E-Paper
Nanobiotechnologists to discuss new researches
LEADING SCIENTISTS of the country and a few from abroad are all set to gather at Allahabad University (AU) for a one-day international workshop on 'Frontiers in Nanobiotechnology' that would begin at the SN Ghosh Auditorium of AU's JK Institute of Applied Physics on December 1.
International workshop at AU on Dec 1
LEADING SCIENTISTS of the country and a few from abroad are all set to gather at Allahabad University (AU) for a one-day international workshop on 'Frontiers in Nanobiotechnology' that would begin at the SN Ghosh Auditorium of AU's JK Institute of Applied Physics on December 1.
A leading expert of the field of Nantechnology, Prof Wolfgang Parak from the Centre of Nanosciences of Ludwig Maximillian Universitat, Munchen (Germany) will be the chief guest on the occasion while Prof Harish Chandra Verma of IIT-Kanpur will inaugurate the workshop as the guest of honour. AU Dean (Science) Prof Hari Prakash will preside over the inaugural function.
Being organised by the Nanotechnology and Molecular Lab of AU's Centre of Biotechnology, the workshop will witness paper presentations and talks from teachers and scientists working at the interface of Nanotechnology and Biotechnology.
Informing about the event, the convenor of the workshop Dr Anjana Pandey said that Nanobiotechnology is a young and rapidly evolving field of research at the cross-roads of biotechnology and nanoscience, two interdisciplinary areas each of which combines advances in science and engineering.
"Although often considered one of the key technologies of the 21st century, Nanobiotechnology is still in a fairly embryonic state. At present, Nanobiotechnology is a field that concerns the utilisation of biological systems optimised through evolution, such as cells, cellular components, nucleic acids, and proteins, to fabricate functional nanostructured and mesoscopic architectures comprised of organic and inorganic materials," she said.
Dr Pandey said that Nanobiotechnology also concerns the refinement and application of instruments, originally designed to generate and manipulate Nanostructured materials, to basic and applied studies of fundamental biological processes.
"The integration of Nanotechnology with biology and medicine is expected to produce major advances in medical diagnostics, therapeutics, molecular biology, and bioengineering," she added.
Dr Pandey said that recent advances have led to the development of functional Nanoparticles (electronic, optical, magnetic or structural) that are covalently linked to biological molecules such as peptides, proteins, and nucleic acids.
"Due to their size-dependent properties and dimensional similarities to biomacromolecules, these bioconjugates are well suited as contract agents for in-vivo magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), as nanoscale carriers for drug delivery and as nanostructured coatings and scaffolds for medical implants and tissue engineering," she said.
Some of the leading experts expected to present their papers at the workshop include Dr Almudena Javier from Germany, Prof Debashish Chowdhury from IIT-Kanpur who would speak on 'Molecular Motors', Dr Subroto Bhattacharya from Banaras Hindu University who would speak on 'Inorganic Nanomaterial', Dr Ashutosh Pandey of MNNIT who would present a talk on 'Nanomaterials for solar cell fabrication', Dr Brijesh Pandey from IIT-Kanpur who would deliver a talk on 'Synthesis of nanomaterials' and Dr Anjana Pandey who will deliver a paper on Toxic genes identification through quantum dots by sinobacteria'.
Dr Pandey said that all interested students and teachers can attend the international workshop and benefit from the knowledge of the experts. "We have not kept any registration fee for the event with the specific aim of encouraging all interested persons to attend the workshop," she added.
