IUCr–UNESCO Summit Meetings

IYCr2014 South Asia Summit Declaration

The IYCr2014 South Asia Summit Declaration took the form of an Appeal letter, with 53 signatories, addressed to the President of the IUCr. This letter is published below.

[Signing the declaration]
Initial signatories of the Summit Declaration. Seated at table (from left): M. Iqbal Choudhary, Pinakpani Chakrabarti, Zhie Jie Liu, Atta-ur-Rahman.

Appeal 

29th April, 2014

Prof. Gautam Desiraju
International Union of Crystallography
UK

Dear President:

We are pleased to report that the IYCr South Asia Summit Meeting on Vistas in Structural Chemistry in Karachi, Pakistan during April 28-30, 2014, has provided us an opportunity to extensively discuss and review the status of education and research in X-ray diffraction sciences in various countries and in the region.

Over 380 senior researchers and young students from some 22 countries have participated in the event. Many of us were engaged in extensive discussions focusing on the promotion of regional and international cooperation in the field of X-ray diffraction/crystallography/drug design and discovery, in line with the objectives of the International Year of Crystallography.

Through this letter, we request the IUCr to initiate actions to promote regional scientific collaboration including joint holding of training workshops, video-based lecturing, encouraging mobility of researchers, promoting joint research projects, leveraging national bodies and institutions for financial support and facilitating regional conferences on the subject of X-ray diffraction and its applications in the South Asian and East Asian regions.

With very best regards

Sincerely yours

Download the Summit declaration in pdf format

Atta-ur-RahmanKarachi University
Pinak ChakrabartiBose Institute, India;
President, AsCA
Zhi Jie LiuShanghai Tech. University
M. Iqbal ChoudharyICCBS, Karachi, Pakistan
Siddhartha P. SarmaIISc, Bangalore
Christian BetzelUniversity Hamburg, Germany
Ram VishwakarmaI.I.I.M. CSIR
P. K. BharadwajIIT Kanpur
M. Aslam BaigNCP Islamabad
C. M. AshrafRSC Pakistan (Section Lahore)
Bohari M. YaminUniv. Kebangsann Malaysia
Ashwini NangiaUniv. Hyderabad
Kumar BiradhaIIT, Kharagpur
Kevin RobertsUniversity of Leeds, UK
Vinitha M. ThadhaniI. Chem, Sri Lanka
Sammer YousufIIEJRIC (ICCBS)
Dr M. Nawaz TahirUniversity of Sargodha
Maqsood AhmedThe Islaimia University of Bahawalpur, Pakistan
Abdul Rauf SiddiqiCOMSATS, CIIT, Islamabad
A. RamananIIT, Delhi
S. NatarajanIISc, Bangalore
Aliya AbbasiHEJ Res. Inst. Chem. (ICCBS)
Bina S. SiddiquiHEJ Res. Inst. Chem. (ICCBS)
Fatima Z. BashaHEJ Res. Inst. Chem. (ICCBS)
Siti Fairus Mohd YusoffUniversiti Kebangsann Malaysia
Ahmed Akram AttariBiology, Bahauddin Zakariya University
Abida RehmanDept of Chemistry, Uni. of Cambridge, UK
Dr Zahid HussainDept of Chem. University of Karachi
Dr Sonia SiddiquiDr Panjwani Centre for Molecular Medicine and Drug Research, UoK
Dr Atia-tul-Wahab Dr Panjwani Centre for Molecular Medicine and Drug Research
Dr Sajid JahangirDept of Chemistry, Federal Urdu University
Dr Reaz UddinPanjwani Center (ICCBS)
Dr Sobia RanaDr Panjwani Center
Dr Uzma AshiqDept of Chemistry, University of Karachi, Pakistan
Dr Masooda QadriDept of Chemistry
Dr Samiyah TasleemDept of Microbiology, FUUAST, Karachi
S. Abid AliHEJ
Rifat Ara JamalDepartment of Chemistry, University of Karachi
Dr Huma Aslam BhattiICCBS
Dr Moaz ur RahmanNIBGE, Pak.
Dr Mumtaz AliDept of Chemistry, University of Malakand, Pakistan
Prof. Dr Sabire BegumICCBS, Univ. of Karachi
Dr Umar FarooqCOMSATS
Dr Syed Ghulam MusharrafICCBS
Dr Farhan A. KhanCOMSATS
Dr Abdul HameedICCBS
Dr Syed Tarique MoinICCBS
On behalf of all PhD students Mujeed-ur-RahmanICCBS, Karachi, Pakistan
Dr Achyut AdhilaiICCBS, Karachi, Pakistan

