ISAJ Newsletter - Volume 1, Issue 1 (March 2016)

From the Editor’s Desk

Greetings and warm welcome to the first issue of ISAJ Newsletter. We are very excited to present the bimonthly newsletter to our community. Our goal is to keep you informed of the ISAJ activities and to offer you substantial information about the achievements of our members in their respective fields of research.

This inaugural issue comprises “Introduction to ISAJ”, “Historical Perspective”, “New in Science”, and “From the Pen of Young Mind”. From the next issue onwards we are going to replace the first two sections by “Editor’s Choice” and “Book Review”. Considering the multidisciplinary nature of our community, we will always endeavor to maintain brevity and clarity while presenting the contents.

Introduction to ISAJ

The Indian Scientists Association in Japan (ISAJ) is a non-profit organization founded in 2008 to provide an organizational framework to promote greater interaction between Indian scientists/researchers working in Japan and the Japanese scientific community. ISAJ coordinates, delivers and provides a platform for networking and exchange of information, organizes scientific seminars and special lectures as well as the annual ISAJ scientific symposium for the development and strengthening of research networks.

Our Mission

• To facilitate greater interaction between Indian scientists/researchers based in Japan, as well as Indian and Japanese researchers, for the development and strengthening of research networks
• To help in building a bridge between Japanese and Indian research organizations to undertake collaborative research projects mutually beneficial to both the countries
• To organize scientific seminars and special lectures, symposia to disseminate information about research activities
• To share the experience of culture and way of life in Japan for young researchers in India planning to pursue their academic/research career in Japan

Chairman’s Welcome Message

Dr. Sunil Kaul, Chairman, ISAJ

Indian Scientists Association in Japan (ISAJ), initiated in 2008, has a firm goal to generate and promote interactions among Indian scientists, and connect them with Japanese scientists and for a successful living in Japan. ISAJ has been greatly endorsed for conducting highly interactive and multidisciplinary regular seminars and symposia in diverse disciplines of science. This new initiative of bringing out Newsletter is a step-up to provide regular update on ISAJ activities and broaden its recognition, connectivity and outcomes in Japan and overseas.

Historical Perspectives: Journey So Far

ISAJ was conceived and structured in 2008, formally inaugurated by Prof. Chidambaram, Principal Scientific Adviser to Government of India on January 19, 2009, and registered as a Non Profit Organization (NPO) in Japan since 2010. We have organized six annual symposia at Tokyo, thirteen interactive lectures by the Tsukuba Chapter and several seminars/meetings by the Tokyo Chapter and other regional chapters.

Annual ISAJ Symposia Highlights

• 1st Symposium (October 7, 2010): “India-Japan Symposium on Emerging Technologies” - 91 presentations including 11 plenary lectures
• 2nd Symposium (October 7, 2011): “India-Japan Symposium on Global Challenges in Health and Environment” - Dedicated to the 2011 Great Tohoku Earthquake victims
• 3rd Symposium (September 20-21, 2012): “Frontiers in Science & Technology” - Commemorating 60th anniversary of India-Japan diplomatic relations
• 4th Symposium (October 11, 2013): “Emerging Materials for Health, Environment, and Safety”
• 5th Symposium (December 1, 2014): “Advances in Natural Sciences & Technologies” - First Students and Young PI Sessions
• 6th Symposium (December 4, 2015): “Recent Advances in Sciences & Technologies” - 41 posters presented by young scholars

New in Science: Gravitational Waves

By Dr. Neeraj Kumar, Max Planck Institute of Microstructure Physics, Germany

Direct observations of gravitational waves eluded researchers until 2015, when gravitational waves generated from a merger of two massive black holes were detected at the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatories (LIGO) in US. Energy equivalent to 3 solar masses were radiated in form of gravitational waves, which took nearly 1.3 billion years to reach Earth.

This discovery validates Einstein’s General Theory of Relativity and opens up new spectrums for the discovery of objects unobservable otherwise. KAGRA Japan, being setup in tunnels of Kamioka mine, is expected to start operations in 2018. The Government of India has given preliminary approval for LIGO-India, which will join the global network of detectors.

From the Pen of Young Mind: Dengue Research

By Manjiri R. Kulkarni, Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology

Dengue viruses cause approximately 100 million infections and thousands of deaths annually, with no approved drug or vaccine available. In current research focusing on envelope domain 3s (ED3) of virus envelope protein, we found that individual protein domain (ED3) of dengue gave highly sero-specific immune responses.

This is the first study demonstrating such responses, with ELISA indicating that epitope regions E1 and E2 are responsible for sero-specificity in DEN3 ED3 and DEN4 ED3 serotypes. These findings advance our understanding of antibody-antigen interactions crucial for vaccine development.

Best Poster Awardees - 6th ISAJ Symposium 2015

• Amrita Dudani (Saitama University): “Synergistic action of motilin and ghrelin facilitates different responses in various parts of the Suncus stomach in vitro”
• N. Fujita (The University of Tokyo): “A novel long-period structure formed in a high-pressure synthesized Mg-Zn-Yb alloy”
• Khateeb NOOR Ul Huda (The University of Tokyo): “Numerical simulation of bubbly flows in an aeration tank with biochemical reactions”
• Xin JI (National Institute for Material Science): “Effect of graded β phase stability on deformation behavior in a metastable β-Ti alloy”
• Ambika Dudhate (The University of Tokyo): “Functional analysis of defense related transcription factors in rice against sheath blight pathogen Rhizoctonia solani”