Under the auspices of the South Asia Biosafety Program, the Agriculture & Food Systems Institute and Biotech Consortium India Limited organized the 6th Annual South Asia Biosafety Conference, which was held on September 15-17, 2018 in Dhaka, Bangladesh. This annual conference is the premier biosafety meeting in South Asia and provides an essential forum to hear from leading scientists representing regulatory agencies, public sector research institutions, and the private sector in South Asia and internationally.
Day 1 - September 15, 2018
| 08:00-09:00 | Delegate Registration |
| 09:00-10:30 | Welcome and Introduction to the South Asia Biosafety Program Dr. M. Imdadul Hoque, Professor, University of Dhaka, Bangladesh Regional Harmonization: Contribution by the South Asia Biosafety Program Dr. Vibha Ahuja, Chief General Manager, Biotech Consortium India Limited, India Address by Guest of Honor Mr. David Westerling, Deputy Director, Economic Growth Office, United States Agency for International Development, Bangladesh Address by Special Guest Prof. Dr. Quazi Abdul Fattah, President, Bangladesh Academy of Sciences, Bangladesh Address by Special Guest Dr. Md. Kabir Ikramul Haque, Executive Chair, Bangladesh Agricultural Research Council (BARC), Bangladesh Address by Special Guest Dr. Sujata Arora, Advisor, Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change, India Address by Chief Guest Mr. Md. Abdullah Al Mohsin Chowdhury, Secretary, Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Bangladesh Address by Inaugural Ceremony Chair Dr. Sultan Ahmed, Director General, Department of Environment, Bangladesh Vote of Thanks Dr. Bhavneet Bajaj, Scientific Program Manager, Agriculture & Food Systems Institute, USA |
| 10:30-11:00 | Tea Break |
| 11:00-13:00 | Plenary Session I: Biosafety Regulation and Capacity Building Initiatives in South Asia Chair: Dr. Sultan Ahmed, Director General, Department of Environment, Bangladesh Co-Chair: Dr. Rishi Kumar Tyagi, Coordinator, Asia-Pacific Consortium on Agricultural Biotechnology and Bioresources (APCoAB), Asia-Pacific Association of Agricultural Research Institutions, Thailand Update on Biosafety Regulation in Bangladesh Mr. Md. Solaiman Haider, Director (Planning), Department of Environment, Bangladesh Regulations for Food Derived from Genetically Modified Organisms in India Dr. Lalitha Gowda, Member, Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee and Former Chief Scientist, CSIR-Central Food Technology Research Institute, India Biosafety Regulation and Capacity Building Initiatives in Sri Lanka Ms. Surani Pathirana, Assistant Director, Biodiversity Secretariat, Ministry of Mahaweli Development and Environment, Sri Lanka Biosafety Regulation and Capacity Building Initiatives in Bhutan Mr. Jambay Dorji, Planning Officer/Focal for Biosafety (GMO), Bhutan Agriculture and Food Regulatory Authority, Bhutan Biodiversity, Biosafety, and You Dr. Flerida Carino, Professor, Institute of Chemistry, University of Philippines Diliman, Philippines |
| 13:00-14:00 | Lunch |
| 14:00-16:30 | Plenary Session II: Engineering Plant Tolerance to Abiotic and Biotic Stressors Chair: Dr. Zeba Seraj, Professor, University of Dhaka, Bangladesh Co-Chair: Dr. P.K. Chakrabarty, Assistant Director General (Plant Protection and Biosafety), Indian Council of Agricultural Research, India Genome Editing for Rice Improvement Dr. Inez H. Slamet-Loedin, Cluster Lead - Trait and Genome Engineering, International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), Philippines Bio Prospection of Plant Diversity for Novel Insecticidal Proteins/Genes for Next Generation GM Crops Dr. P. K. Singh, Principal Scientist and Leader for Insect Defense, Genetics and Plant Molecular Biology Division, CSIR-National Botanical Research Institute, India Engineering Herbicide Resistance in Rice for Effective Weed Management in Agriculture Dr. M. K. Reddy, Group Leader, Crop Improvement Group, International Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (ICGEB), India Biotechnological Approaches for Engineering Resistance to the Insect Herbivore Helicoverpa armigera in Pigeonpea Dr. Rohini Sreevathsa, Senior Scientist, ICAR-National Research Center on Plant Biotechnology, India Engineering Abiotic Stress Tolerance in Monocots and Path To Commercialization Dr. Jos van Boxtel, Principal Scientist, Arcadia Biosciences, USA |
