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RECENT
NEWS
Besides important
articles and recent advances in the field of biotechnology, we shall
publish news of participation of Bangladeshi Biotechnologists in
important meetings, conferences as a speaker or an instructor in a
seminar or workshop. The news may also relate to any new appointment which
a Bangladeshi biotechnologist has accepted. Members are requested to send
in such pieces of information for posting in the home page at aislam24@yahoo.com or
abidur@iwate-u.ac.jp. We shall flash in the home page the news of any
new member joining GNOBB.
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Mechanical force: a new dimension of developmental regulation
Dhaka, 2nd July, 2009. The role
of chemical regulators in mammalian developmental process has long
been known. In a research article published in the 25th
June issue of Nature, Adamo et al. report the role of
biomechanical force as a regulating factor in embryonic development.
It was previously known that after initiation of the heartbeat in
vertebrates, cells lining the ventral aspect of the dorsal aorta, the
placental vessels, and the umbilical and vitelline arteries initiate
expression of the transcription factor Runx1, a master
regulator of haematopoiesis, and give rise to haematopoietic cells.
Using mouse embryonic stem cells differentiated in vitro, the
group showed that fluid shear stress increases the expression of
Runx1 in haematopoietic progenitor cells. They further verified
their hypothesis by studying Runx1 expression pattern in
vivo using Nxc1- mice (heartbeat and circulation
development mutant). Besides they also revealed abrogation of nitric
oxide, a mediator of shear stress-induced signalling, compromises
haematopoietic potential in vitro and in vivo.
Collectively these evidences clearly suggest an important role of
mechanical forces in vertebrate development.
Summarized by Mahdi Moosa (GEB, DU).
________________________________________________________________________
The June Issue of
SABP Newsletter is now available
Dhaka, 20th
June. An article
entitled, Biotechnology Activities in Bangladesh Rice Research Institute
by Dr. Md. Shamsher Ali features the June issue of SABP
Newsletter. Dr Ali heads the Division of Biotechnology, BRRI. He has
described the outstanding achievements of BRRI in the
development of as many as 50 varieties and the contribution of his
division towards its attainment through application of anther culture and
transformation technology. GNOBB take this opportunity to congratulate
heartily this great organization and its pioneer and present workers.
Among the notable events one is the Agrigenomics World Congress in London
on the 2nd and 3rd July. The department of Mol.
Biol., Dar es Salaam University, Michigan University,
National Centre for GEB, Bangkok, South Asian Regional Centre for Graduate
Study and Res. in Agric (SEARCA) and ISAAA are hosting a number
conferences on different aspects of Biotechnology, including socioeconomic
and Environmental impact Assessment of Biotech crops, Knowledge management
in Biotechnology Transfer and Adoption in South East Asia.
This month's "Cream
of the Crop is,"GMO
Safety. Pls find the newsletter
here
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The sequence of Bovine
genome completed at >92% coverage
Dhaka, 17th June, 2009.
Domesticated cattle provide a significant source of nutrition and
livelihood to nearly 6.6 billion humans. Thus bovine biology has an
enormous significance in the global scenario. In 24th April
2009 issue of Science, The Bovine Genome Sequencing and
Analysis Consortium reports the bovine genomic sequence with
greater than 92% coverage. The genome sequence reveals much about the
Cetartiodactyl order of mammals that include several livestock
species. The cattle genome contains a minimum of 22,000 genes,
with a core set of 14,345 orthologs shared among seven mammalian
species. Of these 1217 are absent or undetected in noneutherian
(marsupial or monotreme) genomes. With a GC content of 41.7%, the
cattle genome has 496 miRNA genes of which 135 were not previously
published. As expected, there have been substantial reorganization of
gene families encoding proteins present in milk. The reorganization
took place as a result of domestication over the past 8000-10000
years. Genes involved in reproduction, immunity and digestion have
also experienced extensive cattle lineage specific reorganization. The
cattle genome and associated resources will facilitate the
identification of novel functions and regulatory systems of general
importance in mammals and may provide an enabling tool for genetic
improvement within the beef and dairy industries in the long run.
Summarized by Mahdi Moosa (GEB, DU).
19th
volume of the journal PTC&B has appeared online today
Dhaka, 16th
June, ’09. PTC&B
members will be pleased to know that the first issue of the 19th
volume of the journal PTC&B has appeared online today the 16th
of June. It consists of 117 pages with 12 articles including one short
communication. The proportion of molecular biology related article is one
third. In this issue the three articles that were published ahead of the
print have featured occupying the top of the contents in the order they
were submitted. If some of you have some outstanding research results to
report, you are welcome to submit those online. These selected articles
will be published online as soon as the reviewers clear them as worthy of
publications ahead of print.
