The Ministry of Education founded the Indian Institute of Science Education & Research Kolkata in 2006 to conduct top-notch research and provide undergraduate and graduate instruction in a research setting.

IISER Kolkata conducted a press conference where they announced a few important scientific developments.

The vital scientific developments are:

• Cellular malfunctions in our bodies can lead to malignancies such as colorectal cancer and issues from diabetes. A mechanism identified by Prof. Rahul Das and his colleagues at the Department of Biological Sciences, IISER Kolkata, suggests that a protein named tyrosine phosphatase may be the source of these issues. If one can control the protein, one can be cured of several diseases.
• Drinking plenty of water is essential to our safety during the intense heat wave. When you’re outside in the heat, nothing could be more calming than fresh coconut water. However, are you concerned if the coconut was cultivated in soil that contains arsenic? Despite the presence of arsenic in the soil, Prof. Gopala Krishna Darbha and his team from the Department of Earth Sciences, IISER Kolkata, have discovered that coconut water is safe.

Coconut trees can exclude the potentially toxic elements or PTEs. Coconuts act like a natural filter and hence they prevent toxins from entering the fruit.

Hence one can consume coconut water and avoid the preservative and sugar-rich health drinks on offer at the market.

• India wants to attain net zero carbon emissions by the year 2070. Professor Swadhin Mondal and his colleagues from the Department of Chemical Sciences, IISER Kolkata, have become members of the elite group of sustainability researchers by creating a novel technique for using atmospheric carbon dioxide to create olefins in a laboratory. Chemicals known as olefins are frequently employed in the cosmetic and pharmaceutical industries.

With the help of these amazing innovations, the institute is contributing immensely to the world.

Priyanka Dutta