| 16:30-17:00 | Tea Break |
| 17:00-18:00 | Lightning Round for Students and Early Career Researchers Chair: Dr. Andrew Roberts, Deputy Executive Director, Agriculture & Food Systems Institute, USA Blending Gene Expression with Phenomics to Decipher Salt Tolerance Determinant Sabrina M. Elias, University of Dhaka, Bangladesh Alternatively Spliced Form of the Vacuolar Na+/H+ Antiporter (OsNHX1) Gene: Aspire to Combat Salinity Stress in Rice Hamida Nooreen Mahmood, University of Dhaka, Bangladesh Fluorescence Based Kompetitive (Competitive) Allele Specific PCR (KASP) for High-Throughput SNP Marker Detection and Validation Tabassum Sunfi, University of Dhaka, Bangladesh Two Amino Acid Substitution Model Across Membranes in the Oryza Species HKT1;5 Transporter from Salt Tolerant Rice Landraces for a Beneficially Low Na+/K+ Ratio Mohammad Umer Sharif Shohan, University of Dhaka, Bangladesh Genetic Engineering for Development of Salt-Tolerant Pigeon Pea Plants Rakshita Singh, CCS Haryana Agricultural University, India Engineering Insect Resistance in Rice Yaiphabi Kumam, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, India Comparative Nutritional Equivalence Evaluation of Transgenic Chickpea Seeds Harboring either a cry1Ac or a cry2Aa Gene Rubi Gupta, Assam Agricultural University, India Genetic Engineering of Sugarcane with EXPA1 and BRK Genes Increases Water Deficit Stress Tolerance and its Biosafety Concern Ashwin Narayan, ICAR-Sugarcane Breeding Institute |
| 18:00-19:00 | Poster Session |
| 19:00-21:00 | Welcome Reception |
Day 2 - September 16, 2018
| 09:00-10:30 | Plenary Session III: Research Advances in the Development of Transgenic and Gene Edited Products in South Asia Chair: Dr. Abul Kalam Azad, Director General, Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute, Bangladesh Co-Chair: Dr. B. Venkateswarlu, Former Vice-Chancellor, VNM Krishi Vidyapeeth, Parbhani and Member, GEAC, India Keynote: Opportunities to Address South Asia’s Productivity and Food Security Challenges Using New Breeding Technologies Dr. Swapan Datta, Professor, University of Calcutta, India Development of Pro-Vitamin A Rich Biofortified Banana Fruit by Using Transgenic and Genome Editing Approaches Dr. Siddharth Tiwari, Scientist, National Agri-Food Biotechnology Institute, India Bt Brinjal: A Genetically Engineered ‘Minor’ Crop Comes of Age in Bangladesh Dr. Jahangir Hossain, Country Coordinator, Feed the Future South Asia Eggplant Improvement Partnership, Bangladesh |
| 10:30-11:00 | Tea Break |
| 11:00-13:00 | Plenary Session III: Research Advances in the Development of Transgenic and Gene Edited Products in South Asia (continued) Biotechnological Strategies for Immunity to Aflatoxin Contamination in Groundnut Dr. Pooja Bhatnagar-Mathur, Theme Leader (Cell, Molecular Biology, and Genetic Engineering), International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics, India Status of Bt Cotton Research and Biosafety Measures in Bangladesh Dr. Md. Kamrul Islam, Program Director - Bt Cotton Research Program, Cotton Development Board, Bangladesh Research Advances in the Development of Transgenic and Gene Edited Products in South Asia Dr. Pradeepa Bandaranayake, Director, Agricultural Biotechnology Center, University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka International Collaboration, Open Science, and Open Data Sharing to Manage Worrisome Wheat Blast in South Asia by Genomics and Genome Editing Approaches Dr. Tofazzal Islam, Professor, Department of Biotechnology, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Agricultural University, Bangladesh Advancement of GM Potato Research at BARI for Late Blight Disease Resistant Varieties Dr. Md. Mosharraf Hossain Molla, Principal Investigator, Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute, Bangladesh |
