We give them complete mentorship
IN a special programme to help industry, the Department of Biotechnology (DBT) has created Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Programme …
'There is a conflict in gene patenting in India and abroad'
ASIS DUTTA, a senior biologist at the Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, is the first Indian scientist to have applied for a gene patent in …
'In genetics, the ethical choice lies with the people'
A professor of molecular biology and virology at the Salk Institute at La Jolla, USA, Dr Inder M Verma is also the chairperson of the Scientific …
'The world's entire gene-pool is open for manipulation'
INDRA VASIL was one of the first scientists to successfully manipulate wheat plants using genetic engineering techniques. Before he came in, …
The many ways of GM contamination
Doug Gurian-Sherman, a senior scientist in the food and environment programme at the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS), is among the most …
Chhattisgarh will not allow GM crops
Chandrasekhar Sahu, agriculture minister of Chhattisgarh, is passionate about making farming a viable proposition for farmers. He has written …
Will the boom last?
Fifteen years after it rose and went limp, the biotech sector, globally, as well as in India has seen a bull run of sorts. In January this year, …
GM crop benefits are all in future
Nearly 40 years ago, Marc Van Montagu of Ghent University in Belgium, along with fellow researcher Jeff Schell, discovered that Agrobacterium …
Solving poverty
Gurdev S Khush is the principal plant breeder in the Plant breeding, genetics and biochemistry division of the International Rice Research …
‘Stopping GM trials is anti-farmer’
Genetically modified (GM) mustard hybrid DMH-11 developed by Delhi University’s Centre for Genetic Manipulation of Crop Plants ran into …
Biotechnology for food security: hope over hype
A range of biotechnological approaches, including both traditional ones like selective breeding and fermentation techniques, and modern ones such …
Biomining and bacteria
Microorganisms are proving to be cheaper, more efficient and cleaner at ore extraction than conventional mining techniques
Kamikaze microbes
And now genetically-altered microorganisms that self-destruct once they've fulfilled their mission
Hot springs harbour microbial diversity
Untapped bacterial cultures from Unkeshwar hot springs on the bank of river Penganga in Maharashtra are being studied for their metabolic use in …
The oracle of biotechnology
The film establishes incontrovertibly that no other region of science has raised as many hackles as biotechnology
New theory explains the evolution of sexes
An Oxford biologist says sexes exist to prevent chaos within cells during reproduction. And why only two sexes? Because life would get too …
Light ahoy!
Bioluminescence throws light on replacing existing methods to detect microbial contamination by a faster and cheaper process
The roachmobile
Researchers are teaching insects how to drive. This can lead to a wheelchair that can be controlled by twitching a muscle or two
Yeast genes spring surprise on scientists
Chromosome III in yeast, the first to have its DNA fully described, opened up a wealth of new genes whose functions are completely unknown
Problems with bio-safety
Concerns about the world's indigenous peoples were conveniently sidelined as bio-safety centrestage at the recent biodiversity meeting in Nassau
Talking green
BIOTECHNOLOGY IN AGRICULTURE - A DIALOGUE -Edited by M S Swaminathan . Macmillian . Madras . 1992 Price: Rs 320
Europeans and Biotechnology in 2002 - Eurobarometer 58.0 (2nd Edition: March 21st 2003)
The Eurobarometer Survey measures the awareness and concerns of Europeans on important environmental issues. The fifth edition of the survey, …
‘BRAI will benefit both private and public sectors’
Introduction of the Biotechnology Regulatory Authority of India (BRAI) Bill has brought cheers to the agri-biotechnology industry that was facing …
Researchers develop transgenic rice with reduced arsenic accumulation
Lucknow-based CSIR-National Botanical Research Institute researchers developed transgenic rice by inserting a novel fungal gene, which results in …
Bacteria can breakdown biodiesel waste into useful products
Indian scientists have developed a technique to breakdown glycerol into commercially-useful products using bacterial strains