Jellyfish has always been considered an inedible and therefore useless catch by the fishing communities in the country’s coastal districts. Despite never being considered as commercially viable, new research by Bangladeshi scientists indicates jellyfish can eventually become a source of export earnings. Like elsewhere, the coast of Bangladesh too plays host to a large number of jellyfish. However, the researchers do not yet know how many jellyfish there are in the waters of Bangladesh. This amount will have to be verified in the research they have now started. Made up of 90 percent water, jellyfish have no brain, blood, or bones. Scientists say that the number of jellyfish depends largely on the salinity and temperature of the water. Due to the lack of rain this year, the salinity of the seawater was high, resulting in an abundance of jellyfish washing up on shore. Read more: Scores of jellyfish carcasses wash ashore on Cox’s Bazar beach Md. Rashed-Un-Nabi, Professor, Department of Fisheries, Chittagong University told UNB, "Many countries in the world are researching how to use jellyfish, we have also started research. It shows that it has a lot of economic potential.” Scientists saw a boom or excess of jellyfish on Patuakhali beach and Cox's Bazar beach in August. At that time, many fishermen were forced to cut their nets because they were filled with jellyfish. Golam Mostafa, associate professor of Noakhali Science and Technology University (NSTU) said, “We can divide the jellyfish found in the sea of Bangladesh into three categories.” “One is edible jellyfish. We don't eat it here. But it is in demand as food in Taiwan, Vietnam, Thailand, and China. Each of these jellyfish can weigh up to 8 to 10 kg,” he said. Read more: Hundreds of Jellyfish carcasses wash ashore on Cox’s Bazar beach As a result, it is possible to export to the countries mentioned if extracted commercially, Mostafa said. This type of jellyfish can also be used as raw material for the pharmaceutical and cosmetics industry. There is another type of jellyfish, which is poisonous. Physical contact with this type can damage a person’s nervous system and lead to paralysis. However it is only a very specific subtype of jellyfish that tends to be poisonous. The Box Jellyfish, so-called for its box-like physique, is classified as one of the most venomous creatures on Earth, containing toxins that attack the heart, nervous system, and skin cells. Golam Mostafa observes that fishermen need to be made aware of and trained on this type of jellyfish. Read more: Hundreds of Jellyfish carcasses wash ashore on Cox’s Bazar beach “The damage caused to fishermen is also an economic loss. Many times fishermen do not understand it properly,” he adds. The third and final type of jellyfish found in Bangladesh is a very small creature. These are used in aquariums or as part of beautification in many countries, he said. “You can call it recreational use. Many countries, including Thailand, have such aquariums, where palm-shaped transparent jellyfish are kept. The colour of the light you cast becomes that colour. It is a very attractive thing for tourists,'' Golam Mostafa said, an associate professor of NSTU. He said that the researchers of oceanography and fisheries departments of some universities and the Bangladesh Oceanographic Research Institute (BORI) are researching the potential of jellyfish. Read more: Fish scales: A promising new item to diversify exports

Scientists at Bangladesh Institute of Nuclear Agriculture (BINA) and Bangladesh Agriculture University (BAU) have unveiled the full genome sequence of salinity and submergence tolerant rice for the first time. Hailing the achievement at a press briefing at Bina in Mymensign on Thursday Agriculture Minister Abdur Razzaque said, “This will open new dimension in the research of salinity and submergence tolerant rice.” The minister said, two million hectares of land in the country face salinity, where only one variety of crops can be harvested annually. “In order to make food safety sustainable and to meet the increasing demand for food in the future, we are focusing on producing 2-3 varieties of crops a year in the coastal and haor areas,” said Razzaque. The complete unveiling of the genome will facilitate the invention and expansion of rice varieties tolerant to salinity and submergence, the minister added. Read: Bangladesh submits 304 genome sequences of Covid-19 In this joint study of BINA and BAU, three advanced mutants in M6 generation have been identified after various experiments by applying different levels of gamma radiation and producing more than half a million mutants. The mutants obtained have better properties than the parent and can tolerate salinity of 8 dS / m and 15 days of submergence. BINA has developed various varieties of crops through mutations. The effect of mutations in all these studies would have been to identify the improved variety by observing the desired change in crop phenotype. But it would not have been possible to explain where in the genome the desired trait for mutation in DNA was created. Read: Chinese researchers map out deer's genomes, lend clues to cure human diseases To this end, in 2019, genome sequencing of parent and selected mutant rice was completed in this study which is the first in Bangladesh. Rice cultivation is being hampered due to sudden floods and increasing salinity in the coastal areas of Bangladesh due to climate change. An effective solution to this problem is to develop varieties of rice tolerant to salinity and submergence. A team of scientists led by Dr Mirza Mofazzal Islam of BINA has been working for almost a decade in this regard.

