The President of the Society passes away.


The Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology is extremely sad to announce the death of our President, Professor Harun Kader Mohammed Yusuf who passed away on November 12, 2009. Prof. Yusuf had been an active member of the Society for over 30 years. Prior to his election as President in 2006 of the Society, Prof. Yusuf had been it's Vice-President.

Incredibly humble Prof. Yusuf was always in a good humor with a warm gentle smile. He will be missed and remembered for his warmth and for his dedication to the Bangladesh Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology.

We send our most sincere condolences to his wife, daughter Shimu and son Shohan.

Assalamualaikum and Happy Eid Greetings!!!
Prof. Haseena Khan, General Secretary, BSBMB

I seize this opportunity in wishing everyone a warm greeting for Eid-ul-Fitr. I hope this auspicious time of the year will bring happiness in all our lives. We especially wish our President, Professor Harun Kader Yusuf a speedy recovery. We hope he will soon be well enough to be among us to guide us through. Our prayers are also with Professor Apala F. Naved, general member of the Society. We hope that she maintains her good health.

After a long spell of inactivity the Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology is slowly coming out of its dormancy. However I can assure you that the EC members of the Society had been active with a number of issues relating to the well-being of our graduates/members. I take this occasion in announcing a few of our recent and future activities.

The present government has prepared a draft health policy and sought feed back on the policy. The EC members of the Society met to prepare a response. As our rejoinder we have asked the government to recruit a biochemist in every upazila health complex in order to achieve the government's goal of taking heath care to every door step. According to the draft policy the government wants to take preventive steps in reducing malnutrition related health complications. We have therefore asked for a position of nutritionist/biochemist in these health complexes which could be associated with primary schools in order to provide nutrition related advice to children and their mothers. We have also requested the inclusion of our Society in different committees of the health ministry. In order to generate employment opportunities of our graduates we have asked for support/incentive of local manufacture of diagnostic kits.

Only recently we have also met the Honourable Minister for Health and Family Welfare regarding the discrimination faced by our graduates in different work-places, especially in the diagnostic centres. We were given a patient hearing by the minister. It may be mentioned that the state-minister for health was also present in the meeting. Both the ministers were convinced that there should not be any problem with Biochemists signing the biochemical reports.

Soon after this meeting we were approached by Popular Diagnostic and our intervention was requested. In a letter to Popular Diagnostic, the Pathological Society of Mymensingh had threatened to boy-cot them if they continue to allow Biochemists to sign biochemical reports. In this back drop Popular Diagnostics sought our help. We have written to the aforesaid society in Mymensingh about our meeting with the ministers for Health and Family Welfare and what the ministers have said about the eligibility of biochemists in signing biochemical reports. We sincerely hope that our intervention will be seen as a force behind our graduates/members and will deter anyone in the future from denying our graduates of their rights.

You will be happy to know that the Society is arranging an international symposium in January 2010. We have applied to IUBMB (International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology) for financial support for organizing this event. We expect to have at least two renowned scientists from Japan as plenary speakers. The first circular for this symposium will be announced soon. All are requested to keep an eye in our Society website www. bdsbmb.org for further details.

We have another piece of good news to share with you. The executive body of BSBMB had recently nominated me at no cost involvement of the Society to attend the FAOBMB (Federation of Asian and Oceanian Biochemists and Molecular Biologists) EC meeting held in August 02, 2009 in Shanghai, China. In this Shanghai meeting our request for hosting a FAOBMB symposium was successful and we have been given the privilege of hosting one such symposium in 2013. We would soon be starting the organizational activity of this prestigious and important event. The last and only FAOBMB symposium to be held in Bangladesh was in 1991. We should utilize this opportunity in show-casing the advances made by our researchers in the field of biochemistry and molecular biology. Postings will be made in our web-site so please visit our website regularly and give us your feed back.

All members are requested to visit our website in order to check if your details in the members’ list are correct. If not we request you to please provide us with your latest information. Please also let us know if the name of any member is missing from our list.

I also take this opportunity of inviting through you, BMB graduates who are yet to be members of the Society. Please note that in the next AGM to be held in January 2010 we will be increasing the membership fees.

Wishing you all the best once more.

-Prof. Haseena Khan, General Secretary, BSBMB

AIMS and OBJECTIVES of BSBMB

1. To stimulate interest and promote research and education in biochemistry, molecular biology and other related fields.

2. To foster fellowship and collaboration among the biochemists, molecular biochemists and the scientists of related fields of Bangladesh and those of other countries and to share the benefits of research and other experiences obtained thereby.

3. To promote and safeguard the professional interests of biochemists and molecular biologists.

4. To organise conferences, seminars, symposia and academic-cum-cultural get-togethers, and publish magazine, journals for the promotion of the cause of education and research in biochemistry, molecular biology and other related fields.

5. To secure, administer and raise funds, grants, and endowments for the realisation of the aims of The Society.

6. To award medals, prizes etc. to persons making outstanding contribution to the sciences of Biochemistry and/or Molecular Biology.

7. To award stipends, scholarships and/or research grants to students of outstanding academic calibre.

8. To undertake such other activities as are deemed conducive to the above mentioned objectives.