Origins and the
recent swine-origin H1N1 influenza A epidemic
Dhaka 14th
June, ’09.The most recent global influenza outbreak resulted in death
of more than 150 individuals and spread into 30 countries. Although
commonly referred to as Swine Flu, the exact origin of
the virus remained a mystery till date. In a recently
published online
research paper in Nature, Smith et al (doi:10.1038/nature08182)
have determined the
swine-related origin of
the influenza virus (S-OIV) through evolutionary analysis. The study
revealed several interesting facts about current flu outbreak: current
H1N1 S-OIV strain was derived from several viruses circulating in the
swine population and the initial transmission to humans occurred
several months before the recognition of the outbreak. The authors
also set straight of the idea of the artificial origin of the virus,
explaining multiple genetic ancestries in terms of re-assortment of
different swine flu lineages in swine population years before human
transmission. Summarized by Mahdi Moosa (GEB, DU).
An Outstanding Finding In Biology: Turning Meiosis into Mitosis
Dhaka, the 11th June, 09.
Using the model plant, Arabidopsis thaliana Isabelle d’Erfurth and
associates affiliated to INRA, CNRS, and research Institute of Molecular
Pathology published their novel finding in the June issue
of an open access journal, PLoS Biology 7(6):1-10. Although it is
a long way to go the present finding paves the way to breeding of
true-to-type selected cereals and fruit plants through the process of
apomixis, i.e. without the intervention of meiosis. It may be mentioned
here that a meiotic division involves two successive divisions. In the
first, chromosomes are reduced from the diploid to haploid level and in
the second the chromosomes are divided as in a mitotic cell. These authors
isolated and characterized a gene, MiMe which in its mutated form
suppresses the first meiotic division. The discovery has a great potential
in applying this knowledge for bioengineering apomictic crops, fruits,
timber trees and selected grasses for fodder and other uses.
More in the original article.
A novel epigenetic pathway of aging
revealed
Dhaka 11th
June, ’09. Ageing and other developmental processes, such as
differentiation, apoptosis and gametogenesis, associate with
characteristic epigenetic changes at the cellular level, including DNA
methylation and histone post-translational modifications. Yet the
pathways which are affected by these changes were mostly unknown. In a
research article published in 11th June issue of Nature,
Dang et al report the role of Sir2 protein, a histone deacetylace, in
aging and suggest how the changes affect aging in yeast. Sir2
(silencing information regulator 2) is a member of sirtuin family of
histone acetylase/monoribosyl transferase. This protein establishes
and maintains silencing within yeast heterochromatin-like regions at
telomeres, ribosomal DNA (rDNA) and silenced mating-type loci by
removing H4 lysine 16 (H4K16) acetylation and bringing in other
silencing proteins. Dang et al’s study reveals that age associated
loss of Sir2 in replicatively old yeast cells increases in H4 lysine
16 acetylation and loss of histones at specific subtelomeric regions
which results in compromised transcriptional silencing at these loci.
This pathway, distinct from existing ageing models for yeast, may
represent an evolutionarily conserved function of sirtuins in
regulation of replicative ageing by maintenance of intact telomeric
chromatin.
Summarized by Mahdi Moosa (GEB, DU).
Food
and Agribusiness Management program seminar at Hyderabad, India
A 3-man delegate
represented by Professor Raka Hari Sarker at the Department of Botany
Department, DU, Mr Sulaiman Haider, Director, Dept of Environment,
Ministry of Forestry & Environment et al. are attending a
5-day long the Food and Agribusiness Management program seminar under the
sponsorship of USDA supported ABSPII. in Hyderabad city, India from 12-16
of June. 09. Prof. Sarker is expected to present the country paper at said
seminar.
GNOBB heartily congratulate
Dr. Hasan Siddiqui and his team.
5th June, 2009. GNOBB heartily congratulate
Dr. Hasan Siddiqui and his team for their recent publication in
the prestigious journal with high impact factor Mol Biol Cell and
Endocrinology. Those who are interested in cancer research will find the
articles very interesting. Pls click here for the articles.
link1 ,
link2 .
Bioinformatics and
statistical analyses of worldwide protistan diversity
30th May, 2009.A 36-months
post-doctoral research position is available at the Station Biologique de
Roscoff(CNRS/UPMC, France) to play a central role in the ANR project
POSEIDON
-PrOtiStan
EcologIcal bioDiversity in Tara-OceaNs.The
candidate will occupy a central position for generating and analyzing the
protistan genetic data from the 10 proposed open oceanic stations. She/he
will participate to the design of groupspecific primers and production of
PCR products for 454 sequencing, and will lead the statistical analyses of
the genetic data to explore their phylogenetic, biological, and ecological
significance. Experience with informatics languages for programming will
be appreciated. Knowledge in eukaryote systematics and protistology is
desirable but not essential. Pls
click here for details.
_________________________________________________________
GNOBB
heartily congratulate Professor Akhteruzzaman and his team.
