Research Institutes, Centres and Units - Universiti Sains Malaysia

Institute for Research in Molecular
Medicine (INFORMM)
Institute for Research in Molecular Medicine (INFORMM) is USM’s first research
institute that grew from a biotechnology cluster-based multi-disciplinary collaboration.
Located in both the Penang Main Campus and the Kelantan branch Health Campus,
INFORMM offers two working environments suited to staff and students preferences.
Research at INFORMM
INFORMM is a research institute formed to promote research in molecular medicine.
It owes its birth to an originating research by its Founding Director who brought
research at USM to a new level, translating it from the bench to the bedside and proving
the applicability of the “closed cycle, R-D-C-E-O concept”. Research at INFORMM is
developed based on the clear local and global need for a more effective approach to
prevent and manage human diseases yielding results and products that are of quality,
affordable, accessible and sustainable.
Our research is built from the very fundamental beginnings like the identification of
‘novel’ constituents of putative molecules for the diseases as well as for the disease
causing agents. For typhoid and filariasis for instance, molecular approaches are developed
to improve characterization of the putative molecules that would be developed into
cost-effective diagnostic investigations that would also result in diagnostic tests to
identify individuals who are predisposed to the diseases so as to help develop a more
effective preventive approach. Responses to treatment, including development of adverse
events to drugs used in treatment, will also be linked to molecular mechanisms and
diagnostic tests.
Achievements
Recognitions conferred on the Institute and its staff and students, as evidenced by the
numerous awards and prizeswon, have instilled confidence and pride for the nation. In
addition, staff achievements have raised the status of INFORMM to a world-class level.
Some of the prestigious awards conferred on INFORMM include:
• Centre of Excellence of Ministry of Higher Education, Malaysia
• Islamic Development Bank (IDB) Prizes for Science & Technology (Award for Islamic
Banking and Financing fromKing Abdullah), 2008