Fresthel Monica M. Climacosa
University of the Philippines, Philippines
Biography
Dr. Fresthel Monica M. Climacosa finished her Bachelor of Science in Biology, graduating as a magna cum laude, in the University of the Philippines Manila in 2010. She is one of the pioneer graduates of the country’s only dual degree program: Doctor of Medicine – Doctor of Philosophy (MD-PhD) in Molecular Medicine, a joint effort of the Department of Science and Technology’s Philippine Council for Health Research and Development (DOST-PCHRD) and the University of the Philippines College of Medicine. She received the Dr. Adolfo Belosillo award for the Most Outstanding MD-PhD Graduate and the DOST-PCHRD’s Most Outstanding MD-PhD Dissertation for her study entitled “Development and Characterization of Microbe-binding Peptides for Opsonization of Microbial Contaminants” in 2018. She was also awarded an Academic Distinction in Medicine for garnering a cum laude standing in her Medicine courses.
Aside from being an Associate Professor in the Department of Medical Microbiology in the College of Public Health, she is also the college’s Intellectual Property Officer and Champion and is serving as the faculty-in-charge of the University of the Philippines – National Institutes of Health’s Philippine Study group on Emerging biological and bioactive Agents (PhilSEA).
Her research studies mainly focus on the humoral immunity to emerging and reemerging infectious diseases.