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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The June Issue of SABP Newsletter is now available

Dhaka, 20^th 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 2^nd and 3^rd 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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19^th volume of the journal PTC&B has appeared online today

Dhaka, 16^th June, ’09. PTC&B members will be pleased to know that the first issue of the 19^th volume of the journal PTC&B has appeared online today the 16^th 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.

An Outstanding Finding In Biology: Turning Meiosis into Mitosis

Dhaka, the 11^th 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 11^th 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 11^th 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 .

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.

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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.

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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

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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.

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‘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.
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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 21^st 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 14^th and 15^th 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
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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
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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. 

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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
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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....
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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
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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.

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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.
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BD Bioinformatics Society formed: June 23^rd Meeting to consider the constitution
14^th 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 9^th 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.
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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. …

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 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.
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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.

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.
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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
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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.
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The June Issue of SABP Newsletter is now available

Dhaka, 20^th 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 2^nd and 3^rd 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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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?
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*** 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.
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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.
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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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