Twenty research results that aim to address industry research gaps in water buffaloes and other livestock were presented and evaluated during the annual R4D in-house review of PCC.

The review, held last June 27-28 at the PCC National Headquarters and Gene Pool, centered on five disciplines: biosafety, product development and management, animal genomics, cryopreservation and techniques, and socio-economic aspects of the Carabao Development Program implementation.

“The annual R4D In-House Review serves as a learning platform for PCC researchers to share significant findings of their on-going or completed researches in their respective disciplines. Presenting research results in a review format is a way of validating and improving further research perspectives,” Dr. Eric Palacpac, research for development (R4D) coordinator, said.

The presented papers are comprised of undergraduate student thesis, internally and externally funded researches, and commissioned researches.

Dr. Palacpac said the review underscored compelling researches for the advancement of PCC’s mandate and for the continuous development of the livestock sector.

A panel of evaluators judged the papers accordingly as they were presented.       

The study on a sperm-specific protein in water buffaloes won this year’s “Best Paper”.

Titled “Molecular Characterization and Comparison of Phospholipase C Zeta (PLCZeta) Between Swamp type (Bubalus carabanensis) and Riverine type (Bubalus bubalis) Buffaloes,” the “Best Paper” garnered 91 percent approval rating from the panel. A team composed of Dr. Eufrocina Atabay, Dr. Edwin Atabay, Dr. Claro Mingala, Dr. Emma Venturina, Dr. Rafael Fissore, and Roseline Tadeo composed the research team for this work.

The evaluators recognized the importance of  PLCZeta, which is widely known to induce oocyte activation following fertilization, being finally characterized in water buffaloes.

Tadeo, Science Research Assistant at the PCC Reproduction and Physiology Unit who presented the research output, also won as the “Best Presenter”.

On the other hand, the study on “Molecular Detection of Tetracycline-resistance Genes in Respiratory Bacterial Isolates of Small and Large Ruminants” by Allan Jeffrey Francia, Gemerlyn Garcia, Dr. Michelle Balbin, and Dr. Mingala won the “Best Undergraduate Student Research Paper”.

Dr. Florencia Charito Sebastian, University of the Philippines-Diliman Extension Program (UPDEPP) director; Prof. Ianne Calica of UPDEPP; and Anna Reylene Montes, PCC-UPLB Science Research Specialist presented the PCC-commissioned researches.

The resource panelists who were tapped for the two-day event were veterinarian Dr. Jose Arceo Bautista of the Animal Dairy Sciences Cluster-UPLB, Dr. Virginia Venturina, Dean of the College of Veterinary Science and Medicine of the Central Luzon State University (CLSU), and CLSU College of Agriculture Professor Zosimo Battad II.

Dr. Palacpac, encouraged scientists and researchers from the PCC network, as well as the student-participants, to strive harder to create meaningful and relevant researches.