Programme (last update: 14 April 2014) | Download the programme in PDF format  

Monday, April 28, 2014

9.15-10.40: Session I - Inauguration Ceremony
Prof. Salimuzzaman Siddiqui Auditorium, ICCBS

Chair: Mr. Aziz Latif Jamal, Husein Ebrahim Jamal Foundation

9.15 Guests seated
9.20 Mr. Aziz Latif JamalHusein Ebrahim Jamal Foundation - Welcome Remarks
9.25 Prof. Dr. Iqbal Choudhary, Director, ICCBS - Remarks
9.30 Prof. Dr. Samar S. Hasnain, Editor-in-Chief of IUCr Journals - Introduction to the Event
9.40 Ms. Kozue Kay Nagata, Director, UNESCO Islamabad - Remarks
9.45 Ms. Amina Imran Khan, Secretary General, PNC, UNESCO Islamabad - Remarks
9.50 Dr. Imtinan Elahi Qureshi, Executive Director, COMSATS - Remarks
9.55 Prof. Dr. Gautam R. Desiraju, President, International Union of Crystallography - Address
10.05 Prof. Dr. Atta-ur-Rahman, President, Pakistan Academy of Sciences and Chairman Organizing Committee - Address
10.15 Chief GuestInaugural Address
10.30 Dr. Sammer YousufVote of Thanks

10.40-11.00 Group Photo and Reception at the Multipurpose Hall

11.00-12.00: Session II - Metal-Organic Framework Compounds (MOF)
Prof. Salimuzzaman Siddiqui Auditorium, ICCBS

Chair: Nawaz Tahir

11.00 Chen Xiao-MingX-ray crystallographic studies on dynamic and functional coordination polymers
11.20 P. K. BharadwajSingle crystal to single crystal transformations in metal-organic frameworks
11.40 Shilun QiuMOF membrane: Synthesis, Adsorption for Green Application

12.00-13.00 PANEL DISCUSSION 

Panel Chair: S. Natarajan
Panelists: K. Biradha, Bu Xian-He, Cheng-Yong Su, R. Brakaspathy, C.G. Groom, A.A. Attari, Arif Kazmi
Core questions:
  1. What is the difference between MOFs and coordination polymers?
  2. Can the CSD handle MOFs properly?
  3. What should funding policies be for this area? In countries other than China, what should be done?
  4. What is the future? What are the directions?
  5. How can regional cooperation be fostered in the MOFs and related area?
13.00-14.00 Lunch (Multipurpose Hall, ICCBS)

14.00-15.20: Session III - Crystal Engineering and Generic Pharmaceuticals
Prof. Salimuzzaman Siddiqui Auditorium, ICCBS

Chair: G.R. Desiraju

14.00 Ashwini NangiaOverview of Pharma Patent Landscape in India
14.20 K.J. Roberts, Synthonic Engineering: Molecular Scale Tools for the Rational Design of High Quality Crystals for Pharmaceutical Formulation
14.40 Eric Hovestreydt, Double Dose: combining Single-Crystal and Powder XRD for Analysis of Pharmaceutical Materials
15.00 Ghazala SadiqInformatic approaches to solid form analysis and design

15.20-16.20 PANEL DISCUSSION 

Panel Chairs: A. Nangia, K.J. Roberts
Panelists: Abdul-Haseeb Khan, Miao Du, Humaira Mufti, A. Ramanan, K. Biradha
Core questions:
  1. Salts and co-crystals. Is it still a problem?
  2. Regulatory definition of “co-crystal”
  3. Polymorphs and pseudo-polymorphs. Are they the same?
  4. Legal questions in generic pharmaceuticals 
16.20-17.00 Tea/Coffee Break (Multipurpose Hall, ICCBS)

17.00-18.30 City Tour & Shopping Visits

20.00 Dinner (Port Grand, established in 1927 by the Royal British Navy)

Tuesday, April 29, 2014

9.00-11.00: Session IV - Chemistry-Biology Interface and Drug Discovery and Designing
Prof. Salimuzzaman Siddiqui Auditorium, ICCBS

