The creation of the copper IUD, the Hepatitis B vaccine, the development of a probiotic by a Chilean scientist, and contributions to methods for measuring cosmic distances are some of the scientific milestones mentioned by the Imagen de Chile Foundation. Chilean scientist creates probiotic.
Chilean scientist faced with a public health problem
The work of Apolinaria García Cancino, an academic from the UdeC School of Biological Sciences, in the development of the first probiotic patented in the country to prevent infection by Helycobacter pylori -a gastrointestinal bacterium linked to gastric cancer- has been highlighted as one of the seven Chilean discoveries that astonished the world.
The recognition also includes the copper intrauterine device created by Jaime Ziper; the autopoiesis of Humberto Maturana and the vaccine against Hepatitis B by Pablo Valenzuela; the creation of methods to measure the Universe, by Mario Hamuy and José Maza, and the discovery of the first brown dwarf and a giant exoplanet, by María Cristina Ruiz and Maritza Soto, respectively.
The publication in social networks considered the work of these national researchers as a reflection of "a Chilean science with a vision of the future" that "has left a global mark".
International recognition
The inclusion of Dr. Garcia in the digital channels of the institution was valued by the Vice Rector's Office for Research and Development (VRID).
"For UdeC the appearance of Dr. Apolinaria García in this select group of researchers is a great pride and is the reflection of a rigorous and dedicated work, which starts from basic science to an applied result that is transferred and that manages to have a national and international scope," said Vice Chancellor Dr. Andrea Rodríguez Tastets.
In Dr. Rodriguez's opinion, the inclusion of the researcher in the Marca Chile publication highlights "the work of scientific creation in improving people's quality of life".
Dr. Apolinaria García described this mention as a recognition of the several years she has dedicated to "such an exciting subject as the study of pathogenic bacteria", in which Helycobacter pylori has been her model.
"It is an immense honor, even more so when I know of so many scientists who are doing very interesting research in Chile, but with worldwide impact," said the biochemist and doctor in Biological Sciences, awarded by the National Institute of Intellectual Property (Inapi) as Inventor of the Year.
In a globalized world, science crosses borders and, from this perspective, the researcher is proud to contribute to a public health problem such as H. pylori infection, which not only affects the Chilean population, but also various countries, especially developing ones.
The probiotic created by the Universidad de Concepción researcher has been marketed since March 2023 as Nup pylorioff and has been shown to be 93% effective in preventing Helycobacter pylori infection.
It is estimated that in Chile about 70% of the Chilean population is a carrier of this bacterium, which is linked to a number of gastrointestinal disorders, including gastric ulcers and gastric cancer. Therefore, this invention has been very well received.
"It has had an excellent reception. In fact, it is sold out as soon as it arrives in different parts of the country. Quite a few people write to me telling me how well they feel since they have been consuming this probiotic. From abroad they have also asked me to intercede so that it can arrive soon to their countries", commented the academic.
Read the original article on the Noticias Universidad de Concepción website.