| 13:00-14:00 | Lunch |
| 14:00-18:00 | Parallel Workshops Parallel Workshop I: Science Communication - The Importance of Audience Engagement Parallel Workshop II: Detection of Genetically Modified Crops and Tour of Diagnostic Lab Parallel Workshop III: Synthetic Biology and Digital Sequence Information under the Convention on Biological Diversity |
Day 3 - September 17, 2018
| 09:00-10:30 | Plenary Session IV: Animal, Arthropod, and Aquatic Biotechnology - Biosafety Research, Risk Assessment, and Regulation Chair: Dr. Md. Kabir Ikramul Haque, Executive Chairman, Bangladesh Agricultural Research Council, Bangladesh Keynote: Advancing Animal Biotechnology Innovation in South Asia – Challenges and Opportunities Dr. Subeer Majumdar, Director, National Institute of Animal Biotechnology, India Research Progress on Genetically Modified Food and Ornamental Freshwater Fishes with Understandings on Ecological and Health Concerns Dr. Hirak Kumar Barman, Principal Scientist, Fish Genetics and Bio-Technology Division, Central Institute of Freshwater Aquaculture, India Approaches for Managing Field Trials of Genetically Engineered Algae Dr. Tomal Dattaroy, Lead - Regulatory Affairs and Biology, Reliance Industries Limited, India Genetically Modified Insects Take Flight Dr. John Teem, Senior Scientific Program Manager, Agriculture & Food Systems Institute, USA |
| 10:30-11:00 | Tea Break |
| 11:00-12:30 | Plenary Session V: The Theory and Practice of Effective Science Communication Chair: Dr. Vibha Ahuja, Chief General Manager, Biotech Consortium India Limited, India Understanding Effective Communication in Agribiotechnology & Biosafety Dr. Mahaletchumy Arujanan, Executive Director, Malaysian Biotechnology Information Center, Malaysia Challenges in Communicating a Biotechnology Product: The Golden Rice Experience Ms. Temina Lalani-Shariff, Director Communication and Stakeholder Engagement, International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), Philippines “Science Diplomacy”: A Tool for Connecting Science to the World Dr. Manoj Kumar Patairiya, Director, CSIR-National Institute of Science Communication and Information Resources, India Panel Discussion and Q&A |
| 12:30-12:45 | Poster Session and Lightning Round Awards |
| 12:45-13:45 | Lunch |
| 13:45-17:00 | Plenary Session VI: Biosafety Risk Assessment and Regulation of Gene Edited Plants Chair: Dr. B. Sesikeran, Former Director, National Institute of Nutrition, India Co-Chair: Prof. Zia Uddin Ahmed, Fellow, Bangladesh Academy of Sciences Keynote: What is Gene Editing? Context for Plant Breeding and Regulation Dr. Andrew Roberts, Deputy Executive Director, Agriculture & Food Systems Institute, USA Gene Editing and International Forums: The Convention on Biological Diversity and the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety Dr. Karen Hokanson, Research Specialist, Department of Horticultural Sciences, University of Minnesota, USA Risk Assessment and Regulation of Gene Edited Organisms in Australia Dr. Heidi Mitchell, Director, Plant Evaluation Section, Office of the Gene Technology Regulator, Australia Global Regulatory Outlook for Genome Edited Crops Dr. Valasubramanian Ramaiah, Regulatory and Stewardship Lead, Corteva Agriscience (DowDuPont), India Gene Editing Applications in Agriculture Dr. Donald MacKenzie, Executive Director, Institute for International Crop Improvement, Donald Danforth Plant Science Center, USA Panel Discussion |
| 17:00-17:15 | Tea Break |
| 17:15-17:30 | Closing Remarks, Adjournment, and Tea |
Presenting a poster at the South Asia Biosafety Confernece was a noteworthy way to share expertise or accomplishment, and poster presenters had a dedicated time to present and discuss their work with the diverse group of attendees. All posters conveyed relevance to biosafety research, environmental or food safety assessment of genetically modified organisms (GMOs), or the regulation of GM plants, animals, arthropods, or micro-organisms.
