Dr. C.N. Manjunath inaugurates 62nd International Conference of Microbiologists Association; recommends Nobel Prize for a Microbiologist for service during COVID

Mysore/Mysuru: Stressing on the need for educating children on the importance of maintaining oral health and hygiene, Dr. C.N. Manjunath, Director, Sri Jayadeva Institute of Cardiovascular Sciences and Research, Bengaluru, maintained that oral health is key for body health as food enters the body from mouth.

He was speaking after inaugurating the 3-day 62nd Annual International Conference of the Association of Microbiologists of India on ‘Microbes and Society: Current Trends and Future Prospects’ (MSCTFP-2022) at Senate Bhavan in Manasagangothri campus here on Wednesday.

Complimenting Microbiologists for developing vaccines for COVID-19 in a record time, Dr. Manjunath said thanks to genetic engineering and generic sequencing, the vaccine for the pandemic could be developed in just a year.

Highlighting the contributions of microbiologists to mankind amidst the pandemic, he said that they have done a very commendable job during times of health crisis.

“I am of the opinion that a renowned microbiologist should get the Nobel Prize either this year or next year, considering the role microbiologists have played in COVID crisis. They have worked overtime to produce vaccines  for the deadly pandemic, which has taken the lives of lakhs of people across the globe”, he noted.

Pointing out that until the COVID pandemic, only microbiologists and doctors were aware of RT-PCR test, Dr. Manjunath opined that it became a common name because of the pandemic. The test also gained importance for detecting the viral infection, he added. He further said that it is regretful to note that Antibiotics were excessively used or misused during the pandemic, which may result in side effects in the future.

University of Mysore (UoM) Vice-Chancellor Prof. G. Hemantha Kumar, Padma Shri Prof. S. Ayyappan, Chairman, KSTA, Bengaluru and former UoM VC Prof. K.S. Rangappa too spoke.

Dr. Anil Dutt Semwal, Director, DRDO-DFRL,Mysuru, Prof. R.C. Kuhad, Chairman, Academy of Microbiological Sciences, AMI, New Delhi, Prof. Praveen Rishi, President, AMI, General Secretary Prof. Namita Singh, Prof. S. Satish and Prof. S. Chandra Nayaka, Organising Chairpersons, MSCTFP-2022 and others were present.