Bangladeshi scientists made history by discovering a new antibiotic called Homicorcin. From the bacteria found in Jute seeds, they have discovered this outstanding antibiotic, which will fight against the powerful bacteria and save the lives of many patients. The study was published on May 27 in the ‘Scientific Reports’ journal of the international publisher Nature. Let's get to know more about this groundbreaking discovery. Background to Homicorcin discovery Starting from people's daily lives, Jute has long since enriched Bangladesh economically. So there has been a lot of significant work in different fields with this Golden Fiber. Bangladesh's famous geneticist late Dr. Maksudul Alam discovered the Jute gene design in 2010. Mubarak Ahmed Khan, Chief Scientific Adviser of Bangladesh Jute Mills Corporation, made various useful things from Jute. Among them Jutin (corrugated sheet) in 2009 and Sonali Bag (Polythene) in 2016 are notable. Finally, in the middle of 2021, the country's researchers found a life-saving medicine from that Jute. The antibiotic 'Homicorcin' is named after the scientific name of bacteria and Jute. Read: 'Golden fibre' no longer holds glitter for Khulna jute farmers Research for the antibiotic Six members have worked in the research for 3 years in the Molecular Biology Lab of Dhaka University. Among them, the senior Dhaka University Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Professor Haseena Khan, Professor Dr. Mohammad Reazul Islam, and Professor Aftab Uddin of the Department of Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology lead the study. AHM Shafiul Islam Mollah, a member of the Bangladesh Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (BCSIR) also joined with them. Besides, 3 students of the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology of the Faculty of Biological Sciences, Dhaka University, Shammi Akhter, Mahbuba Ferdous, Badrul Haider, and Al Amin were also researchers. Haseena Khan, who has been researching Jute for a long time, discovered various kinds of micro-organisms in Jute while studying the mystery of its life. The interest to know their characteristics basically leads to the new research. Amazing information comes out of the study. More than 50 micro-organisms live in the grooves of Jute fibers. These include a bacterium called ‘Staphylococcus hominis’ that makes something from its own body that kills other bacteria. That means the bacterium is behaving like a deadly antibiotic. Researchers have identified 5 variants of this antibiotic. Two of these have already been mentioned in the report. Work is still going on with the effectiveness of the remaining 3. Read: BUILD explores producing paper pulp from the whole jute plant Efficacy of Homicorcin Homicorcin can work very well in patients whose antibiotics are no longer working. This antibiotic can fight many powerful bacteria. There are some bacteria known as Superbugs that no conventional antibiotic can cure. This new antibiotic has also been successful in these cases. There are basically two types of antibiotics. One is Broad-Spectrum, which works in all types of micro-organisms. Another is the Gram-Positive and Gram-Negative. With just one broad-spectrum antibiotic, resistance to many germs can be developed simultaneously. So researchers have found this category to be very effective. But the problem is - once the antimicrobial resistance builds up, the antibiotic no longer works. Happily, Homicorcin did not fall into the Broad-Spectrum category. Not only that, but it has also changed the earlier perception of researchers about the category of Gram-Positive and Gram-Negative. Read: International tender called for reopening closed jute mills: Jute Minister In the end How quickly Homicorcin antibiotic reaches the public depends on adequate funding from the Government and pharmaceutical companies. It usually takes at least 5 years to market any antibiotic. Therefore, joint efforts of all Government and non-Government sectors to ensure a fast supply of this life-saving medicine are in high demand of time.

The Saudi government has invited Bangladeshi scientists, academics and experts to participate in an international competition and conference on various scientific knowledge on Disability Research. The Authority for the Care of Persons with Disability in Saudi Arabia will host the international competition for disability research - third session - and the 6th international conference on disability and rehabilitation during the January 25-27 period. The Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia in Dhaka informed that the competition and conference will be held under the patronage of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman Bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud. Also Read:Saudi investors want to invest $5bn in Bangladesh: Ambassador Essa The title of the competition is “Empowering Individuals with Disabilities from Childhood to Adulthood-Between Research & Practice.” The Organising Committee will bear all the expenses, including travel expenditures and accommodation for the selected participants from outside of Saudi Arabia.  Interested participants from Bangladesh can visit the following website https://icdr.org.sa for detailed information regarding the participation in the competition and conference, said the Saudi Embassy in Dhaka on Thursday.