A new report by the Scopus website shows the Islamic Republic of Iran has ranked 21st in the world in terms of scientific productions in the field of biotechnology in 2014.

The latest report released by the Scopus, the world’s largest abstract and citation database, shows that the Islamic Republic has achieved this international ranking in 2014 by offering 3,957 products in the field of biotechnology.

The report noted that the scope of scientific productions of any given country in various fields of biotechnology, including biochemistry, genetics and molecular biology, is one of the most important criteria used to determine the ranking of countries in this field of science.

During the past two decades, Iran has broken new grounds in the field of biotechnology as a result of which the country is currently an exporter of biotech medications.

In early May, an official at the Iranian Ministry of Health said the Islamic Republic has become a producer of some recombinant drugs, which were previously produced by a few developed countries, thus ending their monopoly in the field.

Akbar Abdollahi-Asl, Iranian Food and Drug Administration's deputy for supervision and planning, added that by producing recombinant drugs, Iran is now the only country capable of synthesizing the molecule of recombinant Factor VII, which is used to treat hemophiliacs.

On April 26, Iranian media reported that the country’s researchers have produced a nano-drug, which has proven effective in battling treatment-resistant cancers.

According to the report, the polymer-based nanocarrier has been produced by the Cancer Research Center of Tehran University of Medical Sciences for the targeted release of the anti-cancer drug, curcumin.

Curcumin, which is found in turmeric, has anti-cancer and cancer preventing properties apart from its anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, said Dr. Ali Mohammad Alizadeh from the Iran Nanotechnology Initiative Council.



Iran also held its First International and 9th National Biotechnology Congress in Tehran on May 24-26, hosted by the Biotechnology Society of the Islamic Republic of Iran.

More than 20 foreign specialists from Japan, the Philippines, India, Pakistan, Kuwait and Mongolia took part in the event, during which Iran unveiled the first sample of genetically modified cotton, which has been produced through indigenous technology by Iranian specialists.

By Press TV