UGM participated in the DNA fingerprinting of 3,500 Indonesian medicinal plants.
The DNA fingerprinting was conducted in collaboration with the National Institute of Health Research Development (NIHRD), and Ministry of Health through its Medicinal Plants and Traditional Drugs Research and Development Agency or B2P2TOOT. Over the past three years, Research for Medicinal Plants and Herbs (RISTOJA) has produced a collection of 30 species of medicinal plants, consisting of more than 3,500 samples.
In order to determine the characteristics of DNA and phytochemical diversity of 3,500 samples. B2P2TOOT Tawangmangu collaborated with Faculty of Biology and Faculty of Pharmacy UGM. Moreover, they also collaborated with eight other universities in Indonesia.
The universities involved in this collaboration are Faculty of Agriculture, Universitas Andalas, School of Pharmacy, Bandung Institute of Technology, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Bogor Agricultural University, Faculty of Agriculture, UGM, Faculty of Science and Technology, UIN Sunan Kalijaga, Faculty of Bioscience, Universitas Brawijaya, Faculty of Science and Technology, UIN Maulana Malik Ibrahim, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Biology, Universitas Airlangga, and lastly, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences UIN Sunan Ampel Surabaya.
In conducting further analysis of medicinal plants as the result of RISTOJA 2017, the B2P2TOOT also collaborated with LIPI Biology Research Center.
As a plan to consolidate the methods and coordinate the activity, the B2P2TOOT Tawangmangu held a technical meeting with its partners at a Forum Group Discussion from April 22-24, 2018. The meeting discussed the techniques of DNA fingerprinting, analysis of the phytochemical diversity of medicinal plants, financial management, as well as drafting the collaboration with partner laboratories.
Slamet Wahyono, MSc. Apt., the chairman of RISTOJA 2017, expressed his hope to establish a mutually beneficial cooperation between B2P2TOOT and partner agencies to bring a profitable output. This output refers to a compiled database of the potency of national medicinal plants and a support to the improvement of university capacities in the development of sciences.
Dean of Faculty of Biology UGM, Dr. Budi S. Daryono, stated that DNA fingerprinting of Indonesian medicinal plants is essential in the conservation and utilization of genetic resources of medicinal plants. Furthermore, the characteristics and data of indigenous Indonesian medicinal plants can be documented and categorized for their benefits.
“Indonesia is the center of biodiversity with more than 32,000 medicinal plants. RISTOJA is the first strategic research in Indonesia to record all medicinal plants throughout Indonesia,” he said in a recent interview.
The collaboration in DNA fingerprinting supports the vision of Faculty of Biology UGM as the center of tropical biodiversity. The vision is also supported by Genetics and Breeding Laboratory affiliated with the Integrated Research and Testing Laboratory (LPPT) UGM that received the ISO 17025:2005 accreditation from National Accreditation Committee (KAN) for DNA fingerprinting. (Public Relations UGM/Astrid)