Chair: S.S. Hasnain

9.00 Zihe RaoA powerful virus inhibitor from structure-based analysis of HV71
9.15 R. VishwakarmaChallenges in new drug discovery in South Asia: Can they be overcome?
9.30 Abdul Rauf SiddiqiStructural studies of proteins involved in nitric oxide signaling pathways
9.45 Zhie-Jie LiuInhibition of MTHFS in human MCF-7 breast cancer cells and rational drug design
10.00 Sammer YousufDiscovery of anti-leishmanial leads from natural leads

10.15-11.00 PANEL DISCUSSION 

Panel Chair: S. Sivaram
Panelists: P. Chakrabarti, R. Viswakarma, D. Yogeswara Rao, Aslam Baig, M. Iqbal Choudhary, Maqsood Ahmed
Core questions:
  1. Can we afford drug design of new molecules in the SE Asian region?
  2. Role of Natural products in drug discovery and development
  3. The status of the field in the region in the international context
  4. Are there lessons to be learnt from the best practice in the region?
  5. Relevance of this discipline for economic growth and welfare of the region
  6. Challenges of informing funding policymakers for the benefits of the field
  7. Regional symposia, workshops, exchange of staff & students and shared facilities
  8. Role of national academies and IUCr for improving regional collaboration
11.00-11.15 Tea/Coffee Break (Multipurpose Hall, ICCBS)

11.15-13.00: Session V - Crystallography and complementary methods
Prof. Salimuzzaman Siddiqui Auditorium, ICCBS

Chair: Moaz ur Rahman

11.15 E. Arunan, Structure of molecular complexes in the gas phase: Are they relevant to solid state?
11.35 Bohari YaminStructural and biological studies of some calix[4]resorcinarene
11.55 S.P. Sarma, NMR structural characterization of Novel Conotoxins from Marine Snails
12.15 Atia-tul-Wahab, NMR Spectroscopy in structural biology
12.35 Maqsood Ahmed, Crystallography at high resolution: X-Rays charge density analysis of small molecules and proteins

13.00-14.00 Lunch (Multipurpose Hall, ICCBS)

14.00-15.00: Session VI - Summit Lecture
Prof. Salimuzzaman Siddiqui Auditorium, ICCBS

Chair: M. Nalecz

Atta-ur-RahmanPromotion of higher education, science and technology and international cooperation in Pakistan

15.00-17.00: Session VII - IUCr: Union & Journals
Prof. Salimuzzaman Siddiqui Auditorium, ICCBS

Chair: S.S. Hasnain

15.00 M.H. DacombeIUCr membership & what it offers
15.20 S.S. HasnainIUCr journals: Heritage & Future
15.40 G.R. DesirajuChemistry journals of IUCr. Acta B/C/E and IUCrJ. A comprehensive coverage for Chemists
16.00 Cheng-Yong SuIUCrJ Chemistry
16.15 Zhie-jie LiuIUCrJ Biology
16.30 G.R. Desiraju & S.S. HasnainDiscussion from the floor & Summing up of session

17.00-17.15 Tea/Coffee Break (Multipurpose Hall, ICCBS)

17.15-18.15: Session VIII - Mini-Talks Session
Prof. Salimuzzaman Siddiqui Auditorium, ICCBS

Chair: Vijaya Kumar 

17.15 Vinitha M. ThadhaniMethods of developing new secondary metabolites
17.25 Siti Fairus M. YusoffStructural Study of Protonated 5,5,7,12,12,14-hexamethyl-1,4,8,11-tetraazacyclotetradeca-7,14-dienium Complexes with Copper Salts
17.35 Moazur RahmanFunctional and structural characterization of a MDR pump of Salmonella typhi
17.45 Sadaf IqbalCharachterization and the crystal structure  dtetermination of a papain-like systeine protease from the bulbs of Crocus sativus
17.55 Hamizah Mohd ZakiReaction of ethylenediamine and 2,4-diamino-6-methyl-1,3,5-trazine with oxalic acid in the presence of ammonium thiocyanate
18.05 Ahmed Akrem Attari, Crystallographic structure analysis of Chitinase enzyme from corms of Crocus vernus

18.30-19.15 Visit of the ICCBS Institutions

20.30 Dinner (ICCBS Lawns)

Wednesday, April 30, 2014

9.00-11.00: Session IX - Summit Concluding Session
Prof. Salimuzzaman Siddiqui Auditorium, ICCBS

Chair: Atta-ur-Rahman

9.00 Zihe Rao
9.15 Shilun Qiu
9.30 S. Sivaram
9.45 Suresh Das
10.00 Aslam Baig
10.15 M. Iqbal Choudhary

10.30-11.00 Tea/Coffee Break (Multipurpose Hall, ICCBS)