26th May, 2009. GNOBB heartily congratulate
Professor Akhteruzzaman and his team for their recent publication in
Legal Medicine published by the Elsevier Group. The article entitled,
“Forensic evaluation of STR data for the PowerPlexTM 16 System loci in a
Bangladeshi population focuses on STR data based on a Bangladeshi
population.These data will be helpful in paternity tests and
identification of individuals in a Bangladeshi population.The article can
be viewed by clicking
here
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GNOBB
membership certificate is available now
May 24th, 2009 Some foreign universities give an extra credit to
applicants for admission in favor of extracurricular activity including
membership for an academic forum. After assessing the opinion of Forum
members,
it has been decided to issue membership certificate. On
clicking here, the sample of the certificate
may be viewed. The certificate, printed in color on an embossed paper will
be available on to those who have
paid the membership dues at least for a year equivalent to $10
(=Tk.700/-). While applying for the certificate, the member should write
his present address/affiliation so that the certificate can be mailed
to the addressee.
___________________________________________________
GNOBB heartily congratulate Dr Molla
for his recent publication.
GNOBB heartily congratulate Dr Molla for his
recent publication which appeared in one of the prestigious journals with
a good impact. The article is on Effect of arsenic on phytosiderophores
and mineral nutrition of barley seedlings grown in iron-depleted medium.
Furthermore Dr. Molla after having done his Ph.D. has joined
Iwate University in the
Department of the Biotic Environment.
Pls find the article by clicking
here
__________________________________________________________________
Bioinformatics Society Meets 23rd June to adopt
constitution
The newly formed the Bangladesh Bioinformatics Society will hold
its next meeting on the 27th
June, 09 to consider adoption of the draft of
the constitution by the learned body who will grace the
occasion by their presence. The meeting will start at 4:00 p.m.in the Cafeteria of the Centre
for Excellence, DU. Please click
here to read the draft of the proposed constitution. The meeting will
also elect an ad-hoc Executive Council which will hold office until the
first Annual General Meeting. The registration fee for the meeting to
cover expenses will be Tk 50/- only. 'The organizers further request
the news to be circulated as widely as possible by those interested in the
promotion of bioinformatics in the country.
GNOBB would like to heartily
congratulate the body which painstakinglly drafted the constitution and
wish the meeting a great success. The non-partisanship of the society
will for sure pave the way to the realization of its lofty goal and
raise its status to an international level backed by an internationally
acceptable journal to its credit."
________________________________________________________________
 Applications
are invited from meritorious Bangladeshis for the Kamaluddin Ahmad
Distinguished Graduate Scholarship
 |
May 18th, 2009 The University of Wisconsin, home of
one of the 10 highest-rated biochemistry programs in the United
States, has announced the establishment of the Kamaluddin Ahmad Distinguished Graduate
Scholarship. Ahmad’s children have created the Scholarship,
to honor his life and work, This expenses-paid scholarship is
intended for meritorious Bangladeshi students to pursue their PhD in
biochemistry at the |
|
University of
Wisconsin and thereby nurture a new generation of world-class
biochemists in Bangladesh. The first Kamaluddin Ahmad Distinguished
Graduate Scholar will begin studies in 2010. This generous
scholarship has been established at his alma mater in memory of
Professor Kamaluddin Ahmad, renowned scientist, teacher and
humanitarian who founded the departments of biochemistry and
pharmacy and the Institute of Nutrition and Food Sciences at Dhaka
University This prestigious scholarship is targeted individuals who
have received their B.Sc Honors (1st Class) and M.Sc.(1st Class) in
biochemistry, molecular biology, microbiology, chemistry, or
molecular engineering. (Academically accomplished candidates from
other scientific disciplines will also be considered). Applicants
must have satisfactorily completed courses in biology, chemistry,
biochemistry, genetics, physics, organic chemistry, and physical
chemistry. This scholarship is open to deserving students of any
background regardless of gender, creed or economic condition.
APPLICATION DEADLINE is 15 JULY 2009. Pls click here to
see the full
anouncement and download
the application form. |
_______________________________________________________________________
‘Bangla Moti'- Bangladeshi version
of ‘Basmati Rice’ to be released in 2012
May 15, ’09. Produced by
BRRI, 'Bangla Moti'- a new variety of high quality aromatic rice
has successfully passed through the experimental stage. By 2012 the
variety produced for ‘polao’ is expected to be
marketed. It is also known as BRRI-50, the serial number by which a new
variety of BRRI is christened.
Basmoti is an Indian variety of
aromatic rice very popular in Bangladesh for ‘polao’ cooked on many social- and festive
occasions by people of all sections, rich and poor alike. The Bangladesh
Government has launched an ambitious project of making this variety
available not only for local market at a price within the reach of common
man but also for export purposes outside the country. More..
