Local Organizing Committee
Chair: Prof. Simon Cutting
Biography
Professor Cutting is an authority on the use of Bacillus spores for oral vaccination as well as the use of these bacteria as probiotics. His work is currently focused on Clostridium difficile, Influenza and H. pylori. He has published numerous papers in internationally peer reviewed journals relating to the use of Bacillus spores as heat-stable, vaccine vehicles and as mucosal adjuvants and is co-inventor of several patents in this area. After obtaining his D.Phil. at Oxford University in 1983 he spent six years at Harvard University working with Prof. Richard Losick on the developmental genetics of Bacillus. Following four years at the University of Pennsylvania as an Assistant Professor, he returned to the UK in 1996 and set up his own group at RHUL. He leads a group of 14 researchers. His work includes clinical studies of vaccines to C. difficile (phase 1) and COVID (phase 1/2a). He works with a number of large companies in the vaccine sector He has a long-standing relationship with a number of academic groups in Vietnam built up over 30 years. He is CEO of a London-based biotech company, Sporegen Ltd, that he founded in 2012.
Co-Chair: Dr. Alfred Chin Yen Tay
Biography
Dr. Alfred Chin Yen Tay obtained his PhD from UNSW in 2010 and subsequently assumed roles as a research associate and laboratory manager at the Helicobacter Research Laboratory within the UWA Marshall Centre for Infectious Diseases Research and Training. Dr. Tay’s primary research interests encompass antibiotic resistance and the genetic characteristics of Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori). Collaborating closely with Nobel Laureate Prof. Barry Marshall, he has conducted surveillance on antibiotic resistance trends across diverse ethnic populations and sequenced the genomes of antibiotic-resistant strains.
Furthermore, Dr. Tay leads a team dedicated to identifying alternative genomic markers for characterizing Helicobacter species, with the objective of comprehending its evolution into a human pathogen. He currently serves as the webmaster of www.helico.com, overseeing the website’s maintenance and actively participating in forum discussions to disseminate information regarding H. pylori.
Dr. Tay’s contributions to clinical research, particularly in H. pylori, genomics, and next-generation sequencing technology, have led to the development of innovative diagnostic tools and personalized treatment strategies. His work on antibiotic susceptibility testing has resulted in a cure rate exceeding 90% for cases of multi-drug resistance.
In his efforts to address challenges related to antibiotic resistance and gastric cancer in China, Dr. Tay has established collaborations with Zhengzhou University, Guizhou Medical University, Sichuan University, and Shenzhen University, resulting in advancements in H. pylori research and treatment. Moreover, he founded the Australia-China Helicobacter Fellowship Training Program, supported by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trading (DFAT), to facilitate knowledge exchange and foster research partnerships with Chinese scholars.
Dr. Alfred Chin Yen Tay remains steadfast in his dedication to H. pylori research. His commitment has significantly enhanced the understanding of and treatment strategies for H. pylori infection, particularly in regions with elevated incidences of gastric cancer.
Assoc. Professor Ngo Thi Hoa
Biography
Assoc. Prof. Hoa, PhD completed her PhD training, iN molecular microbiology, at Royal Holloway, University of London, UK in 2001 under the supervision of Prof. Cutting. Hoa‘s posdoc at the school of Epidemiology and Public Health, Yale University, USA was funded by the Wellcome Trust, the Travelling Fellowship, which continued to fund Hoa returning to Vietnam and join the Oxford University Clinical Research Unit (OUCRU), HCMC, Vietnam in 2005.
At OUCRU, Hoa leads the zoonoses and microbiology group at OUCRU to investigate the prevalence, virulence and antimicrobial resistance of microbial pathogens, including E. coli, Non-typhoid Salmonella, S. suis, S. pneumonia, B. pertusis and H. pylori.
She also leads the Parasitology and Microbiology Unit, Center for Biomedical Research, Pham Ngoc Thach University of Medicine, HCMC, Vietnam. There, her project aims to identify the association of the environment factors to human’s infection, the feasibility to implement a point-of-test for detection of Talaromyces marneffei infection in Vietnam.
Assoc. Professor Vu Van Khien
Biography
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Vu Van Khien is currently Vice President and General Secretary of the Vietnam Association of Gastroenterology (VNAGE), Vice President of the Vietnam Federation for Digestive Endoscopy (VFDE), and Director of the Gastrointestinal Endoscopy Center at Thu Cuc International General Hospital, Hanoi City- Vietnam.
