5^th Annual South Asia Biosafety Conference

Plenary Session I: Regulation and Capacity Building Initiatives in South Asia

September 11, 2017

Chair: Dr. D.B.T. Wijeratne, Food and Agriculture Organization, Sri Lanka

Update on Biosafety Regulation in Bangladesh
Ms. Papia Sultana, Department of Environment, Bangladesh

Update on the Bhutanese Biosafety Regulatory System
Mr. Jambay Dorji, Bhutan Agriculture and Food Regulatory Authority (BAFRA), Bhuta

Update on Risk Assessment of GE Plants in India
Dr. K. Veluthambi, Madurai Kamaraj University, India

Biosafety Regulations in Sri Lanka: An Update
Ms. Surani Pathirana, Ministry of Mahaweli Development and Environment, Sri Lanka

The Current State of GMO Regulation in New Zealand: Recent Decisions, Changes to Regulations, and Other New Developments
Dr. Timothy Strabala, Environmental Protection Authority, New Zealand

Plenary Session II: Crop Biotechnology and Biosafety in South Asia

September 11, 2017

Chair: Dr. R.H. Sarker, University of Dhaka, Bangladesh

Enhanced Performance of Sugarcane Transgenics Under Water Limited Conditions and its Biosafety Considerations
Dr. C. Appunu, ICAR-Sugarcane Breeding Institute, India

In planta Transformation Following Cloning of Na+/H+ Antiporter Gene in Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) to Develop Salinity Stress Tolerant Variety
Dr. Aparna Islam, BRAC University, Bangladesh

Genetic Engineering of Chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) for Insect Resistance
Dr. Alok Das, ICAR-Indian Institute of Pulses Research, India

Hmgr1 Transgene Integrated Hevea – Future GM Rubber to the Field
Dr. Jayashree Radha, Rubber Research Institute of India

Coleus forskholii: Vegetatively Propagated Medicinal Plant for Production of Recombinant Proteins
Dr. P.H. Ramanjini Gowda, University of Agricultural Sciences Bangalore, India

Lightning Round for Students and Young Researchers

September 11, 2017

Chair: Dr. Andrew Roberts, Agriculture & Food Systems Institute, United States

Assessment of Impact of Genetically Engineered (GE) Mustard (Brassica juncea L.) on Honey Bees
Dr. Pranjali Vishwakarma, Biosafety Support Unit, India

Biosafety and in-situ Conservation of Wild Silk Moths in Natural Forest Ecosystem of North East India
Dr. Rajesh Kumar, Government of India

Co-expression of PgNHX1 and AVP1genes in Tomato Improves Salt Tolerance in Transgenic Tomato Plants
Dr. D. L. Savithramma, University of Agricultural Sciences, India

Development of Physically-Contained Facility for Evaluation of Genetically Engineered OX513A Aedes aegypti L. Mosquito Strain in Maharashtra, India
Dr. Prabhakargouda Patil, GBIT Limited, India

Biosafety Data Generation from the Putatively Transformed Peanut (Arachis hypogaea L.) Using afp Gene
Dr. Tahmina Islam, University of Dhaka, Bangladesh

How Our Young Generation Perceive GM Food Crop
Dr. Aparna Islam, BRAC University, Bangladesh

Rapid Screening of hpRNAi Constructs for Imparting Plant Viral Disease Resistance by Employing Agro-Infiltration
Mr. Prasad Babu K, Indian Institute of Horticultural Research, India

Standardization of Genetic Transformation Technique in Dolichos bean (Lablab purpureus (L.) sweet) for Pod Borer Resistance
Dr. Santosh Sawardekar, Dr. Balasaheb Sawant Konkan Krishi Vidyapeeth, India

Transgenic Potato Conferring Field Resistance to Late Blight: Difficulties in Generating Food Safety Data of Pure RB Protein
Dr. Sundaresha Siddappa, Central Potato Research Institute, India

Poster Session & Opening Reception Dinner

September 11, 2017

The poster session is sponsored by the International Society for Biosafety Research (ISBR). Conference participants were encouraged to share their work with colleagues by preparing a poster for this session. All posters conveyed relevance to biosafety research, environmental risk assessment of genetically modified organisms (GMOs), or the regulation of GMOs– plants, animals, arthropods, or micro-organisms. First and second place prizes were awarded for the most outstanding posters on September 13.

The South Asia Biosafety Program gratefully acknowledges the generous support of the International Society for Biosafety Research for the Welcome Reception.