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BAS-USDA
PALS invites Project Concept Paper (PCP) on research proposals
7th May, 2009.Under the BAS-USDA Endowment Fund,
the Bangladesh Academy of Sciences (BAS) and the United States Department
of Agriculture (USDA) are implementing the BAS-USDA Program in
Agricultural and Life Sciences (PALS) with focus on solving problems of
food security, poverty alleviation and sustainable agriculture. The
BAS-USDA PALS invites Project Concept Paper (PCP) on research proposals
with clear objectives for funding the research Program. The Project
Concept Paper must address a topic that falls under one or more of the
priority research areas and the
proposal must reach the office of BAS on or before 31st of May,
09
Grants will be made to the research proposals
specified within the priority areas and selected by the Technical Advisory
Committee (TAC) of the BAS-USDA PALS. Read the
invitation letter both by clicking here and the ad shown on the
right. __________________________
Important Potato Breeding in India against the
deadly late blight disease: the
lead article in the May issue of SABP World wide loss of
potato duce to late blight disease is about $ 3 billion. In India the loss
is to the tune of almost $ 3 million in certain years. Solanum demissum
a wild hexaploid relative of potato is the source of the
resistant RB gene resistant gene against late blight. Dr. S. K.
Chatterjee in the lead article entitled, “Transgenic potato for
ecofriendly management of late blight in India in the May issue of SABP
article has shown how the Shimala team under his guidance has been
able to contain the deadly disease by introducing the RB resistant
gene in the cultivar Kufri Jyoti from the male parent SP 951 containing
the resistant gene from S. demissum. The project is being
partly financed by Agricultural Bioechnology Support
Project, USA. This month’s pick of the Cream of the Web Crop is on an
ambitious project, “Grand
Challenges in Global Health.” Pls click here for
the newsletter
RNAi World
Congress at Boston, Maryland on 14 15 of May 10th May, '09. Few branches
of molecular biology have expanded so fast as the field of RNAi. It
will not be an exaggeration if this new branch is described mainly as the
product of 21st century. Its application in medicine
particularly in the area of cancer biotechnology, gene therapy and
in agriculture has stretched out far beyond imagination
necessitating the holding of a World Congress on the 14th
and 15th of May in Boston, Maryland, USA. Seventeen experts
from prestigious institutions will speak on a wide range of topics. It
will be a good idea for interested GNOBB members living in nearby areas to
attend some of the talks of their interest. Read the
program ____________________________________________________________
Let's Not Waste Waste - An article of general interest and
also to biotechnologists in the DS Dhaka
the 7th May, 2009. CALL me naïve, but I
am a strong believer that the fate of our country lies in the hands of
each one of us. The citizen need not be highly educated; however, the
highly educated and well-to-do definitely have more responsibility towards
the country. The latter need a change in mind-set and should start
thinking of "not what the country can give her/him but what he/she can
give to the country."
I also think that this mind-set cannot come
naturally -- it has to be taught, ingrained and repeatedly pushed down
every citizen's throat until "country comes first" becomes a part of our
nature. And this process has to start right from kindergarten. We should
also be taught to think positively, to learn not to think of what problems
we have but to think of finding solutions to those. Read the entire article and
make your comments ______________
Monsanto's Beachell-Borlaug
International
Scholars Program 5h May, 2009.Monsanto
Company Commits $10
Million to Rice and Wheat Research Program Monsanto Company
announced a $10 million grant to establish Monsanto's Beachell-Borlaug
International Scholars Program, which will help identify and support young
scientists interested in improving research and production in rice and
wheat, two of the world's most important staple crops, through plant
breeding techniques. Students
interested in applying to the program can find more details only
a click away.
_________________________
Bangladesh Academy of
Sciences is retrievable on a different URL.
4th May, 2009. Some
members of the Yahoo Group of Young Biotechnologists have inquired whether
BAS has changed its website. A recent inquiry from the General
Secretary, BAS has revealed that indeed it has a new website (click on the two words to
the left). It has also a page listing all
the fellowships offered by different Academic Organizations
under bilateral agreement such as between BAS and TWAS. Comments by a GNOBB member
from Australia _________________________
3rd May,
2009.Three recently
published in Molecular Biology in Plant & Soil, Nature and
PNAS
The recent issue of
International Service for Acquisition of Agri-Biotech
applications gives summary and
reference to three recently published articles from CropBiotech
Update. The three articles are: a) Rhizobia
Confers Aphid Resistance in Soybean; b) Herbicide-Tolerant Crops without the Foreign
Genes;
c) Scientists Develop Multivitamin-Fortified
Corn. The last
paper published in PNAS is
relevant to conditions prevailing in countries such as Bangladesh.
