Message From The Chairperson

Assalamualaikum wbt. and Salam Sejahtera

This website is designed to provide information and to invite participation from researchers in the wide variety of associated fields and areas of study that make up the scope of the Biodiversity for Biotechnology Development Niche.  The particular fields and areas of study from which the researchers in this Niche have been drawn together were chosen with a view to expected practical applicability and commercializability of research into the resources of tropical biodiversity.

The multidisciplinary research performed by this Niche explores the resources made available by tropical biodiversity, from basic research identifying compounds and biomolecules hidden in tropical organisms and the mechanisms and pathways by which they are produced to the development of new products using biotechnology.  Drawing on the strengths and considerable experience of its researchers, this Niche focuses on the study of systems within and between tropical plants and microbes as well as marine organisms (including fish) as well as the interactions of these systems with each other.

Our Niche researchers include not only scientists from molecular biology, bioinformatics, mathematics, and chemistry but also engineers and, importantly, experts in law and business development who offer guidance at various stages of the research, ensuring that the Niche maintains its focus on applicability and commercializability of research outcomes.  The formation of the Niche in 2008 has served to define the direction of the research, some of which was already underway, to a tighter focus on work that is both of scientific interest and potentially commercializable. This collaboration of scientists with non-scientist experts contributes to no small extent to the vitality of the Niche.

The noteworthy achievements of researchers in the Niche are described in this book’s sections on the various research groups.  We are sure that the collaboration made possible by the multidisciplinary components of the Niche, not only among future scientific researchers but with industry and business as well, holds promise for yet more exciting achievements to come.

Thank you.

Prof. Dr. Normah Mohd. Noor

Chairperson

Biodiversity for Biotechnology Development Niche

Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia