Programme de bourses "Echanges Universitaires"

Teaching Molecular Biology at the University of Mysore

We, Martin Ernst (MES) and Anne-Marie Schweingruber (AMS), both former “Dozenten” at the University of Bern for Molecular- and Microbiology, initiated in 2008 a teaching program at the Department of Biochemistry of the State University of Mysore (State Karnataka, South India) in 2008. The course was thought to improve the training of students in Molecular Biology - an important research area in the upcoming biotechnological industry in India. Mainly due to the financial support by the KFPE we could teach the course in an improved form for a second time in 2009 (see KFPE - Projects - Echanges Universitaires). The courses were appreciated by the students and the scientific staff. We therefore, with the financial help of the University Exchange Program, will repeat the course during January to beginning March in 2010. The course will consist of a series of lectures dealing with Methods of Gene Technology and Prokaryotic Gene Expression and of a laboratory course in basic Molecular Biological Methods including isolation of DNA, restriction analysis, cloning of a yeast gene and some other methods. Lectures will be given by MES (about 20 lessons) and the practical course including the theoretical introduction by AMS (twice on 10 days with 16 students each). In addition to the teaching of the students it is our goal by an extra 5-day course to prepare assistants and scientific staff in such a way that starting in 2011 they can realize the courses on their own. We think the teaching project will help to increase the chances for students to get a PhD position at Life Science Departments of good Indian Federal Universities, universities abroad as for example in Switzerland or a job in private biotechnical companies.

Courses in Molecular Biology at the University of Mysore

As described in detail in our last SDC Grant Proposal for the University Exchange Program and the corresponding “ Schlussbericht”, we, Martin Ernst Schweingruber (MES) and Anne-Marie Schweingruber (AMS), both former “Dozenten” at the Institute for Cell Biology of the University of Bern, are engaged in teaching Molecular Biology at the University of Mysore. After our retirement from the University of Berne at the end of 2007 we sent scientific equipment and biochemical reagents to the Department of Biochemistry of the University of Mysore and on the initiative and help of the director of the Department set up a course in Molecular Biology for the students in Biochemistry. The course included lectures and practical bench work and lasted two months in 2008. The positive feedback we got from the students and the teaching staff motivated us to repeat the course in a modified version in January 2009. For this course we got a substantial financial support for biochemical reagents, scientific equipment and living costs by the KFPE (for details see:  “SDC Grant Proposal for the University Exchange Program” and the corresponding “ Schlussbericht” by M.E. and A.M. Schweingruber). Also this course was well received by students and the teaching staff of the Department. Since we feel we should for the sake of “Nachhaltigkeit “ (see below) give this course a third time in 2010 we would like to ask the KFPE again for a financial support.

Teaching program

We will organize the courses as last year. On one hand MES will give lectures concerning gene expression in procaryotes and basic methods in gene technology and AMS will teach and supervise the lab courses. The teaching program will be organized again in 3 sections:

1. Introductory course about Methods of Gene Technology (10 lectures of 60 min; Basic literature: Lodish et al. Molecular Cell Biology, 2008)
2.  Course about prokaryotic gene expression  (10 lectures of 60 min; Basic literature: Lewin, Genes IX, chapters 11,12,13,14; 2008).
3. Practical laboratory course in Basic Molecular Biological Methods including isolation of DNA, restriction analysis, agarose gel electrophoresis, cloning of a yeast gene and other methods. The course will be given twice on 10 days with each 16 students. In addition we plan a short (5 days) introductory course fort the assistants and part of the teaching staff.

As last year we plan to teach from January to beginning March in 2010.

This will be the third time we organize and teach this course in Molecular Biology at the University of Mysore. As reported in detail last year in our “ SDC Grant Proposal for the University Exchange Program” grant application and the corresponding „Schlussbericht“ we initiated the first course in 2008 on our own initiative. Taking in account the experience from this course we modified and extended the next course which was financially supported by the KFPE. For the course of 2010 we plan to put substantial efforts in the training of the assistants and teaching staff that has already been designated last year (see „Schlussbericht“). One of the goals of the course in 2010 is that the teaching staff together with the assistants can organize and teach the practical course on their own in the following years.

Financial Request

We ask for a financial support that will cover two thirds of our travel expenses and living costs. For the last course we spent for these items totally about sFr. 7600.- (see „Abrechnung über das Projekt „Teaching Molecular Biology at the University of Mysore“ vom 1. 1. 2009 bis 28. 2.  2009  im Rahmen des Programmes Echanges Universitaires“).  The amount we ask therefore for 2010 is sFr. 5000.- ( sFr. 2000.- for  travel- and sFr. 3000.-  for  living expenses during two months).

The money for reagents and equipment required for the practical lab courses will be paid  by the Department of Biochemistry of the University Mysore.

Relevance

The relevance of our project stays the same as already formulated for the last year courses: Biotechnology is expected to be a booming field in the future in India and like in Information Technology many new jobs will be created. An important research area in Biotechnology is Molecular Biology. Unsatisfactory training in this field at many State Universities means that chances to get a job in a private Biotechnology company or a PhD position in one of the good Indian Federal Universities or at a University abroad including Switzerland are very low for students with poor parents.

We think that with our teaching program this chance will be increased at least for the students in Life Sciences at the University of Mysore. (It might be noted that last year 3 students out of 32 attending our courses at the Department of Biochemistry managed to get a seat to do a PhD in one of the top laboratories of India where they were competing with 100’000 to 200’000 students across the country for maybe 100 to 200 seats altogether. The number of students that made or will make it this year is not known yet.) Furthermore, we think students will learn how science is taught at European Universities and this will stimulate the teaching program of those that will teach later at Indian colleges.

If we succeed that the practical lab courses can be perpetuated in the following years by the Indian assistants and scientific staff the project will also have a certain long range effect (“Nachhaltigkeit”).

Picture1: M.E. Schweingruber giving a lecture

Picture2: A.M. Schweingruber demonstrating laboratory techniques

Contacts

MES and AMS
Prof. Martin Ernst Schweingruber
Dr. Anne-Marie Schweingruber-Geelhaar
Schönbergweg 12
CH-3006 Bern
Switzerland
Tel: 031 352 3119
E-mail: me.schweingruber@bluewin.ch

Prof. B. S. Vishwanath
Prof. C. D’Souza
Department of Biochemistry
University of Mysore
Manasagangotri
Mysore
India
E-mail: vishmy@yahoo.co.uk