The
transgenic South African white maize variety developed by biolistic gun
expresses the crtI gene from the bacterium Erwinia producing
169 X b-carotene, dhar gene from rice for production of six X more
ascorbate and folE from E. coli for twice folate level
compared to the control. These three traits have been
transmitted faithfully for five
generations. 100 g of kernels of this bioengineered maize variety provides adequate
daily requirement of these three essential vitamins. In the Herbicide
tolerant tobacco variety article in Nature shows how the
scientists have succeeded to alter the genomic structure to confer
herbicide tolerance by
targeting endogenous plant genes, namely, the tobacco
acetolactate synthase genes (ALS SuRA and SuRB). The
authors have demonstrated that targeted sequence changes in endogenous
plant genes is a possibility thereby opening an avenue of research in
which use of toxic antibiotics can be avoided for transormation. In the
Rhizobia article in Plant and Soil the
authors have shown that certain strains of Rhizobium can confer
resistance against aphid attack. However, the authors have made it clear
that it's the beginning and it's a long way to go to isolate the
particular strain of Rhizobum and use it to
bioengineer
the desired soybean cultivars resistant to aphids which
destroys 60% of the crop when
the infestation is heavy. _________________________________
 |
 Dr. Faruq |
ICDDR,B bags IDB
1,00,000 USD Prize to promote their collaborative research:
left are the two key figures |
28th April, '09. The President of the
Islamic Development Bank (IDB) has recently
informed ICDDR,B that the institution has been selected to receive the
IDB Science & Technology Award for 2009. GNOBB need hardly to
emphasize the fact that this
International Institute has already earned worldwide recognition for its
internationally acceptable quality research and year round publications in
prestigious journals such as PNAS. It’s also an awesome difficult task to put all the inputs by different
sections of the institute
collectively and piece them together to get the application ready for
submission within the deadline. The award carries a prize money of
US$100,000 and a
certificate. ____________________________ HSP Huygens Scholarship for MSc in Biomolecular Science at
VU Amsterdam 28th April,
'09. Mahdi Moosa is a familiar name in
GNOBB circle. An MS in Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, he has
been contributing summaries of articles containing contemporary
advancement in the field of molecular biology and biotechnology. GNOBB
feel happy to announce that he has been recently awarded a HSP
Huygens Scholarship
for doing M.Sc. in Biomolecular Science at VU Amsterdam. We wish him
all the best and Godspeed. ______________________________ The Daily Star witnesses another article entitled, Green
Technology by Prof. Azad
.28th April, '09. ..the production of
environment-friendly bio-fertilizers, biogas, bio-fuels, biological pest
control agents, and electricity from solar energy and biogas, would lead
to industrialization in regional areas and employment opportunities for
the rural and urban poor. The elected local governments could drive this
new green revolution with the support of the departrment of industry and
NGOs already involved in alternative energy projects. These initiatives
could be kick-started by allocations from the interim stimulus package,
and further developed through public-private partnerships. Read the
article.... _____________________________ Heartiest Congratulations to Dr Nagib
for two of his Recent Joint Publications Dhaka 26th April, '09. GNOBB offer their heartiest
congratulations to its member, Dr. Nagib Ahsan for two of his recent
publications shown below. For the information of our members, one of the
journals, namely, Mass
Spectrometry Reviews has an impact factor above 10 (10.896).
Since 2000 this journal is at the top in the field of
Spectroscopy Komatsu S, Ahsan N. Soybean
proteomics and its application to functional
analysis. J Proteomics. 2009,
72:325-36. Renaut J, Bohler S, Hausman JF, Hoffmann L,
Sergeant K, Ahsan N, et al., The
impact of atmospheric composition on plants: A case study of ozone and
poplar. Mass Spectrom Rev. 2008,
28:495-516 _______________________________ What goes Wrong between Lab Research and
their Industrial Applications! 10th
April, '09. A highly placed NRB
in the USA, Dr. Syed Ashrafuddin Ahmed comments on "Stop
trifling with biotechnology", an article, published some time back in
the Daily Star. Supporting the theme of said article, he narrated similar
instance about canned 'Hilsha' fish successfully developed by Dr. Fazle
Rabbi and his associates at BCSIR and scaled up on a semi-commercial scale
in mid 1970's. years have passed by since then. During this period of over
30 years this product is neither exported nor locally marketed. The
same thing can be said about BJRI's jute products. Some excellent material
for curtain is available. If not for their homes, at least for their main
and subordinate offices the material can be used by Ministries, also at
local, district and upazila level patronizing the product;
similarly jute blankets can be purchased for army and police barracks.
This appeal made by BJRI year after year is ignored by the concerned
authorities. There is a saying that charity begins at home. If we do not
patronize our products who else will! We hope that the present regime will
look into the matter to fill up the gap between research
results and their end users to realize its dream of 'Vision 2021' Pl
read Dr. Ashraf's
letter and make your comments even if you think that we have reached
the point of no return.
_____________________________________________
Biotechnological Research in BD Agricultural Research Institute
(BARI)
April 21st, 2009. The
article entitled,”Biotechnological Research
activities
at BARI by Dr. Md.
