Korea Research Institute of Bioscience & Biotechnology (KRIBB) President Kim Jang-seong has headed the state-backed outfit’s efforts of focusing on basic research in order to help the country’s bio-related industries. Photo courtesy of KRIBB

State-backed outfit vows to keep working on new techs

This is an article prepared ahead of the Science Day, which falls on April 21. The Korea News Plus delves into the country’s representative entities in the science and technology industries every year in time with the Science Day. _ ED.

Now, everybody knows the COVID-19. In early 2019, however, the novel coronavirus was a disease X, which refers to a serious international epidemic unknown to cause human illness.

Observers expect that a growing number of diseases X would inflict suffering on people. Hence, the governments across the world have agonized over preparing for them.

In South Korea, the Korea Research Institute of Bioscience & Biotechnology (KRIBB) spearheads such efforts by laying the groundwork for the so-called K-bio.

The state-backed agency, located some 140 kilometers south of Seoul, stressed that it had worked on basic research necessary for breakthrough solutions.

The KRIBB took the example of mRNA vaccines, which helped humankind deal with the COVID-19.

Traditional vaccines put a weakened or inactivated germ into people’s bodies so as to trigger an immune response.

In comparison, mRNA vaccines use mRNA made in a laboratory to instruct cells on how to create a protein to trigger an immune response.

“Without basic research conducted in advance, we would not have come up with mRNA vaccines in just seven months,” a KRIBB official said.

“Our job is to head such basic research so that our companies or institutes could take advantage of it.”

KRIBB President Kim Jang-seong said that the organization would devote itself to the community by fearlessly tackling any challenges that the country faces.

“All employees of the KRIBB will put forth our best efforts to create the country’s future growth momentum, grapple with problems of people, and become a partner of win-win solutions in the bio-related industries,” he said.
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