Poster Competition
All posters accepted into the Poster Program were eligible for the Poster Competition. In cases where a registrant had two or more posters accepted for the Poster Program, s/he were asked to identify which one should be included in the poster competition i.e., only one poster per registrant was eligible for the Poster Competition. The posters were judged on September 15-16 and the winners were announced on September 17 before the final plenary session of the conference.
Winners
- First Prize: Md. Nazrul Islam, National Institute of Biotechnology, Bangladesh, for the poster: “Overexpression of G-Protein Beta Subunit Gene (OsRGB) Confers Both Heat and Salinity Stress in Rice"
- Second Prize: Abdullah Mohammad Shohael, Jahangirnagar University, Bangladesh, for the poster: “Development of Greening (HLB) and Canker Resistant Citrus Cultivars Through Genetic Engineering”
Prizes
The Institute for International Crop Improvement, Donald Danforth Plant Science Center, generously provided the following prizes for the SABC 2018 Poster Session:
First Prize: Registration, airfare and hotel accommodation to attend the International Society for Biosafety Research Symposium (formerly the International Symposium on the Biosafety of Genetically Modified Organisms or ISBGMO) which will be held April 1-4, 2019 in beautiful Tarragona, Spain.
Second Prize: USD $300 cash and a two-year membership to the International Society for Biosafety Research.
Support for Early Career Scientists
The 6th Annual South Asia Biosafety Conference gratefully acknowledges the generous gift provided by Reliance Industries Limited to support the attendance of three early-career scientists from Indian public sector research institutes so that they could share their work in the Poster Session and Lightning Round.
Evaluation and Judging
Posters were evaluated as follows:
Abstract (10%) - Clarity and correlation with poster.
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 were judged on its scientific rigor and significance as conveyed by the poster. Each poster had to be self-explanatory. Judges had the opportunity to discuss posters with their presenters, but this was not considered in the evaluation of the display.
Poster Display (20%) - Posters were judged on organization, effective use of space, legibility, grammar and spelling, and effective use of graphics.
Each poster display was judged independently by three judges on September 15-16, 2018 based on the abstract, scientific content, and poster display. Judges were encouraged to provide constructive comments for each poster, however comments may have been very brief or absent because of the limited time available. Winners were announced on September 17.
Layout and Design
The maximum dimensions for the poster was 48 inches/122 cm (height) x 36 inches/91 cm (width). Poster boards had a plywood surface that permitted the use of removable double-sided tape, tacks, or board pins.
The following were suggestions that contributed to ensuring the readability and quality of posters:
- Check for proper spelling and grammar.
- Use a standard typeface font.
- Ensure text is clear and concise.
- Important information should be readable from about 10 feet away.
- Use bullets, numbering, and headlines make it easy to read.
- Include tables, figures, graphs and color to enforce key points.
- Standard abbreviations may be used without definition, but nonstandard abbreviations/acronyms should be placed in parentheses after the first use of the terminology. It is important to keep nonstandard abbreviations/acronyms to a minimum, to allow for readability and understanding.
- Have a consistent and clean layout.
- Include any appropriate acknowledgments, your name and institutional affiliation.
Assigned Spaces
Each accepted poster was assigned a numbered space for where they would be posted in the conference hall. Posters were added to their assigned space on Saturday, September 15, 2018 prior to the beginning of the Poster Session. Posters remained in their assigned space until Monday, September 17, 2018 after the final plenary session to ensure that attendees and judges had adequate time to view the posters.
The Lightning Round was a unique opportunity for students and early career researchers to share their research in an oral presentation format that is exciting, challenging, and entertaining. Each participant was given 5 minutes and 5 slides to clearly present their work and were challenged to think carefully about how best to use the allotted time and visual aids. The presentations were scored by the session's Chair and Co-Chair, and prizes were awarded to the top two participants.