Al-Amin, Principal
Scientific Officer, Biotechnology Division
in the April issue of SABP gives
a graphic description of what
has been achieved so far in
the entire field from micropropagation of various horticultural and
ornamental plants, virus free Potato seed tubers through meristem culture,
genetic transformation of various crops such as nine BARI-developed eggplant varieties incorporating
Bt gene and Cardinal and
Diamont potato varieties incorporating RB
gene which confers resistance against late blight caused by
Phytophthora infestans developed
by BARI with the financial assistance of USAID and FAO and technical
support of Cornell University, USA. The other main features of the
Newsletter, besides Calendar of Events displaying the coming months are
“Cream of (Web) Events” describing a well organization called, Generation
Challenge Program. The
objective of the organization is Networking of partners from Advanced
Research Institutes and National research programs collectively working to
improve crop productivity in drought-prone environments. It also has
several sub-programs. Read the
newsletter. ______________________________
BD
Bioinformatics Society formed: June 23rd Meeting to consider
the constitution 14th April, ’09. Chaired by Professor Haseena
Khan at DMB, Dhaka University, the scheduled meeting convened by Professor
Saleheen Qadri to consider
the formation of Bangladesh Bioinformatics Society was held on the
9th of April at 4 p.m. at the Centre of Excellence. DU. It was
a well-attended meeting. Those who could not attend offered their apology
while supporting the formation of such an association. An
ad hoc committee with Prof Dr. Syed Saleheen Qadri as the Convener has been entrusted
with the task of drafting the constitution of the Society. Other
members of the subcommittee are: Prof. Haseena Khan, Dr. Abdur Rhaman
Sikder, Dr. Manjurul Karim and Mr. Sohel Shamsuzzaman. The draft is to be circulated by email
two weeks ahead of time
to members of the subcommittee for the next meeting scheduled to be
held on 23 June 2009 to consider the draft constitution. _____________________________ An Extremely Useful Site for
Active Research Worker Dhaka
21 Jan, '09.GNOBB member,
Dr. Ariful Haque
a postdoctoral fellow in
ICGEB, Trieste whose specialization is in CERES elements that take part in
the splicing regulation process of CFTR exon 9 and exon
12, provides information about an
extremely useful website
maintained by
the Oxford University
Journals. This site summarizes the services provided
by INASP, HINARI:, AGORA, OARE:, TEERAL: and eIFL as follows: INASP: The International Network
for the Availability of Scientific Publications collaborates with
publishers in the developed world to facilitate access to research within
developing and countries. More. …
_____________________________________________ . Nine Years Ago,
this Poem was presented before the BAPTC&B Intl.
Conference. Dhaka 5th Sept.,'08. The Poem, captioned, "Some
Thoughts to Ponder Over as We Cross to the 21st Century" was presented
before the Third Intl Conference in Tissue Culture and Biotechnology nine
years ago. The situation stands now exactly as it was in December 1999.Pl read the Poem. ___________________________________ What is a Gene? History and Updated
Definition. Austin, March 15,
'08. An open access article is available under
the title, “What is a gene, post-ENCODE? History and updated
definition,” published
in Genome Res. 17: 669-681 (2007),
written by ten experts, eight belonging to different departments at Yale
University, one of the ten at Stockholm University and the other at
European
Molecular Biology Laboratory, Germany. Describing the gene as
conceived in pre- and post-Mendelian era until the discovery of the
Structure and Function of a DNA molecule, the article elucidates the
changing definition of a gene pointing out that the
classical concept that
genotype determines phenotype still hold good and has not changed over time and that
at the molecular level one DNA sequence still codes for one protein or
RNA: which means that DNA sequences determine the sequences
of functional
molecules.. A part of the
concluding paragraph quoted from Falk is reproduced here: ‘‘. . . the gene is neither discrete nor continuous, nor does it have a
constant location, nor a clear cut function, not even constant
sequences nor definite borderlines.” And now the ENCODE
project has increased the complexity still further. In
the most general case, genes can be defined “consisting of sequence modules that
combine in multiple ways to generate products. By focusing
on the functional products of the
genome, this definition
sets a concrete standard in enumerating unambiguously the
number of genes it contains.” Click here to read the whole article.