11.00-12.30 PANEL DISCUSSION

Panel Chairs: G.R. Desiraju, M. Nalecz
Panelists: Chen Xiao-Ming, Zihe Rao, S. Sivaram, S. Das, Alsam Baig, M. Iqbal Choudhary, R. Brakaspathy, D. Yogeswara Rao, S.S. Hasnain, K. Byrappa, Zhie-Jie Liu, K. Lal, Jved Iqbal Akhter
Core questions:
  1. Modalities for setting up schemes for Regional Cooperation
  2. Setting up of a regional fund for increasing human mobility
  3. Regional training centre of crystallography
  4. Role of synchrotron in crystallography
  5. Can UNESCO and IUCr help?

12.30-14.00 Lunch
14.00-15.00 Closing Ceremony (including Summit Declaration)
15.00-15.30 Closing Reception
15.30-17.00 Shopping Visit / Visits to Art Galleries

20.30 Dinner at Do Darya (Beach Resort at the Arabian Sea)

Presentations from the scientific sessions are now available to download. 

Day 1

Metal-Organic Framework Compounds (MOF)

Crystal Engineering and Generic Pharmaceuticals

Regional Development

Day 2

Chemistry-Biology Interface and Drug Discovery and Designing

Crystallography and complementary methods

IUCr: Union and Journals

Mini-Talks Session

Day 3

Summit concluding session

It is my great pleasure to invite you to attend a summit meeting on “Vistas in Structural Chemistry” which will be held between 28th and 30th April, 2014 at the International Center for Chemical and Biological Sciences, University of Karachi, Karachi, Pakistan. This summit celebrates the International Year of Crystallography 2014 and is one of four that have been planned and envisaged for next year by the IUCr and UNESCO, the lead custodians for IYCr2014. Prominent scientists and science policymakers from China, India and Pakistan (including representation from industry) will come together to provide a platform for a general discussion on the present status and future of scientific research, with particular emphasis on structural chemistry in South and East Asia.

Structural chemists, chemical crystallographers and those who work at the emerging structural chemistry/biology interface from China, India and Pakistan, and also neighbouring countries in South and South East Asia, will be invited to participate. The main objective of the event is to identify and celebrate cutting edge research through high level scientific talks, and also to analyze problems that impede a wider outreach and dissemination of scientific pursuits in this rapidly growing part of the world. Funding models, top down and bottom up approaches, large crystallographic facilities, regional collaborations, and an increase in individual-to-individual interactions in these countries will be among the topics that are proposed to be discussed. I will lookforward to welcoming you next year in Karachi on behalf of MoSTPakistan, ICCBS, CAS, INSA, PAS and COMSATS.

PROF. DR. ATTA-UR-RAHMAN, FRS, N.I., H.I., S.I., T.I.
Patron in Chief
International Center for Chemical and Biological Sciences
and
President
Pakistan Academy of Sciences
This regional event will provide a platform for structural chemists and biologists from countries including Afghanistan, Bangladesh, China, India, Nepal, Pakistan, Singapore, Sri Lanka and Vietnam to share their findings with science administrators and industry representatives, in order to develop a convergence of experiences and opinion and a greater understanding about the tremendous benefits of structural chemistry with an emphasis in drug discovery and solid form development of active pharmaceutical ingredients.

This summit meeting also aims to bring together scientists from three countries, Pakistan, India and China, having more or less same culture and common problems and aspirations, and therefore they may be able to develop common solutions.

The proposed event is envisaged with the following objectives:
  1. To provide a platform to discuss the issues and challenges faced by the researchers and pharmaceutical industry, relevant to the research in areas of chemical crystallography, structural chemistry and pharmaceutical sciences. 
  2. To provide a platform to the young researchers to interact with the leading scientists and crystallographers from three countries together with aforementioned neighboring countries in order to discuss different issues and challenges facing in these growing areas of sciences.
  3. To establish a bridge between the researchers and the related pharmaceutical industries  to address the specific problems, and needs of the high tech. pharmaceutical industrial growth in the region. 
  4. Government representatives will be invited to a discussion together with representatives from UNESCO and National and Regional Research Centers, decision-making scientists with a leading role in their respective countries, and delegates from companies, to delineate future perspectives, and possible implementation in this area of crystallography that is well developed in this region.
  5. To identify areas of common interest and to plan for a meaningful and vigorous practical collaboration between the researchers and centers.

