TAR UC Intensifies Efforts in Research and Industry Collaboration

As one of the premier institutions of higher learning in Malaysia, Tunku Abdul Rahman University College (‘TAR UC’) is widely known for its strong focus in teaching excellence. Nevertheless, TAR UC is also bolstering its research capacity as well as industry collaboration with the involvement of the academics and students. This is aimed at driving innovation with commercialisation potential.

One of the recent research outcome that has been commercialised is the follow-on development of colloidal silver. Colloidal silver contains a small amount of silver molecules suspended in purified treated water. Under suitable dosage, colloidal silver can be used as a natural antibiotic and healing agent, which has antimicrobial functions and plays important functions on immune systems.

Two academics from TAR UC carried out in-depth study on colloidal silver and with empirical data, there is now scientific evidence to prove the efficacy and effectiveness of colloidal silver as a “natural antibiotic” for killing various bacterial species. The research which started in 2011 was headed by Assoc Prof Dr Loke Chui Fung, Dean of the Faculty of Applied Sciences (‘FOAS’) and assisted by Dr Poh Tze Ven, Senior Lecturer of the Faculty of Computing and Information Technology (‘FOCS’). The whole research also involved many final year students of FOAS in collecting the necessary scientific data for the whole duration of the research.

The research outcome from colloidal silver study is commercialised in the collaboration with Aurora Health Sdn Bhd (‘Aurora Health’) where TAR UC is the research partner. Following from the collaboration, AURORA Health has come up with a series of healthcare products such as Aurora Silver Multipurpose Skin Spray, a nano silver specially designed in TAR UC laboratory which is engineered from 99.99% pure silver and ultra-pure water capable of killing a broad spectrum of pathogens. The product was successfully launched virtually on 7 July 2020 by Ms Laurel Tan Bee Hiong, CEO of AURORA Health Sdn Bhd and Ms Leow Min Min, Chairman of AURORA Health Sdn Bhd as well as witnessed by Prof Ir Dr Lee Sze Wei, President of TAR UC and Assoc Prof Dr Loke.

“Our focus is very much on the research aspect in particular the colloidal silver for its anti-bacterial properties. After many years of testing and data collection, we discovered that pathogens with concentrations of 106 CFU (colony-forming unit) could be killed in less than 5 minutes when they were exposed directly to colloidal silver solution even at the very low concentration of less than 4ppm. As I am a researcher and also an educator, it was fulfilling to also involve final year students in this research where besides data collection, they also had the opportunity to observe the effectiveness of the colloidal silver in killing pathogens. This adds value to their learning experience in TAR UC,” Assoc Prof Dr Loke shared on the colloidal silver research.

Prof Ir Dr Lee is positive with the direction of TAR UC in regard to research and development following from the colloidal silver research. “This research collaboration is part of our initiatives to further build TAR UC’s research capacity. As an institution of higher learning, research is one of our core areas and we continue to enhance it with ground-breaking researches. We aim for researches that are of high impact and with the potential for commercialisation to benefit the society,” he said.