______________________
________________________________________
(SEE ARCHIVE below for viewing your or
your friends' earlier publications.) _____________________________ Condolence Messages and
Important News including donor list on Late Md. Shahabuddin. (See
archive below in this page) ______________________________ Watch an Awe-Inspiring Video on Cell
Functioning Austin Oct 2, '06. We have enjoyed this animated video describing
the intricate highly complex processes that go on inside a cell. The
animation is awesome and soul inspiring. We wish that the video had an
audio description to make it more vivid to the viewers. Click the
title. _________________________ Air
Your Views before the Next Meeting of the NECB
(See archives below in this
page) _________________________ Viet Nam's Progress to Establish Millennium Institute
in their Country Austin Sept. 12. The PPT presentation on
MSI establishment in Viet Nam should be an eye opener to us. A
well-planned and well thought-out proposal was submitted last
year. Please view the presentation and air
your views as to what should be our modus operandi in the establishment of
such an institute in Bangladesh. ________________________________________
An Article of Interest to GNOBB Readers and
well-wishers Austin July 4, 2006. Right from the
launch of GNOBB, its members have been expressing a keen interest
about promoting and further strengthening molecular biology
activity related both basic and applied sides in the country. Although not
directly related, attached is an article on this issue. Please click here or the Title
to retrieve it. If you endorse the idea, pl write
about it in any dailies of your choice, English or Bengali. Pl click here to read the comments of Professor
Ahmed Azad on the creation of the NRB Ministry. His comments
appeared on the 18th July edition of the Daily Star. _________________________________ "DNA
and the Brain" - Nobel Laureate James Watson speaks at Google
Rally Austin June 26,
2006. GNOBB readers
may be interested to see a video entitled, “DNA and the Brain” where
one of the two discoverers of DNA, Nobel Laureate James Watson, Chancellor
of Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory speaks at a Google rally on April
20. The video has been provided by the CSHL Net-Letter June 2006 Edition. The latter
half of the talk is devoted to autism and the prospect of
a cure in the near future, as more and more information are
unraveled on characterizing genes and their base sequence located in
chromosome 15 (segment 15q11-13 ) and possibly 7. It takes quite
sometime to download the video. So pl. do not give up until the video
starts playing for you. You will enjoy the talk punctuated by a lot of
witty remarks such as he couldn’t get admission into the university of his
first choice. http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-8220394453782681101&q=watson
_________________________
Would You Like to Join the Forum? It is
Easy! You can view your profile
on the GNOBB website immediately after it's moderated. Click here to view the
Form. We have great pleasure in informing
existing members that you can update your profile by adding new
information including replacing your latest publication with one of the
earlier ones. [We only allow a maximum of
five of your publications.] However, you cannot leave any
column blank. Whatever information was provided earlier should also
be furnished. Since there would be only ONE entry for each Forum
member, the moderator will delete the old one. That is the reason why your
new profile page will remain incomplete, if you keep some columns
empty. What is time-saving of the new arrangement is that as soon as one
clicks the submit button, it is
automatically uploaded and the name is listed in an alphabetical order in
the section, "Member's profile" after the moderator okays it. One
could retrieve important information also immediately about the new
participant using the box marked "search scientist" on the top
right hand side of the home
page. _______________________________________
GNOBB Membership strength is now 353
Dhaka May 03, ’09. In the
last two months 10 more members joined the GNOBB
forum. We welcome 10 new members. and hope their
participation to the forum will enrich by their valuable contribution.
They are : Dr. Mohammad
Al-Mamun, Mst.
Khaton, Md. Shaik,
Md Nazmul
Bhuiyan, sabina
yesmin, Ahmad Humayan
Kabir, M A Yousuf
Akhond, Ferdous
Seraj.
The
immediate earlier period
witnessed the participation of Dr. Sharif
Akhteruzzaman, Professor, Department of Biochemistry and
Molecular Biology, DU, Md. Abdul
Karim, Assistant Professor, Ehime University,
Japan, Md. Golam
Sharoar, Md Mahmudur
Rahman and Md.Shahidul
Islam.
During the end part of the last year 16 members joined
GNOBB. The members are Partha
Pratim Dhar, Dr.
Md Badrul Hasan, Mohammad
Nurul Islam, Muhammad
Hoque, Md.
Maruf Hassan, S.M.Minhaz
Ud-Dean, Md. Montasir
Elahi, Md. Riajul
Hossain, Firoz
Anwar, Md. Rafiqul
Islam, Fardous Mohammad
Safiul Azam and nazneen
Rahman Those who joined earlier were: Abu Ashfaqur
Sajib, Manujendra,
Narayan Saha, S. M. Nashir
Udden, Sumaiya Farah
Khan, Dibyendu
Biswas, Subroto
Das, Ehsan
Uddin and Muhammad
Islam. Of them seven are M.S working in the BD Universities and Dr Saha is a Ph.D from Dept. of Virology and
Preventive Medicine, Gunma University Graduate School of Medicine, Gunma,
Japan and now working as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow, at the Dept. of
Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology, University of Toronto, Ontario,
Canada. Click the individual link to know more about the new
members.
What a profound joy to discover that talented young
scientists of our country are
either pursuing higher
studies in prestigious institutes or working there as postdoctorals
or research associates all over the world. One such new member is Dr. Md.
Taufiq-ur-Rahman. An M.Pharm from DU, M.S in Molecular Pharmacology from
University of Manchester, UK, he did his Ph.D. in Natural sciences
from University of Cambridge, UK. After his postdoctoral in Department of
Pharmacology, University of Cambridge, UK he is now employed as a Research
Associate in the same department. The other is Ms Munia Amin. Ms
Amin is doing MRes in Life science in the College of Medicine &
Veterinary medicine studentship in the University of Edinburgh. Her plan
is to do Ph.D. in cancer genetics. The other recent members are Mr. SM Kaisar
Shikder, Mr.
