Singapore Society for Mass Spectrometry

For the first time, Singapore successfully hosted the premiere Asia-Oceania Mass Spectrometry Conference (AOMSC) in 2017. Following previous rounds held in Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, China and Australia, Singapore was awarded the honour and challenge of hosting the 7th AOMSC in 2016. Finally in December 2017, this was brought to fruition through the joint efforts of SSMS together with NUS, NTU, A*STAR and SERI. 

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According to AOMSC tradition, the main conference was preceded by the AOMSC Young Scientist Forum (YSF), which was held on the 10th December 2017. This event featured 20 selected short presentations by young talented MS researchers from the Asia-Oceania region and encouraged scientific exchange in a more casual atmosphere.

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The highlight of the event was the undoubtedly the Career Development Forum. This year, the YSF was honoured to have distinguished scientists Reudi Aebersold, David Herold, and Gavin Reid to share their personal experiences in their scientific careers and offer advice on career planning and progression. Participants were probably heartened to hear that even these renowned scientists have gone through their fair share of experimental setbacks and failures, as well as manuscript and grant rejections.

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The main AOMSC was also a resounding success, with a three-day programme featuring two plenary sessions and spanning 14 conference sessions. A wide range of topics were covered, from clinical mass spectrometry and disease biomarkers to environmental and agricultural application, illustrating the expansive applicability of the mass spectrometry technology. There were over 350 conference registrants, of which about 50% were representing the 13 countries in the Asia-Oceania region. Participants had the privilege of listening to lectures from renowned plenary speakers Reudi Aebersold and Pauline Rudd, as well as 32 keynote speakers and 49 oral presentations. There were also over 130 posters displayed over the three days, allowing an excellent opportunity for networking and interaction among conference attendees. Together with participants from 16 industry sponsors, there was great discussion generated on the latest advancements of mass spectrometry and applications.

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Many conference participants, including members of Asia-Oceania MS societies, congratulated the SSMS and AOMSC committee in the impressive organisation of AOMSC 2017. Jentaie Shea (National Sun Yat-Sen University), one of the founders of the AOMSC, acclaimed that AOMSC 2017 was “the most successful AOMSC”, a view which was shared by AOMSC cofounder Yoshinao Wada (Osaka Medical Centre for Maternal and Child Health). He also commended on the strength and unity of SSMS, which has proven to be the equal of the regional MS societies.

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The conference was closed by AOSMC Co-Chair and SSMS President Qingsong Lin, who also handed over the AOMSC to the next organisers, the Hong Kong Society of Mass Spectrometry (HKSMS). AOMSC 2020 will be held in the University of Macau, with the theme of “The Art and Science of Mass Spectrometry, from Fundamentals to Applications”. See you in Macau!