Dr. Teruo Ishige (left) and Dr. Sombat Chinawong after signing the Memorandum of Understanding at the Department of Agriculture, Kasetsart University at Kamphaeng Saen, Thailand.

NIAS signs MOU with Kasetsart University at Kamphaeng Saen, Thailand, to enhance international research collaboration

      The President of the National Institute of Agrobiological Sciences (NIAS), Dr. Teruo Ishige, visited the Faculty of Agriculture, KasetsartUniversity at Kamphaeng Saen, Thailand, on May 10th 2006. While at Dr. Ishige met with the Dean of the Faculty of Agriculture, Dr. Sombat Chinawong, and they discussed the research of their institutes. A joint Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) aimed at enhancing research collaboration between NIAS and the Faculty of Agriculture, KasetsartUniversity at Kamphaeng Saen, was signed during their meeting. The MOU specifically highlights legumes as an area where collaborative research would bring together the comparative advantages of both institutes. NIAS has the world’s most diverse germplasm collection of the Asian Vigna, that includes azuki bean and mungbean. The Faculty of Agriculture, KasetsartUniversity, is a center of excellence for mungbean breeding. In addition, several other areas of possible collaboration were discussed including research at both institutes related to silkworm and the efficient production of novel traits in crops. During the visit of Dr. Ishige toured research facilities at the Kasetsart Campus at Kamphaeng Saen and met with the staff and graduate students.

Dr. Teruo Ishige tours facilities of the Agronomy Department of Kasetsart University with Dr. Orawan Chatchawankan Panich (center) and Professor Peerasak (right) where various crops with novel traits are being developed.

      Previously NIAS and KasetsartUniversity have collaborated on the Rice Genome Project. KasetsartUniversity participated in the sequencing of chromosome 9 of rice. Several staff and students from KasetsartUniversity have visited NIAS to conduct research. With the signing of this MOU the relations between NIAS and KasetsartUniversity have now been put in a framework that will more easily facilitate research collaboration.

      This MOU is the third that NIAS has developed with key agriculture institutes outside Japan to enhance international research collaboration. Last year NIAS signed MOU with the Agronomy Departments of University of Minnesota and CornellUniversity in the United States.

      Before leaving Kasetsart University Dr. Ishige invited Dean Sombat, who graduated from Tsukuba University, Japan, to visit NIAS in the near future.