The 14th edition of Asian Conference on Diarrhoeal Diseases and Nutrition concluded here with delegates and investigators discussing measures for combating the diseases in a concerted manner.

A salient feature of the three-day international conclave was the participation of 100 young investigators besides 300 delegates from 14 countries, who discussed, in particular, diarrhoea, which has emerged as a major killer disease for children below the age of five.Dr Firdausi Qadri from Bangladesh assumed charge as the new President post the conference.The next edition of the ASCODD will be conducted in Bangladesh, organisers said in a release here."The 2017 edition of ASCODD has been successful. I am happy to see more youngsters stepping in with newer studies on diarrhoeal diseases. We covered around 10 different areas of diarrhoeal diseases in this edition and would expand more in the next," Qadri said in her concluding address.

The poster presentation at the three-day conference showcased different studies on nature as a source of chemical diversity.A group of scientists and research scholars from Manipal University presented a poster on anti-microbial activity of young immature coconuts for combating some strains of Vibrio cholerae, a bacterium that grows in brackish or saltwater and causes cholera.Over 61 scientists from countries, including the UK, the US, Bangladesh, Germany, India, France, and Sweden, attended the conference.

The conference was organised by the Rajiv Gandhi Centre for Biotechnology in association with International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh (ICDDR, B); Translational Health Science and Technology Institute (THSTI), Faridabad; the INCLEN Trust International (INCLEN INT) and the National Institute of Cholera and Enteric Diseases (NICED), Kolkata.