Iran Holds 6th Int’l Genetics Congress
The three-day congress was held under the theme of ‘genetics for health; food security; conservation of genetic resources, immediate needs and future necessity’.
The congress which is held every two years pursued the objective of sharing the latest global scientific achievements among genetic professors, researchers, and experts.
International universities from Iraq, Afghanistan, and Russia cooperated with Shahid Beheshti University to hold the congress this year, said the head of the Iranian Genetics Society.
While there are 13 climates or variable weather conditions across the world, Iran benefits from eleven climate diversity which has resulted in a variety of genetic and plant diversity. It is considered a highly valuable natural resource for the country, Mokhtar Jalali Jouran said.
The value of the biological, plant, and animal genetic diversity in Iran is far more than the oil and gas, he stressed.
In terms of genetic science production, Iran ranks 2nd in the region and 22nd worldwide, the scientific secretary of the congress said.
Researchers from 15 countries namely Canada, Spain, the Netherlands, Finland, Australia, the U.S., Germany, New Zealand, Sweden, Hungary, Russia, Afghanistan, Iraq, and Turkey have submitted articles to the Congress, he said.
Out of 794 submitted articles, 758 have been accepted. 64 articles will be presented in the form of lectures and 694 in the form of posters, he said.
The accepted articles were in the fields of human genetics (475), plant genetics (188), animal genetics (179), ethics and biosafety (29), stem cells, and micro-organisms (15).
There will be 20 lecturers both online and in person; and a total of 17 educational workshops will be held during this year's congress, he added.
There are 11 types of ecosystems in the world, 9 of which are identified in Iran. Moreover, out of 42 types of wetlands, 41 types exist in the country. Therefore, Iran is one of the 20 countries rich in biodiversity and genetics.
Biological and genetic diversity in the country has caused many plants and animals to be native to Iran, currently, there are 2,100 endemic plant species in Iran.
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