Tamil Nadu Veterinary and Animal Sciences University to set up nanotechnology centre

CHENNAI: The Tamil Nadu Veterinary and Animal Sciences University plans to set up a nanotechnology centre on the university's Madhavaram campus this year.
University vice-chancellor Dr R Prabakaran said, "We have been engaged in research in the field in bits and pieces in different departments now. All the research will be brought under a single umbrella at the centre."
He said that the university was engaged in nanotechnology research in vaccine and drug delivery and the delivery of nutrition supplements in targetted areas of the body."Now if we need to get 400mg of a drug dosage into the system we are forced to give 600mg because 200mg is wasted and gets out of the body through the excreta. Through nanotechnology targetted delivery will be possible, avoiding wastage of medicines."
The university has submitted a proposal for Rs15 crore to the board of management for equipment for the centre. The infrastructure is ready at the Madhavaram campus, and the equipment can also be used for translational research as well, university officials said.
Plans for the coming year include setting up a corpus fund to provide research grants to young scientists and the establishment of an Industry-University Collaborative Research Consortium.
The university is set to hold its 15th convocation day on Friday. A total of 225 graduands, including 135 BVSc & AH, 19 BTech (Food Processing Technology), five MPhil, 32 MVSc, seven MFSc, six PhD and one PG Diploma, will be awarded degrees in person on the occasion. As many as 51 graduate and postgraduate students will receive the degrees in absentia.
Dr Prabakaran said 99 medals will be awarded to students for academic excellence. Dr J C Jeba Rose Jennifer, a BVSc & AH student, will be awarded 27 gold medals for her academic merit on Friday. While BVSc & AH students will bag 44 medals, BTech (Food Processing Technology) students will get two medals, BFSc & AH students will get five, MVSc 27, MFSc 2 and PhD eight.
This will be the last year that the UG and PG courses will be offered under the university. The state has set up a new Tamil Nadu Fisheries University in Nagapattinam.
The university is engaged in 154 research projects now, including 53 research projects over the last year with a funding of Rs45.11 crore over the last year. Tanuvas plans to focus on developing new generation vaccines against emerging and re-emerging diseases of livestock and poultry.