural research in digital health, precision medicine, and genomic implementation, and is widely recognised for mentorship and capacity building across the region.

Assoc. Prof. Gan Yunn Hwen

Assoc. Prof. Gan Yunn Hwen

Associate Professor, Department of Biochemistry,
Co-Director, Infectious Diseases Translational Research Program,
Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, NUS

Dr Gan graduated from Purdue University with a B.Sc. (Honours) in Molecular Biology and University of Wisconsin-Madison with a Ph.D. in medical microbiology and immunology. She is a world leading researcher in melioidosis, a disease primarily in the tropics caused by the bacterium Burkholderia pseudomallei. Her current research focuses on Klebsiella induced liver abscess, a prominent disease in Asia, particularly in regions of China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore and South Korea. Her work involves identifying bacterial virulence factors of hypervirulent Klebsiella pneumoniae responsible for causing liver abscess. Her team examines host and bacterial factors that affect gut colonization and translocation. Her recent works have identified the alarming trend of the convergence of multidrug resistance and hypervirulence in K. pneumoniae in Singapore’s hospital settings. Her ongoing research investigates how antibiotic resistance genes on highly evolved and adapted plasmids dominant in clinical bacterial isolates are spreading among bacterial populations, and strategies to stop the spread. She has also established multidisciplinary collaborations with chemists, clinicians and computational biologists to examine novel strategies to treat antibiotic resistant Enterobacteriaceae bacteria. One of such strategies is to establish a synthetic commensal community of bacteria to be used as probiotics for decolonization from the gut.

She is currently Co-Chair of Infectious Diseases Translational Research Program at Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine and had served as the inaugural Assistant Dean of Equal Opportunities and Career Development at the Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine for 6 years.

Prof. Scott Compton, PhD

Professor Scott Compton, PhD

Professor & Senior Associate Dean for Medical Education,
Duke-NUS Medical School

Professor Scott Compton is Senior Associate Dean for Medical Education, Deputy Head of Office (Education), and Program Director of the Master of International Translational Medicine program at Duke-NUS Medical School in Singapore.

Prof Compton earned his PhD from Wayne State University (USA) in Educational Evaluation & Research. He has an extensive research background in both Emergency Medicine and Medical Education. Since joining Duke-NUS in 2012, he has been dedicated to elevating the institution's educational strategy, ensuring it not only aligns with but also exceeds international excellence benchmarks.

In his career, Prof Compton has focused his research efforts on improving outcomes from out-of-hospital cardiac arrest, enhancing palliative emergency medicine, and improving medical education. He has mentored over 100 Emergency Medicine residents, medical students, faculty members, and post-doctoral fellows while completing research in these areas. He has been recognized for his teaching at every level of the educational spectrum and has been awarded the Golden Apple Award for Generativity by the Academic Medicine Education Institute of the SingHealth Duke-NUS Academic Medical Centre. Prof Compton also has a very active history of service at local and international levels in Singapore and the United States. Throughout his career he has led or served many committees on strategic planning initiatives, department chair searches, accreditation activities (including LCME, SACS, and Middle States accreditations in the US, and the first ever Singapore National Standards for Basic Medical Education self-review of Duke-NUS) and chaired numerous medical school curriculum committees. Internationally, he has served as a reviewer for several research journals and as a member of the Editorial Boards of three academic journals.

Dr Sophia Archuleta

Dr Sophia Archuleta

Senior Consultant, Division of Infectious Diseases
National University Hospital

Dr. Sophia Archuleta is Senior Consultant in the Division of Infectious Diseases at the National University Hospital and Associate Professor at the Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore (NUS). She served as Head of the Division until 2026 and looks forward to sharing her perspectives on leadership, clinical trials and medical education with participants of the IWSMS!

She is a clinician educator with a focus on postgraduate medical education and has served in multiple leadership roles in this capacity. She is currently Assistant Dean for Equal Opportunities & Career Development at NUS Medicine, Chair of the ID Residency Advisory Committee and Director on the ACGME-International board. She was a program director twice - leading transitional year and infectious diseases fellowship programs to accreditation by ACGME-I in Singapore’s National University Health System. She is the immediate past chair of the ACGME-I Medicine Review Committee and founder of the Asia Pacific HIV Practice Course.

Her clinical and educational research spans multinational collaborations with special expertise in interventional clinical trials, educational transformation and accreditation, as well as the cross-cultural experience of international clinician educators. Dr. Archuleta is the recipient of various awards for academic and clinical excellence including the inaugural NUS Medicine Gender Equity Award in 2022.

Sandra Zhong

Sandra Zhong

Chief Executive Officer
AscenZion Neuromodulation

Sandra Zhong is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of AscenZion Neuromodulation Co. Pte Ltd, a Singapore-based MedTech company advancing non-invasive neuromodulation solutions for neurological and neuropsychiatric disorders. She is also Executive Chair of the Board at YIQI Biotechnology Group Ltd (Beijing), China) and Founder of the Yirui Charitable Foundation, which provides free rehabilitation services to underprivileged children with cerebral palsy and autism in China.

Sandra holds a Master's degree (Distinction) in Applied Neuroscience from King's College London, certification in Clinical Research Methods from Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, an MBA from Cheung Kong Graduate School of Business, and a First Class Honours Bachelor of Accountancy from Nanyang Technological University.

She began her career in private banking (2003–2013) , working across Switzerland, Singapore, and Hong Kong, culminating as Senior Vice President at Deutsche Bank Hong Kong managing ultra-high-net-worth portfolios totaling €3 billion AUM.

Since 2014, she has focused on MedTech innovation, co-founding YIQI Biotechnology and later establishing AscenZion in Singapore to drive translational neuromodulation research.

Under her leadership, AscenZion achieved the world's first pediatric regulatory approvals for non-invasive neuromodulation: HSA Class B clearance for treating spasticity in pediatric cerebral palsy (2022) and for improving social functioning and sleep in pediatric autism spectrum disorder (2025).

Her translational track record includes commercialization of 25 medical device models and leadership of multiple international randomized controlled trials in tPCS across CP, ASD, insomnia, Parkinson's disease, stroke, ADHD, and cognitive impairment, in collaboration with leading hospitals and universities worldwide.

Other professional service roles include Executive Committee member of the Neuromodulation Society of Singapore, and Founding Executive Committee member of the Chinese Neuroscience Society (Neuromodulation Branch) and Vice President (Asia) of the Eureka Institute of Translational Medicine