Winners
- First Prize: Sabrina Elias, School of Life Science, Independent University for the presentation: “Blending Gene expression with Phenomics to Decipher Salt Tolerance Determinant”
- Second Prize: Mohammad Umer Sharif Shohan, University of Dhaka, for the presentation: “Two Amino Acid Substitution Model Across Membranes in the Oryza Species HKT1;5 Transporter from Salt Tolerant Rice Landraces for a Beneficially Low Na+/K+ Ratio”
Prizes
The International Society for Biosafety Research generously provided the following prizes for the SABC 2018 Poster Session:
- First Prize: USD $300
- Second Prize: USD $200
- All participants in the Lightning Round received a one-year membership to the International Society for Biosafety Research.
Presentations
Blending Gene Expression with Phenomics to Decipher Salt Tolerance Determinant
Sabrina M. Elias, University of Dhaka, Bangladesh
Alternatively Spliced Form of the Vacuolar Na+/H+ Antiporter (OsNHX1) Gene: Aspire to Combat Salinity Stress in Rice
Hamida Nooreen Mahmood, University of Dhaka, Bangladesh
Fluorescence Based Kompetitive (Competitive) Allele Specific PCR (KASP) for High-Throughput SNP Marker Detection and Validation
Tabassum Sunfi, University of Dhaka, Bangladesh
Two Amino Acid Substitution Model Across Membranes in the Oryza Species HKT1;5 Transporter from Salt Tolerant Rice Landraces for a Beneficially Low Na+/K+ Ratio
Mohammad Umer Sharif Shohan, University of Dhaka, Bangladesh
Genetic Engineering for Development of Salt-Tolerant Pigeon Pea Plants
Rakshita Singh, CCS Haryana Agricultural University, India
Engineering Insect Resistance in Rice
Yaiphabi Kumam, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, India
Comparative Nutritional Equivalence Evaluation of Transgenic Chickpea Seeds Harboring either a Cry1Ac or a Cry2Aa Gene
Rubi Gupta, Assam Agricultural University, India
Genetic Engineering of Sugarcane with EXPA1 and BRK Genes Increases Water Deficit Stress Tolerance and its Biosafety Concern
Ashwin Narayan, ICAR-Sugarcane Breeding Institute
Revisit the Conversation!
SABC 2018 was organized by
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with support from
Congratulations to 1st Place
Poster Session Winner Md. Nazrul Islam!
Congratulations to Md. Nazrul Islam for the poster Overexpression of G-Protein Beta Subunit Gene (OsRGB) Confers both Heat and Salinity Stress in Rice winning first prize in the Poster Session and receiving registration, airfare and hotel accommodation to attend the International Society for Biosafety Research Symposium (formerly the International Symposium on the Biosafety of Genetically Modified Organisms or ISBGMO), which will be held April 1-4, 2019 in Tarragona, Spain.
Congratulations to 1st Place
Lightning Round Winner Sabrina Elias!
Congratulations to Sabrina Elias for the presentation Blending Gene Expression with Phenomics to Decipher Salt Tolerance Determinant winning first prize in the Lightning Round and receiving a one-year membership for the International Society of Biosafety Research and a USD $300 cash prize.
Congratulations to 2nd Place
Lightning Round Winner Mohammad Umer Sharif Shohan!
Congratulations to Mohammad Umer Sharif Shohan for the presentation Two Amino Acid Substitution Model Across Membranes in the Oryza Species HKT1;5 Transporter from Salt Tolerant Rice Landraces for a Beneficially Low Na+/K+ Ratio winning second prize in the Lightning Round and receiving a one-year membership for the International Society of Biosafety Research and a USD $200 cash prize.
Congratulations to 2nd Place
Poster Session Winner Abdullah Mohammad Shohael!
Congratulations to Abdullah Mohammad Shohael for the poster Development of Greening (HLB) and Canker Resistant Citrus Cultivars Through Genetic Engineering winning second prize in the Poster Session and receiving a two-year membership to the International Society for Biosafety Research and a USD $300 cash prize.