Assoc. Prof. Trần Đăng Xuân (middle) and his colleagues at Hiroshima University. —VNA/VNS Photo

TOKYO — A research group led by Assoc. Prof. Trần Đăng Xuân at Japan’s Hiroshima University recently published a study on the potential use of a grass species scientifically known as Andropogon virginicus.

The study by the Vietnamese scholar and his associates was published in international scientific journal Plants, an open-access journal published monthly online, in late December. It was the first to discover the benefits of an invasive weed in anti-oxidation and enzyme tyrosinase and cancer cell suppression.

Speaking to the Vietnam News Agency, Xuân said the finding showed the potential of the plant in the healthcare sector and would also hold significant meaning in the extraction of valuable compounds in invasive plants in Việt Nam, especially those able to suppress cancer cells.

Compounds uncovered in the grass would pave the way for the development of a cure for cancer from natural sources, he said.

The scholar said his research group was working with Vietnamese scientists of the National Institute of Medicinal Materials at the Ministry of Health to capitalise on potential of the country’s valuable herbal medicinal plants.

Xuân’s field of research includes plant breeding, genomics, weed science, sustainable agricultural production, organic chemistry, analytical chemistry and biomass energy. — VNS