Introduction to the scientific sessions

Structure, along with synthesis and dynamics, constitutes one of the three pillars of modern chemistry. Structural chemistry has been enriched with developments in the areas of crystallography and NMR spectroscopy. Structure is an all pervasive theme in chemistry ranging from the simplest molecules and molecular aggregates to complex biomolecular entities and their modes of action in living systems. X-ray crystallography is one of the most unambiguous ways of determining the three-dimensional structures of molecules. NMR provides a complementary methodology that is being used along with crystallography rather than as an alternative technique in the study of phenomena that are related to crystallization precursors, enzyme-receptor interactions and drug design. The synthesis of functional molecular solids, or crystal engineering, is a leading application of chemical crystallography and intensive efforts are ongoing in the design of organic and metal-organic framework solids (MOF) with Asian laboratories holding a key strategic position. Since the beginning of the 21st century, five of the Chemistry Nobel prizes have been awarded to crystallography based science (http://www.iucr.org/people/nobel-prize). These and other aspects of structural chemistry will be discussed extensively during the summit meeting.

Advisory Committee

Prof. Atta-ur-Rahman, FRS
Prof. Gautam R. Desiraju
Prof. Samar Hasnain

Organizing Secretary

Prof. M. Iqbal Choudhary
H.I., S.I., T.I.
Director, ICCBS

Coordinator

Dr. Sammer Yousuf

Organizing Committee

Prof. Dr. Abdul Malik, S.I.
Prof. Dr. Ahsana Dar
Prof. Dr. Arif Kazmi
Prof. Dr. Atiya Abbasi
Prof. Dr. Bina S. Siddiqui S.I., T.I.
Prof. Dr. Fatima Basha, S.I.
Prof. Dr. I. H. Qureshi
Prof. Dr. Khalid M. Khan, T.I.
Prof. Dr. Rashida Ali
Prof. Dr. Shaheen Faizi
Prof. Dr. Viqar U. Ahmed, H.I., S.I.
Prof. Dr. Zafar Said Saify
Prof. Dr. Nurul Kabir
Prof. Dr. Muhammad Shaiq Ali
Dr. Kamran Azeem
Dr. Farzana Shaheen
Dr. Muhammad Raza Shah
Dr. Sabira Begum, P.P.
Dr. Saifullah Khan
Dr. Shabana U. Simjee
Dr. Syed Abid Ali
Dr. Zaheer-ul-haq Qasmi
Dr. Shakeel Ahmad
Dr. Syed Ghulam Musharraf
Dr. Asmat Salim
Dr. Muhammad Ahmad
Dr. Md. Hafizur Rahman
Dr. Talat Makhmoor
Dr. Jamshed Hashim
Dr. Atia-tul-Wahab
Dr. Sonia Siddiqui
Dr. Reaz Uddin
Dr. Hina Siddiqui
Dr. Achyut Adhikari
Dr. Saifullah
Dr. Waqar Hameed
Dr. Ayaz Ahmad
Dr. Huma Aslam Bhatti
Dr. Abdul Hameed

Management

Mr. Javed Riaz
Mr. Raheel Baig

LOCAL HOSPITALITY AND TRAVEL

The IYCr2014 South Asia meeting will be held at the scenic and secure campus of the International Center for Chemical and Biological Science at the University of Karachi. The ICCBS campus is located in the sub-urban of Karachi, some 20 km away from the city center. All participants will be accommodated at the newly furnished International Guesthouse of the ICCBS institutions, where the scientific sessions will also be held. The campus is located 20 min driving distance from the Jinnah International Airport (Karachi). Many international airlines are routinely operating flights to and from the Airport.

APPLICATIONS FOR PARTICIPATION

In addition to the invited delegates from CAS, PAS and INSA, the meeting will be opened to structural chemists of the region. Those wishing to take part in the meeting are required to use the downloadable application form, available on ICCBS website (www.iccs.edu) and submit it via e-mail or fax to contact person by October 30, 2013.
Selected participants will be informed by November 30, 2013 about acceptance of their participation in the meeting. The size of the meeting will be limited to 150 with approximately half will be expected to be invited by the above-mentioned organizations. Participants will be responsible for their travel costs. 

PROF. DR. M. IQBAL CHOUDHARY, H.I., S.I., T.I.
Director
International Center for Chemical and Biological Sciences
University of Karachi, Karachi-75270, Pakistan
Tel: 021 99261701, 99261702, Fax: 021 99261713, 34819018
E-mail: iqbal.choudhary@iccs.edu