The government
proposes to create dedicated facility for research in structural
biology. It has long been felt that the existing facilities
are not adequate for wider research in the field. Today, among
all scientific disciplines, Indian structural biologists have
a pride of place at the international level. This information
was given by the Secretary, Department of Science & Technology
Prof. V S Ramamurthy at the international meet and World Science
Festival currently under-session here. The festival and the
meet has been organised to mark the Golden Jubilee of the DNA
Double Helix discovery. About 140 large-scale genome sequencing
projects of a number of microbes, plants and animals are underway
and several of them are expected to be completed by the year
end.
The Minister for
Human Resource Development and Science & Technology Dr.
Murli Manohar Joshi who has asked Prof. Ramamurthy to put up
a proposal for the dedicated facility, said at the meet/festival
that the combination of genomic and proteomic studies results
in a synergy that can shed light on the fundamental processes
of life. He said the use of DNA discovery should be for the
benefit of mankind and ethical questions must be kept in mind,
while undertaking genetic manipulation and especially careful
while attempting human cloning.
In a message to
the festival, Dr. James D. Watson wishing every success for
the international dialogue on the observance of the 50th
year of "DNA Double Helix", expressed the confidence that while
working through and manipulating the sequences of the A, T,
G & C letters of the DNA, we may increasingly understand
life at the molecular level. This knowledge must be used to
improve the quality of human life, he said.
Dr. Watson and
Dr. Francis Crick discovered the Double Helix structure of DNA
in 1953, bringing about a revolution in biological science.
With this, the direct manipulation of genetic traits became
a possibility. Deciphering of the human genome, decoding of
rice genome sequencing and development of a wide range of genetically
engineered plants, animals, micro-organisms as well as new generation
vaccines and diagnostics are a direct consequence of this great
discovery, popularly called the ‘resonance of two minds’.
