Kuala Lumpur, 24 February, 2014 – Malaysian Biotechnology Corporation (BiotechCorp) and Global Engage Ltd, a United Kingdom based company that specializes in organizing high level conferences and summits for the Pharmaceutical, Medical and Agriculture Technology sectors have come together to host Asia’s first Plant Genomics Congress at the Shangri-La Hotel, here in Kuala Lumpur from 24th to 25th February 2014.
The two day congress, which was officiated by the Deputy Minister of Science Technology and Innovation (MOSTI), Datuk Dr. Abu Bakar Mohamad Diah, is part of a Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) series of events that pulls together experts in the fields of plant sciences, next generation sequencing, genomics and plant based industry leaders from Malaysia, the region and the world to discuss and examine the latest development in plant genomics.
“The growing concerns of food security and sustainability mean that we have to work smart to look for ways to improve our agriculture industry. One of the best methods is through enhancing the development of the seed & planting material industry that will enable us to produce more efficient and high yielding plants which are not just for providing more nutritious food for the consumer but also higher profits for the farmer,” said Razwin Sulairee Hasnan Termizi, Chief Operating Officer, BiotechCorp.
Razwin further pointed out that modern biotechnology is currently being applied in national breeding programs to harness the potential of high yielding crops which are resistant to pests & disease, and adverse conditions, as well as improved nutrition value.
He also explained in his presentation how BiotechCorp is working to help translate genomic technology and research by scientists to the field. To this end, Biotechcorp had acquired the marker assisted selection platform and established CMDV with MARDI as the custodian to provide genomic services to the agriculture sector.
“CMDV using the MAS technology which helps selection of seeds with desired traits provide solutions to speed up the breeding process and increasing the accuracy to develop high quality seed stock,” explained Razwin during his presentation to participants.
“To ensure that the breeding programs in our country continue to grow and flourish, it is important that our local scientific community keeps evolving in line with the latest breakthrough particularly in the field of Plant Genomics. This is why we are truly privileged to be able to bring the Plant Genomics Congress Asia to Malaysia,” said Razwin.
MOSTI Deputy Minister Datuk Dr. Abu Bakar in his officiating speech said that he hopes that Malaysia’s home grown talent will benefit from the conference and produce innovative solutions that will translate to commercial applications, in line with MOSTI’s Commercialization Year 2014.
“The science of plant genomics, will allow us to chart our future, which is to ensure abundance & sustainability” said Datuk Dr. Abu Bakar.
More than 200 participants from various research and academic institutions of higher learning as well as corporations and industry leaders attended the 2-day conference. The participants expressed delight and satisfaction that they are able to be updated on the latest advances in plant genomic as well as have the opportunity to discuss among their peers.
