SGRF ORGANIZES 6TH EDITION OF INDIA ’ S LARGEST GENOMICS CONFERENCE
Organized by SciGenom Research Foundation , the sixth annual international conference titled “ NextGen Genomics , Biology , Bioinformatics and Technologies ( NGBT )” is being held from October 3-5 , 2016 in Cochin , India .
Dr Oommen V Oommen , Chairman , Kerala State Biodiversity Board , India was the Chief Guest for the conference along with Mr . Kris Gopalakrishnan , Executive Vice Chairman , Infosys India who was the Guest of Honour and shared learning ’ s from his experience .
This year , the co-hosts for the NGBT meeting include Tata Institute of Fundamental Research ( Biology Department ), Mumbai , India ; The Centre for the Commercialization of Antibodies and Biologics ( CCAB ) and The Toronto Recombinant Antibody Centre ( TRAC ), Toronto , Canada ; Institute of Bioinformatics ( IOB ), Bengaluru , India and Tamil Nadu Agricultural University ( TNAU ), Coimbatore , India .
Mr Sam Santhosh , Promoter of SGRF ( SciGenom Research Foundation ), a non-profit organization with the objective of spreading scientific education in the country emphasized the importance Next Generation Sequencing Genomics to the participants at the conference . The Conference has interesting sessions like Genomics in healthcare , Plant , Insect Biology and Genomics , NexGen Sequencing , ( NGS ) data analysis solution etc .
YOSHINORI OHSUMI GETS NOBEL PRIZE IN MEDICINE FOR HIS WORK ON AUTOPHAGY
The Nobel Assembly at Karolinska Institutet has decided to award the 2016 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine to Yoshinori Ohsumi for his discoveries of mechanisms for autophagy . This year ' s Nobel Laureate discovered and elucidated mechanisms underlying autophagy , a fundamental process for degrading and recycling cellular components .
The word autophagy originates from the Greek words auto- , meaning " self ", and phagein , meaning " to eat ". Thus , autophagy denotes " self eating ". This concept emerged during the 1960 ' s , when researchers first observed that the cell could destroy its own contents by enclosing it in membranes , forming sack-like vesicles that were transported to a recycling compartment , called the lysosome , for degradation . Difficulties in studying the phenomenon meant that little was known until , in a series of brilliant experiments in the early 1990 ' s , Yoshinori Ohsumi used baker ' s yeast to identify genes essential for autophagy . He then went on to elucidate the underlying mechanisms for autophagy in yeast and showed that similar sophisticated machinery is used in our cells .
ENSURING AFFORDABLE GENERIC MEDICINES IN NORTH EAST INDIA
The union government will soon take steps to open about 84 Jan Aushadhi Stores in the North Eastern state of Arunachal Pradesh . In this regard , the Minister of State for Chemicals and Fertilizers , Mr Mansukh Mandaviya inaugurated Arunachal Pradesh ’ s first Pradhan Mantri Jan Aushadhi Store recently at Naharlagun , Itanagar . Chief Minister of Arunachal Pradesh , Mr Pema Khandu also shared the dais on the occasion where an agreement was signed between Health and Family Welfare Department of Arunachal Pradesh and Bureau of Pharma PSUs of India ( BPPI ), an agency under Department of Pharmaceuticals , Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers .
The Government has decided to open 3,000 Stores under Pradhan Mantri Jan Aushadhi Yojana ( PMJAY ) during 2016-2017 and to reinvigorate the supply of generic drugs . Jan Aushadhi scheme is being implemented in the country through Bureau of Pharma PSUs of India ( BPPI ) under the administrative control of Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers . 423 Jan Aushadhi Stores are functional across the country .
EXPERTS FROM 13 NATIONS DISCUSS BIOSAFETY REGULATIONS
Thirteen nations are participating in the South Asia Biosafety Conference ( SABC ) at Hyderabad , to share international experience amongst scientists and regulators in biotechnology , environmental risk assessment and biosafety regulation in South Asia . The threeday annual event that opened on September 19th and concludes today , covered wide-ranging topics being covered in biotechnology research and development apart from biosafety .
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In her opening address , Additional Secretary , Environment Ministry and Chairperson , Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee ( GEAC ), Dr Amita Prasad , said that India has a robust regulatory framework for ensuring biosafety of all types of genetically engineered organisms under the Environment ( Protection ) Act , 1986 . She pointed out that these regulations are supported by a series of guidelines to deal with various aspects .
In his keynote address , Vice President , National Academy of Agricultural Sciences ( NAAS ), Dr Anupam Verma , emphasized that the modern world is facing enormous challenges to achieve food security . In the backdrop of increasing demand for food , dwindling natural resources and increasing biotic and abiotic stresses as a result of intensification of agriculture and climate change , the world has no option , but to accelerate utilization of the available and emerging technologies for improving world food production .
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