He graduated from the Vietnam Military Medical University in 1989, obtained his Ph.D. in Gastroenterology in 2000, and pursued postgraduate research and training at the University of Michigan Medical School (USA), Okayama University Medical School (Japan), Chiang Mai University Medical School (Thailand).
With over 30 years of experience, Assoc. Prof. Khien has organized and chaired numerous national and international scientific conferences in the field of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Endoscopy in Vietnam. He has also presented research and delivered lectures at major international conferences held in Japan, Korea, Thailand, Hong Kong, Singapore, and several other countries.
He is the author and co-author of more than 156 scientific papers published in domestic and international journals, focusing on digestive diseases, hepatobiliary disorders, and Helicobacter pylori research.
Dr. Hong Anh Huynh
Biography
Dr Hong Anh Huynh is a vaccinologist with a Ph.D from the National Institute of Hygiene & Epidemiology, Hanoi and has spent 20 years working at the Institute of Vaccines (IVAC) in Nha Trang (Vietnam). She participated in a phase IV clinical trial of an oral cholera vaccine and for the last 20 years worked at the Royal Holloway University of London (UK) with over 50 publications most recently on oral interventions including a vaccine to C. difficile infection. She has consulted extensively including for GSK.
Assoc. Prof. Duc Trong Quach MD, PhD
Biography
Dr. Duc Trong Quach is an associate professor of Gastroenterology and vice chair of the Department of Internal Medicine, University of Medicine and Pharmacy at Ho Chi Minh City (UMCH). He currently serves as a Vice-President of the Vietnam Association of Gastroenterology (VNAGE) and Secretary General of the Vietnam Federation for Digestive Endoscopy (VFDE). He was a research fellow of the Japanese Society of Gastroenterology in 2005 and then obtained the advanced fellowship of the Asia-Pacific Society for Digestive Endoscopy in 2009. He received the Ph.D. degree in Gastroenterology in 2011 at UMCH. He has published more than 150 reviews and original papers in local and international journals. His interests include GERD, functional gastrointestinal disorders, Helicobacter pylori, screening strategies for early gastrointestinal cancers and advance therapeutics endoscopy. He has received several awards including the Outstanding Presentation Award at the 14th Biannual Scientific Congress of Vietnamese Nation-wide Medical and Pharmaceutical Schools in 2008, the Medal of Creativeness from the Vietnamese Central Youth League in 2008, the Young Clinicians Program Award of the World Congress on Gastroenterology in 2009 and the Outstanding Teacher Award, Faculty of Medicine, UMCH in 2020.
Hanh Linh Nguyen
Biography
Hanh Linh is currently CEO of HURO Biotech, a biotech company operating in Ho Chi Minh City focused on the manufacture and sale of novel probiotic interventions. This includes a nasal spray that prevents infection by influenza and SARS-CoV-2. This spray has passed through clinical trials and is marketed in Vietnam. After graduating from the University of Bath in the UK she took a role with the PAN Group in Vietnam as a financial analyst (2013-2015). She successfully raised more than $80m in investment increasing the value of the PAN Group from $12m to $250m. Following this she was CFO of PAN Food (2015-2024), one the largest companies in the food sector in Vietnam.
Professor Huan X. Nguyen
Biography
Professor Huan X. Nguyen is Director of the London Digital Twin Research Centre (LDTRC) and Head of the 5G/6G and IoT Research Group at Middlesex University London. An internationally recognised leader in digital twinning, he has secured more than 20 major research grants, with over £6 million awarded in the past two years alone. He currently leads a portfolio of pioneering international projects applying digital twin modelling to areas including healthcare, stroke care, crisis resilience, agriculture, manufacturing, and 5G/6G. In health and stroke care, Professor Nguyen leads multidisciplinary teams of scientists and clinicians across the UK, Vietnam, India, and Indonesia in four projects funded by the Academy of Medical Sciences and the UK government’s International Science Partnerships Fund (ISPF). These projects investigate digital technologies and AI-enabled solutions to support diagnosis, intervention, and treatment. He has authored more than 180 research publications and delivered over 55 invited talks and keynote lectures worldwide. Beyond academia, he serves as Chairman of the Vietnamese Intellectual Society in the UK and Ireland, Member of the IEEE ComSoc UK and Ireland Chapter Committee, Advisory Board Member of the EPSRC CDT in Materials 4.0, and Member of Vietnam’s National Advisory Council for Science, Technology and Innovation. He received his PhD from the University of New South Wales, Australia, in 2007, and is a Senior Member of IEEE and Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy. Over the course of his career, he has supervised more than 30 postdoctoral researchers and PhD students.