Ahmad Humayan Kabir, Mr. M. Nazrul
Islam and Dr. MWhile Mr. Kaisar, an MS in
Entomology is an Assistant
Information Officer (crop production, Mr. Humayan is a Masters Student in
Molecular Biology at the University of Skövde and Stockholm University,
Sweden, Mr, Nazrul Islam, an M.Sc. in Microbiology is a senior Research
Officer in ICDDR,B.
To view the rest
of recently archived members please. click here ___________________________
Archive Contents Austin Nov. 11,
'05. In order for the members to look for previous postings, they have
been archived under different headings. For making the archived news
items more user-friendly, any suggestions are most welcome. Click
the section/s to find out the news item you are interested in. __________________________________________
The June Issue of
SABP Newsletter is now available
Dhaka, 20th
June. An article
entitled, Biotechnology Activities in Bangladesh Rice Research Institute
by Dr. Md. Shamsher Ali features the June issue of SABP
Newsletter. Dr Ali heads the Division of Biotechnology, BRRI. He has
described the outstanding achievements of BRRI in the
development of as many as 50 varieties and the contribution of his
division towards its attainment through application of anther culture and
transformation technology. GNOBB take this opportunity to congratulate
heartily this great organization and its pioneer and present workers.
Among the notable events one is the Agrigenomics World Congress in London
on the 2nd and 3rd July. The department of Mol.
Biol., Dar es Salaam University, Michigan University,
National Centre for GEB, Bangkok, South Asian Regional Centre for Graduate
Study and Res. in Agric (SEARCA) and ISAAA are hosting a number
conferences on different aspects of Biotechnology, including socioeconomic
and Environmental impact Assessment of Biotech crops, Knowledge management
in Biotechnology Transfer and Adoption in South East Asia.
This month's "Cream
of the Crop is,"GMO
Safety. Pls find the newsletter
here
_________________________________________
For the past issues of SABP and
December issue of ABSPII Newsletters (See
Newsletter section under Archive
Contents)
*Are GM Crops more dangerous
than planting mutanized varieties or growing exotic horticulture plants or
population of wide
crosses? __________________________ *** View an Animated Tour through the Process of
RNA Interference RNA Interference is the talk of the day in
the world of molecular Biology. However, many of us do not have an in
depth conception about what it is. For GNOBB viewers RNA Interference Quick Time Movie is presented
through the courtesy of Nature (www.nature.com). The
animation was specially created for Nature Reviews by Arkitek
Studios. Enjoy the Movie by clicking the Title. Pl. click the word
in blue font to download the Quicktime to view the movie.
________________________________________________________
Objectives of GNOBB A little more than a year ago many
of us working in the multitude of fields of biotechnology felt that it was
high time that we have had our own website giving consolidated
formation regarding our activity on the following lines: a) where we are
working; b). in which area of biotechnology; c) major findings listing
a maximum of 5 most significant publications; d) current and
future program of the scholar e) email, website (if any) and postal
addresses with a passport size photograph (in JPEG). We
thought we would all benefit from such information in as much we would be
in a position to establish contact/liaison with fellow brothers/sisters
working in the same area. We also thought that it might be possible for us
to use this medium as a forum to express our views on important
issues such as GM crops, vaccine biotechnology, transgenic animals,
poultry and diagnostic kits and may be able to advise the
Government in important matters regarding various facets of
biotechnology. We feel extremely happy to report to the community that the
forum which we have named, "Global Network of Bangladeshi
Biotechnologists" which is in short GNOBB (www.gnobb.org), is
marching forward toward achieving the goal which it set at the time of
launching the forum. beginning October last week
2004. "Prothom Alo", one of the leading Bengali Dailies
(http://www.prothom-alo.com) published from Dhaka has
congratulated GNOBB on the occasion of its first anniversary. Click here to read the English translation of the
featured article. Future Prospect of GNOBB: The
Biotechnology community do not have the overall picture as to how
many Bangladeshi are working overseas in biotechnology related areas and
what contribution they have been making in these fields. So a
well planned website, giving relevant information on the line suggested
above will go a long way towards the utilization of expertise of
Bangladeshi expatriates towards launching any united effort to bring
important issues to the attention to of the Government of Bangladesh and
public. Expatriates will also benefit by knowing their counterparts
by exchanging views with them. ________ Scope for advanced studies
overseas leading to higher degrees: One of the aims of this website will be to post from
time to time such important pieces of information so that more and more
students from Bangladesh can avail of the opportunities that are offered
by various overseas universities. (Click Fellowship section.) For scientists below 30 years of age. Please
find out whether any of the scholarships listed in the website
is suitable for
you. ________________
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