ADMU Department of Biology

19/08/2026

📢 𝗕𝗢𝗢𝗞 𝗙𝗘𝗔𝗧𝗨𝗥𝗘

The Bicol Region is home to remarkable native tree diversity, including many endemic and threatened species. This new guidebook features species profiles, photographs, field-tested propagation protocols, and conservation assessments to support tree identification, restoration, and biodiversity conservation.

Published by the Energy Development Corporation through its BINHI program, the guidebook was produced through an AFoCO-supported forest restoration project in partnership with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources.

📖 𝗦𝗻𝗮𝗽𝘀𝗵𝗼𝘁𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗦𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗡𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 & 𝗧𝗵𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗱 𝗧𝗿𝗲𝗲𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗕𝗶𝗰𝗼𝗹 𝗥𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗼𝗻, 𝗣𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗶𝗽𝗽𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀
ISBN 978-621-95532-3-0

Adriane B. Tobias of the Department of Biology served as one of the book’s copy editors and layout artists and contributed photographs used throughout the publication.

15/08/2026

LOOK: The Department of Biology wrapped up its Annual Planning Session for AY 2026-2027. 🌱

Faculty members and staff came together to discuss plans, priorities, and upcoming activities as the Department gears up for the new school year.

📷 Photo by NB Quintero

15/08/2026

📢 𝗣𝗨𝗕𝗟𝗜𝗖𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡 𝗔𝗟𝗘𝗥𝗧

A poorly documented forest can still hold extraordinary biodiversity.

A new study published in Biodiversity presents a comprehensive assessment of plant diversity in the Mts. Palay-palay-Mataas-na-Gulod Protected Landscape, an important ecological refuge in southern Luzon.

Researchers documented 294 plant species across the forest’s vegetation layers, including 42 Philippine endemics and 31 threatened species. The survey also identified 43 potential new provincial records for Cavite, demonstrating how much remains to be discovered in the country’s understudied forests.

The findings highlight the protected landscape’s importance for conserving native and threatened plants including the Critically Endangered guijo (𝘚𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘦𝘢 𝘨𝘶𝘪𝘴𝘰), and provide essential baseline data for long-term biodiversity monitoring and conservation planning.

The article includes Adriane B. Tobias of the Department of Biology, School of Science and Engineering, Ateneo de Manila University, among its co-authors.

🔗 Read the full article here: https://doi.org/10.1080/14888386.2026.2692520

06/08/2026

The Department of Biology warmly congratulates our colleague, 𝐏𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐥𝐚 𝐀𝐥𝐯𝐚 𝐆𝐚𝐭𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐚𝐧, 𝐌𝐒𝐜., on her election as 𝐑𝐞𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐍𝐂𝐑 of the Association of Filipino Mycologists, Inc. for FY 2026–2027.

Congratulations to all the newly elected officers and representatives! 🍄

24/07/2026

🌿 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗴𝗿𝗮𝘁𝘂𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀, 𝗧𝗲𝗮𝗺 𝗣𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗶𝗽𝗽𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀, 𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗕𝗶𝗼𝗹𝗼𝗴𝘆 𝗢𝗹𝘆𝗺𝗽𝗶𝗮𝗱 (𝗜𝗕𝗢) 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟲! 🇵🇭

📍 𝗩𝗶𝗹𝗻𝗶𝘂𝘀, 𝗟𝗶𝘁𝗵𝘂𝗮𝗻𝗶𝗮 | 𝗝𝘂𝗹𝘆 𝟭𝟮–𝟭𝟵, 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟲

The Philippines proudly celebrates another milestone in international science as our young biologists showcased their knowledge, determination, and passion at the 𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗕𝗶𝗼𝗹𝗼𝗴𝘆 𝗢𝗹𝘆𝗺𝗽𝗶𝗮𝗱 (𝗜𝗕𝗢) 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟲. Competing alongside some of the brightest students from around the world, our delegates demonstrated outstanding excellence and brought honor to the country.

🏅 𝗢𝘂𝗿 𝗜𝗕𝗢 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟲 𝗔𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱𝗲𝗲𝘀

🥈 𝗠𝗶𝗻 𝗦𝘂𝗻𝗴 𝗚. 𝗟𝗲𝗲 – 𝗦𝗶𝗹𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗠𝗲𝗱𝗮𝗹 (39th place out of 301 participants worldwide)
📍 Philippine Science High School – Main Campus

🥉 𝗦𝗵𝗮𝘄𝗻 𝗥𝗲𝗻𝗳𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗢. 𝗔𝗺𝗽𝗲𝗿 – 𝗕𝗿𝗼𝗻𝘇𝗲 𝗠𝗲𝗱𝗮𝗹
📍 Philippine Science High School – Main Campus

🥉 𝗦𝗮𝗺𝘂𝗲𝗹 𝗡𝗮𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻 𝗞. 𝗟𝗶 – 𝗕𝗿𝗼𝗻𝘇𝗲 𝗠𝗲𝗱𝗮𝗹
📍 De La Salle University – STEM

🌟 𝗟𝗼𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘇𝗼 𝗦𝗮𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗼 𝗥. 𝗗𝗲𝗹𝗮 𝗖𝗿𝘂𝘇 – Philippine Delegate
📍 Philippine Science High School – Ilocos Region Campus

Your achievements reflect countless hours of preparation, resilience, and a genuine love for biology. You have inspired the next generation of Filipino scientists!

We also extend our deepest appreciation to the leaders and mentors whose dedication made this achievement possible.

