Updated on: Monday, October 03, 2011
The Bangalore-based Ganit Labs today said it has sequenced and analysed the genome and coding parts of the Neem plant, claimed by an expert to be the first such in the world.
"We believe that our current sequencing study on Neem will provide the right scientific impetus for students and young scientists to study one of the most important plant species of our country," Head of Ganit Labs Dr Binay Panda said.
Neem tree and its parts have been used since time immemorial in the country and its insecticidal, pesticidal, fungicidal and medicinal properties are well known, he said.
"Understanding the molecular architecture of the Neem genome and its various coding parts will enhance the knowledge about this wonder species further", he told reporters here. He said Ganit labs is currently building an open access portal to host information gathered from the current study on genome, genome architecture, coding parts and molecular evolution of the Neem plant.
Ganit Labs is well placed to reap the benefits of IT revolution in the country and apply that for innovation in healthcare, agriculture and biopersity, Panda said and added in addition to Neem, Ganit Labs has sequenced 'tongue cancer genomes' from Indian patients.
Karnataka Government's IT and BT department is funding Ganit Labs, a non profit organisation. State's IT and BT department Principal Secretary M N Vidyashankar and Chairman and CEO of Strand Life Sciences Vijay Chandru were also present on the occasion.