The National Biotechnology Development Agency (NABDA) has taken steps to deepen international collaboration in biotechnology with a working visit to the International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (ICGEB) in Trieste, Italy. The delegation, led by NABDA Director-General Professor Abdullahi Mustapha, included the agency’s Board Chairman, Chief Clement Ebri, and Head of the ICGEB Desk,
The National Biotechnology Research and Development Agency (NBRDA) has reaffirmed the safety of genetically modified organisms (GMOs), saying they are vital to Nigeria’s food security and economic development. Speaking in Abuja, the agency’s Director-General, Professor Abdullahi Mustapha, said fears around GMOs are primarily driven by misinformation and that the agency is committed to bridging the
The Nigerian Association of Law Teachers (NALT) will hold its 56th annual conference in Abuja from October 26 to 30, focusing on Artificial Intelligence, biotechnology and legal reform as key themes driving national development. The conference, hosted by the Faculty of Law, University of Abuja, will be held under the theme “Law, National Development and
A significant advancement in biology was recorded in 2020 when London-based artificial intelligence company DeepMind unveiled AlphaFold, an AI system that solved the decades-long “protein folding problem.” The challenge, which involved predicting the 3D shape of proteins from their genetic code, had long been considered nearly impossible. AlphaFold achieved significant accuracy in predicting protein structures,
Since scientists in the Netherlands cooked up the world’s first burger grown from stem cells in a lab in 2013, what once seemed like a stunt has since evolved into a thriving industry. Startups like Mosa Meat in Europe and Upside Foods in the United States now grow real animal meat in bioreactors, feeding cells
Not many scientific tools have inspired as much surprise and controversy as CRISPR-Cas9, the genetic “scissors” that allow precise DNA editing. In 2017, researchers at Oregon Health & Science University used the CRISPR-Cas9 technique to correct a heart disease mutation in human embryos. Though the embryos were not implanted, the study demonstrated that it was
A lab at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia in the United States has made a groundbreaking discovery that can sustain premature lambs inside an artificial womb. The developed device looks like a plastic bag filled with nutrient-rich fluid. Preterm lambs, equivalent to human fetuses at 23 weeks, were placed inside and connected via their umbilical
An advocate for Nigeria’s Biosafety Bill, Professor Nwanguma, has called for greater acceptance of genetically modified (GM) crops to boost food production in the country. Professor Nwanguma, who was part of the campaign for the bill passed in 2015 under President Goodluck Jonathan, said recent developments have renewed debate about GM foods, including the reported
Uppsala University Hospital-led investigators report that gene-edited donor islet cells survived 12 weeks inside a man with long-standing type 1 diabetes without any immunosuppressive medication. Intensive insulin therapy can delay complications and improve life expectancy. Early-onset type 1 diabetes remains linked to reduced quality of life, serious cardiovascular risk, and shortened lifespan. Toxicity from lifelong
Researchers have found a new way to treat a rare type of ovarian cancer that mostly affects younger women and does not respond well to regular chemotherapy. The cancer, known as low-grade serous carcinoma (LGSC), grows slowly but can become dangerous if not caught early. It often starts as a harmless tumour called a serous
