At the Top 50 Famous People of the Chelyabinsk Region awarding ceremony, SUSU Professor Al-Suhaimi Sobhi Ahmed Azab has been awarded the prize in the Science category. The contest was held by the R: a Magazine about Reputation with a Capital R, and the ceremony itself took place in the hall of the Pegas equestrian complex.
The organisers chose a number of scientists of the Chelyabinsk Region for the Science category, and popular vote determined a single winner among them.
“I am glad and flattered to receive this award,” said Professor Al-Suhaimi Sobhi Ahmed Azab on stage during the ceremony. “It is very important for me to make my contribution both to the development of SUSU and to the region, and to be useful to Russia.”
Professor Al-Suhaimi is indeed a world-class scientist. His works are published in leading journals according to Scopus and WoS (including those in the first quartile and in the top ten by field). His Hirsch index is 17 (meaning that from among his articles 17 were cited at least 17 times each).
But most importantly, Professor Sobhi Al-Suhaimi created an international scientific school, which includes scientists from Russia, Egypt and other countries. Professor Al-Suhaimi became famous in the Urals and got included in the Top 50 award thanks to orange peel extract, from which a bioactive supplement (dietary supplement) that helps with Alzheimer’s disease is made. This work was published in the Pharmaceutics international journal. Modelling and laboratory experiments were conducted simultaneously by Russian and Egyptian colleagues.
Another task, on which Al-Suhaimi’s scientific school is working, is the absorption of protein, the enrichment of foods with protein, which is especially important for athletes because protein is a building material for muscles. The products developed by the team contain useful minerals and vitamins and improve metabolism.
Extracts from buckwheat, legumes, and quinoa grains can be added to drinks, and protein digestibility increases up to 87% (versus 60% with the usual consumption of these grains). Full meal can be combined with a healthy one: beet juice, rich in iron and antioxidants, restores strength, and sea buckthorn juice can slow down or prevent cancer through probiotics. There are also supplements indicated for type II diabetes. The extract can also be added to dough to make nutritious bread and pasta.
“And for school pupils who eat little, one can cook muffins rich in protein and iron, and give them vitamins, thereby protecting them from possible anemia,” adds Professor Al-Suhaimi.
Now Professor Al-Suhaimi is working on organising the 10th Asia-Pacific International Symposium on Probiotics in Chelyabinsk. It will be held on November 16th. However, due to the current difficulties with crossing borders and air services, it was decided to organise the symposium online. But how many famous scientists will attend it! The event is regularly hosted by the Asia Pacific Institute of Food Professionals, and this year professor Sobhi Al-Suhaimi is entrusted to organize it. He will also deliver a leading report on probiotics in human nutrition. Professor Al-Suhaimi’s goal is to develop individual (personalized) nutrition plan: every hour, intestinal flora is monitored in laboratories, from which a conclusion is made about probiotic bacteria playing a specific role in the digestion of a given organism, and then a program of prebiotic substances for the patient to use is drawn up.