Remarkable work by Bangladeshi scientists

A team of Bangladeshi scientists at the Child Health Research Foundation (CHRF) led by Dr Senjuti Saha has successfully managed to complete the genome sequencing of SARS-CoV-2 virus in Bangladesh, as this newspaper reported on Thursday. It is a remarkable achievement that will play a significant role in developing a vaccine for this deadly virus. Vaccines will be injecting RNA of the virus into the body of patients to help it build antibodies against the disease. In order for it to work, the RNA in the vaccine needs to match the RNA of the particular virus strain.

As the strain of the virus constantly keeps mutating, it is necessary to know the type of virus strain hitting the country. Although the genome sequencing of the virus has been done thousands of times around the world, this is the first time it has been done in Bangladesh, getting us one step closer to knowing what type of particular vaccine is necessary to protect the people in this country. Furthermore, genome sequencing of the virus will help scientists determine which country it came from and when it came into Bangladesh, helping them make better predications such as when the virus will reach its peak. The team of scientists has also made the sequencing protocol public, letting vaccine makers know what needs to be incorporated into their vaccine design, and giving other laboratories in the country a chance to use it to train themselves to start sequencing samples.

This achievement once again illustrates what our scientists can achieve with the right support. We hope the government takes notice of this and acknowledges the importance of what this group of bright scientists has managed to do. In order for scientists to follow up and accomplish crucial breakthroughs like this, they have to be supported financially and in other ways. This accomplishment provides further proof that increased support and investment in various scientific fields is justified and, in fact, a necessity—the times we live in demands it!