Plenary Session III: Soil and Plant Microbiomes

September 12, 2017

Chair: Dr. P.K. Chakrabarty, Indian Council of Agricultural Research, India

Keynote Presentation: Manipulating Soil and Root Microbiomes to Enhance Bioremediation and Reclamation of Hydrocarbon Impacted Soil Ecosystems
Dr. James Germida, University of Saskatchewan, Canada

Harnessing the Power of Natural Biologicals in Agriculture
Dr. Jacob Parnell, Novozymes BioAg, United States

Use of Root Endophyte Piriformospora indica as a Plant Probiotic
Dr. Atul Kumar Johri, Jawaharlal Nehru University, India

Ecological Implications of “Safe” Agricultural Amendments
Dr. Shilpi Sharma, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, India

Engineering an Environmentally Friendly Azotobacter Strain to Improve Nitrogen Fixation Efficiency
Dr. Jasdeep Chatrath Padaria, National Research Centre on Plant Biotechnology, India

Parallel Workshops

September 12, 2017

Pre-registered participants were invited to attend one of the following half day workshops:

• Parallel Workshop I: Thinking Ahead: Designing Confined Field Trials to Maximize Data Transportability
• Parallel Workshop II: Best Practices for Public Sector Genetically Engineered Product Development Programs
• Parallel Workshop III: Intersection of the Cartagena Protocol and the Indian Biosafety Regulatory System

Plenary Session IV: Synthetic Biology

September 13, 2017

Chair: Dr. Andrew Roberts, Agriculture & Food Systems Institute, United States

Synthetic Biology Approaches to Improving Agricultural Yields
Dr. John Teem, Agriculture & Food Systems Institute, United States

Can Synthetic Biology Lead to Synthetic Life?
Dr. Manju Bansal, Indian Institute of Science, India

Engineering a C4 Rice Prototype
Dr. HsiangChun Lin, International Rice Research Institute, Philippines

Chemical Biology to Combat Against a Parasitic Plant Striga
Dr. Yuichiro Tsuchiya, Nagoya University, Japan

Synthetic Biology in International Forums
Dr. Andrew Roberts, Agriculture & Food Systems Institute, United States

Poster Session Awards

September 13, 2017

Chair: Dr. Donald MacKenzie, Treasurer, International Society of Biosafety Research

The 5^th Annual South Asia Biosafety Conference Poster Program provided an opportunity for individuals to share their research, findings and achievements with colleagues at the conference. Presenting a poster was a noteworthy way to share expertise or accomplishment, and poster presenters had dedicated time to present and discuss their work with the diverse group of attendees. All posters conveyed relevance to biosafety research, environmental risk assessment of genetically modified organisms (GMOs), or the regulation of GMOs– plants, animals, arthropods, or micro-organisms.

Poster Session Prizes

All posters accepted into the poster session were eligible for the Poster Competition, and two prizes were awarded.

• The first place prize was awarded to Mr. Siddappa Sundaresha for his poster Transgenic Potato Conferring Field Resistance to Late Blight Difficulties in Generating Food Safety Data of Pure RB Protein. First prize consisted of a USD $500 cash prize, a two year membership for the International Society of Biosafety Research (ISBR), and an award certificate. ISBR aims to promote scientifically sound research that supports biosafety assessment by improving communication among scientists who study plants, animals, and microbes with new characteristics due to altered DNA and produced using modern biotechnology.
• The second place prize was awarded to Mr. Michael Chhandama for his poster Estimation of Lipid Content from Stress Induced Microalgae for Biodiesel Production. Second prize consisted of a USD $200 cash prize, a two year membership for the International Society of Biosafety Research, and an award certificate.

Evaluation and Judging

Posters were evaluated as follows:

1. Abstract (10%): Clarity and correlation with poster.
2. Scientific content (70%): Introduction and background with literature cited, objectives, materials and methods, results and discussion, and significance to field. The quality of the research presented will be judged on its scientific rigor and significance as conveyed by the poster. Each poster must be self-explanatory. Judges may discuss the poster with its presenter but this will not be considered in the evaluation of the display.
3. Poster Display (20%): Posters will be judged on organization, effective use of space, legibility, grammar and spelling, and effective use of graphics.

Each poster display is judged independently by four judges.

Plenary Session V: New Applications of Biotechnology: Focus on Forestry and Biofuels

September 13, 2017

Chair: Dr. Santanu Dasgupta, Reliance Industries Limited, India

Keynote Presentation: Photosynthetic Bio-manufacturing in Green Algae; Food and Fuel for the 21st Century
Dr. Stephen Mayfield, University of California, San Diego, United States

Genetic Engineering of Algae for Higher Biofuel Value and Biosafety Issues
Dr. Shashi Kumar, International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, India

Environmental Risk Assessment and Biosafety of Genetically Modified Algae
Dr. Tomal Dattaroy, Reliance Industries Limited, India

An in silico Strategy for Rational Design of Insect-Specific, Multigene Targeting Chimeric hprnai Constructs to Obviate Biosafety Concerns in Transgenic Entomophilous Trees
Dr. Mathish Nambiar-Veetil, Institute of Forest Genetics and Tree Breeding, India

Development of Genetically Engineered Jatropha for Biofuel Production: Quest for Sustainability and Climate Resilience
Dr. Bhavanath Jha, Central Salt and Marine Chemicals Research Institute, India

The Radiata Pine Estate and the Regulation of GM Forestry Trees in New Zealand
Dr. Timothy Strabala, Environmental Protection Authority, New Zealand

Past SABCs

Learn about previous South Asia Biosafety Conferences by clicking on the links below:

4^th Annual South Asia Biosafety Conference 2016
Hyderabad, India

3^rd Annual South Asia Biosafety Conference 2015
Dhaka, Bangladesh

2^nd Annual South Asia Biosafety Conference 2014
Colombo, Sri Lanka

1^st Annual South Asia Biosafety Conference 2013
New Delhi, India