𝗧𝗲𝗮𝗺 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽
• 𝗗𝗿. 𝗥𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗱 𝗔𝗹𝗹𝗮𝗻 𝗟. 𝗖𝗿𝘂𝘇 – Team Leader / Country Coordinator
• 𝗠𝗿. 𝗘𝗱𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝗞𝗲𝘃𝗶𝗻 𝗕. 𝗕𝗿𝗮𝗴𝗮𝗶𝘀 – Head Mentor

A special thank you to our exceptional training pool of national coaches for generously sharing their expertise across different fields of biology:

🧬 𝗠𝗼𝗹𝗲𝗰𝘂𝗹𝗮𝗿 𝗕𝗶𝗼𝗹𝗼𝗴𝘆 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗕𝗶𝗼𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗺𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗿𝘆
• Mr. Edward Kevin B. Bragais (Ateneo de Manila University)

🦴 𝗔𝗻𝗶𝗺𝗮𝗹 𝗠𝗼𝗿𝗽𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗼𝗴𝘆, 𝗣𝗵𝘆𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗹𝗼𝗴𝘆, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗦𝘆𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗰𝘀
• Ms. Abby Escobar (University of Santo Tomas)
• Mr. EZ Peralta (University of Santo Tomas)
• Mr. Kent Sorgon (Ateneo de Manila University)
• Dr. Emman Delocado (Ateneo de Manila University)

🌱 𝗣𝗹𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗽𝘂𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗕𝗶𝗼𝗹𝗼𝗴𝘆
• Don Emanuel Cardona (Philippine Genome Center)
• Roneil Christian Alonday (Philippine Genome Center)
• Weljane Lou Mantalaba (Philippine Genome Center)
• Kaito Furusho (Philippine Genome Center)

📝 𝗧𝗲𝘀𝘁-𝗧𝗮𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗲𝘀
• Ms. Karen Natera (Ateneo de Manila University)

This accomplishment is a testament to the power of collaboration among students, mentors, universities, and research institutions working together to nurture scientific excellence.

Congratulations once again to 𝗧𝗲𝗮𝗺 𝗣𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗶𝗽𝗽𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀! 🇵🇭 Your achievements are a source of pride for the nation and an inspiration to future generations of Filipino biologists.

𝙈𝙖𝙗𝙪𝙝𝙖𝙮 𝙖𝙣𝙜 𝙠𝙖𝙗𝙖𝙩𝙖𝙖𝙣𝙜 𝙨𝙞𝙮𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙞𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙣𝙜 𝙋𝙞𝙡𝙞𝙥𝙞𝙣𝙤! 🌿🔬🇵🇭

20/07/2026

🎉 Congratulations to Our Newly Elected PSM Officers! 🎉

The Department of Biology proudly extends its warmest congratulations to our faculty members and student who have been elected as officers of the Philippine Society for Microbiology (PSM) for Fiscal Year 2026–2027 in the recently concluded 55th Annual Convention and Scientific Meeting and 9th Asia Pacific Biotechnology Congress at De La Salle University, Laguna Campus on July 15-17, 2026.

Your election is a testament to your dedication, leadership, and unwavering commitment to advancing microbiology in the Philippines. We are confident that your expertise and passion will inspire innovation, strengthen collaboration, and further elevate the profession.

May your term be filled with meaningful accomplishments as you lead the PSM toward greater heights. We wish you every success in your service to the society and the scientific community!

🦠🧫🔬

14/07/2026

We mourn the passing of Dr. Kent Carpenter, who was murdered in his residence yesterday. Dr. Carpenter was a champion of marine biodiversity, whose declaration of the Verde Island Passage as the “center of the center of marine shorefish diversity” fueled many studies into our country’s marine resources, with several studies authored by our faculty and students. He is remembered as a dear friend, a mentor, and an advocate for protecting our marine wildlife.

An American marine biologist whose research crowned the Philippines as the center of global marine biodiversity was shot dead inside his home in Negros Oriental on Sunday night, July 12. 

13/07/2026

Our BS Biology junior students visited the National Museum of Natural History last 1 July to learn more about the behind-the-scenes of museum work related to the biological sciences. They toured the reference collections, accession, specimen preparation facilities of the Zoology Division and the Botany and National Herbarium Division. Joining our students are Instructors Irvin Rondolo, Alyssa Marie Lola, JC Galvez, and Kent Sorgon.

We thank our partners in the NMNH-Zoology Division and Botany and National Herbarium Division for making this visit possible. 🐠🪸🐃🌱🪴

10/07/2026

Team Philippines is flying off to Vilnius, Lithuania to represent the country in the 37th International Biology Olympiad. Our student competitors are Samuel Nathan K. Li of DLSU, Min Sung G. Lee and Shawn Renfred O. Asper of PSHS-Main Campus, and Lorenzo Santino R. de la Cruz. They are accompanied by Dr. Ronald Allan L. Cruz, Chair and Associate Professor of AdMU Department of Biology and Country Coordinator of the Philippines to the IBO, and Mr. Edward Kevin B. Bragais, Instructor of the Department.

04/07/2026

📢 𝗥𝗘𝗦𝗘𝗔𝗥𝗖𝗛 𝗙𝗘𝗔𝗧𝗨𝗥𝗘

Freshwater ecosystems are increasingly threatened by invasive species, pollution, and aquaculture-related pressures. In a 2026 article originally available through Archīum.Ateneo and recently featured by Ateneo News, Ragaza and Gasmen examine the spread of invasive Flowerhorn cichlids (𝘈𝘮𝘱𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘰𝘱𝘩𝘶𝘴 𝘴𝘱𝘱.) in Lake Sampaloc, San Pablo City, Laguna.

🔗 Read the full article here: https://archium.ateneo.edu/environment/1/

Janice A. Ragaza, Ph.D. is an Associate Professor of the Department of Biology, Research Group Leader of the Ateneo Aquatic and Fisheries Resources Laboratory, and Department Research Coordinator.
Hannah Nicole Gasmen is an MS Biology student in the Department of Biology.