NIPGR Researchers Open a Window on the Secrets of Plant Life to Public

On October 26, 2018, New Delhi based National Institute of Plant Genome Research (NIPGR), an autonomous institute under the Department of Biotechnology, Government of India, had organized an Open day for the general public in order to popularize research in plant sciences and its applications.

Students and teachers were invited from various National Capital Region (NCR) based schools and colleges to visit laboratories of NIPGR. (Here is a link to a short report on NIPGR Science Outreach event: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wL-BYlJERag )

In this event, a total of 1079 students participated along with their teachers. Among the participant, 958 were school students from 30 different government and private schools and 121 college students from 3 colleges. The NIPGR community presented 31 posters and 18 exhibits on various aspects of life sciences in general and plant sciences in particular.

“The open day is an opportunity for NIPGR to open its doors to the local community and contribute towards inculcating in students a passion for science,” said Prof. Ramesh V. Sonti, Director at NIPGR, New Delhi.

NIPGR scientists, technical specialists, and young researchers explained in very simple language about ongoing plant research activities in the institute. They covered various aspects of plant sciences including photosynthesis, ecological nitrogen fixation, plant-pathogen interactions, crop yield improvement etc.

Various posters, exhibitions, and practical demonstrations like how to isolate DNA from plants, how to visualize protein and DNA in gel etc. were arranged to provide real experiences of a working molecular biology laboratory. The visitors were also provided a tour of the research facilities at NIPGR, where they were explained about the working of various scientific instruments like the Confocal Microscope, automated DNA Sequencer, PCR, Real-time PCR, central instrumentation facility etc.

School students got an opportunity to witness the banana plant tissue culture techniques for a better understanding of working with plants in the laboratory. Students were also shown plant cells under the foldscope microscope. They were shown videos clearly demonstrating how plant stem cells look like under advanced microscopes.

Day-Long activities and interactions with NIPGR researchers have sensitized and inspired students and teachers about the opportunities in plant sciences, particularly in plant molecular biology.

By SCISOUP Desk

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