PENSAR COLECTIVAMENTE, SENTIR COLECTIVAMENTE
8 ¿PROGRAMANDO LA INNOVACIÓN SINTÉTICA?
Aristóteles Góes-Neto
T
he Graduate Program in Biotechnology with emphasis in natural resources of the Brazilian Northeast region was conceived from the experience achieved through the integrated work of researchers participating in the activities of biodiversity and bioprospection of IMSEAR (Chapter 1). The accomplish- ment of this project has made possible the development of integrated work that comprised (i) survey of plant and fungal biodiversity; (ii) sampling, identification, and conservation of material for chemical and pharmacological studies; (iii) the test of extracts and pure compounds for pharmacological activities in order to produce new drugs against some important diseases in the Northeast Semi-arid such as visceral and cutaneous leishmaniasis, schistosomiasis, chagas disease and malaria. These studies also involved genetic characterization and the establishment of active germplasm banks of plants with pharmacologi- cal properties.A network of institutions in the Brazilian Northeast is responsible for putting through these studies in a collaborative effort mainly led by research groups of three institutions in the State of Bahia: (1) UEFS, which has important research groups working on plants and fungi diversity; molecular biology and genetics of plants, fungi and bacteria; studies in plant propagation; (2) FIOCRUZ, through their research groups in pharmacology, immunology and toxicology; and (3) groups of chemistry of natural products from UFBA. IMSEAR also provided the participating institutions with the necessary infrastructure, especially top-of-line equipments which are essential for the development of future activities of this graduating program. These three institutions has settled partnership agreements with private biotechnology companies which have recently opened branch units in Bahia in order to run for and get official funds, through which the group will be granted the necessary conditions to perform tests of new drugs in a scale that will enable them to assess costs and benefits of production in industrial scale.
In the beginning of 2004, SECTI in the State of Bahia urged the group to propose a graduate program in biotechnology which could meet the needs of the State for well trained professionals whose scientific knowledge would help boost technological development in the State. Thus, answering to the State’s need and counting on support from the Secretary, a proposal for a graduate program (M.Sc. and Ph.D. degrees) in Biotechnology was made to CAPES, considering that the institutions involved have qualified
132
professionals for teaching classes and supervising grad students as well as they have laboratories and equipment up to the task of supporting a graduate program in biotechnology applied to health, plant and microbiologic biotechnology.
Structure of the PPGBiotec
The PPGBiotec was approved by CAPES in May 2005, having been assigned to the area of Biological Sciences I and authorized to graduate students in two levels: master and doctorate degree, both clas- sified with grade 4 (‘good’).
The academic-administrative office of the PPGBiotec are at UEFS, but it works in a multi-institutional model that involves UEFS, FIOCRUZ’s unit in Bahia, CPqGM, besides partner institutions whose professionals participate teaching courses as well as supervising students at PPGBiotec: UFBA, UESC and UFMG. PPGBiotec presents only a single concentrating area, namely Biotechnology with Emphasis in Natural Resources of the Northeastern Region, divided in three interrelated sub-areas: Biotechnology of Microorganisms, Biotechnology in Health and Plant Biotechnology. These have five lines of research: (i) biological activities of natural, recombinant and synthetic products, (ii) tissue bio-engineering, (iii) immunopathology and immuno-intervention, (iv) characterization and management of genetic resources with biotechnological potential, and (v) functional and structural analysis of genome and proteome of plants and microorganisms. Nowadays, it offers 35 courses, 20 of them in the three sub-areas and 15 inter-area courses.
Objectives
PPGBiotec aims at forming masters and doctors to work in (i) teaching undergraduate and graduate courses; (ii) scientific development in Biotechnology, besides (iii) the applicability of products and proces- ses, including the use of technology in productive sectors. The main characteristics seek in the graduates of the PPGBiotec are:
1. qualification for working in teaching, researching and development of products;
2. multidisciplinary vision and ability to integrate teams with the objective of developing biotechno- logical processes and products with emphasis in natural resources of the Northeastern region; 3. capacity to promote integration with the industrial sector as a means to make the transference
At the master degree level, the program objectives to prepare students so that they will be able to apply the main techniques used in biotechnological processes in the line of research of their thesis.
The doctorate program aims at forming researchers with a broader view of biotechnology including its fundamental principals and its potential for scientific and technological development of the country, with special emphasis on the Northeastern region.
Faculty
The Faculty is formed by 26 doctors, 50% of them with post-doctorate, 35% of these previously qualified as doctorate advisors. Eleven professors (42%) are CNPq grantees, having received this benefit for their productivity. A total of eight professors (31%) have finished their doctorates over ten years ago, six of the doctors (23%) have got their degrees between five and ten years ago and 12 (46%) have finished their doctorate less than five years ago.
Most of the professors (18) belong to UEFS, three to FIOCRUZ, two to UFBA, two to UESC and one to UFMG. These Professors work on five different areas of knowledge: Molecular Biology, Genetics, Botany, Immunology, Microbiology and Chemistry of Natural Products
Between 2001 and 2005, these professors produced and published an average of ten articles per author in specialized journals classified as level A according to the Qualis evaluation criteria of the CAPES. Infrastructure
Students can develop their master and doctorate research activities in 15 research units and labora- tories associated with the PPGBiotec. Ten of these are at UEFS, eight at the Department of Biological Sciences: Laboratory of Microbiology (LAPEM), Laboratory of Mycology (LAMIC), Collection of Cultures of Microorganisms of Bahia (CCMB), Laboratory of Molecular Systematics of Plants (LAMOL), Unit of Applied Research in Botany, Laboratory of Plant Taxonomy (TAXON) and Herbarium (HUEFS), Laboratory of Toxicological Genetics (LAGENTOX); one at the Department of Exact Sciences: Laboratory of Chemistry of Natural and Bioactive Products (LAPRON); and one at the Department of Health: Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Chemistry and Enzymology (LQFE).
Two laboratories belong to CPqGM/FIOCRUZ: Laboratory of Tissue Engineering and Immuno-pharmacology (LETI), Laboratory of Electronic Microscopy (LME). Two labs belong to UFBA: Laboratory of Chemistry of
134
Natural Products (LQPN), Laboratory of Research on Natural Products (LPPN) and, one belongs to UESC, the Laboratory of Genomics and Genetic Expression (LGEG).
Present Situation of the PPGBiotec
Since May 2005, when the course was approved by CAPES, it was selected the first group of grads for the level of master in July 2005. The first class is formed by 12 students, 59% from the area of Biological Sciences, 33% from the area of Pharmaceutical Sciences and 8% from the area of Physical Education, all coming from teaching and research institutions in different States of Brazil. The second selection was carried out in February 2006 for the master and doctoral levels.
Interaction among Professors
Professors at PPGBiotec take part in different national research networks in the areas of Biological and Health Sciences with projects funded by MCT and MMA (CNPq, FINEP) and FAPESB. These projects are IMSEAR (Chapter 1) and PPBIO (Chapter 2), RENORBIO (Northeast Network of Biotechnology) and pro- jects on the genome and proteome of Crinipellis perniciosa, the fungus that causes the witches’ broom disease in cocoa trees.