About MSBMB
The Malaysian Biochemical Society was founded in 1973 by biochemists from the University of Malaya, Universiti Pertanian Malaysia, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia and the Rubber Research Institute of Malaysia. However, the formation of the society was largely the effort of the staff of the Biochemistry Department of the University of Malaya, being the oldest university in the country. Amongst the important milestones in the development of the society include:
1973 Founding of the Malaysian Biochemical Society
1974 First Annual Conference of the Malaysian Biochemical Society
1979 Organized the Second FAOB Symposium in Kuala Lumpur
1986 First Inter-varsity Student's Biochemistry Seminar
1987 Admitted as Associate Adhering Body to the International Union of Biochemistry
1988 Organized the Seventh FAOB Symposium in Kuala Lumpur
1994 Society name was changed to the Malaysian Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
1997 Launching of the Society's Journal (MJBMB)
1998 Organized the 8th FAOBMB Congress in Kuala Lumpur
2006 The first Annual Society Dinner was inaugurated
2007 Membership increases to over 100 members
2009 Organised a joint annual Conference and the 3rd ASEAN Biochemistry Conference
2010 Co-organised the annual Conference with the Cancer Research Initiatives Foundation
(CARIF)
2010 Co-organised the My1Bio Conference with The Ministry of Science,
Technology & Innovation and other local scientific societies
2011 Membership increases to over 200 members
2012 Inaugural MSBMB Travel Fellowship to attend the FAOBMB conference
2013 Signing of Memorandum of Understanding with the Korean Society for Cellular and Molecular Biology
2013 Collaboration with the Young Scientist Network-Academy of Science Malaysia (YSN-ASM)
to award outstanding oral presentations, and to organize a “Meet the Experts” session for
young scientists at the MSBMB annual conferences2014 Celebrated the 40th Anniversary of the
Society
2015 Membership increases to over 300 members
2015 The MSBMB fellowship award was established
The society was founded with the singular objective of bringing together biochemists and other scientists in related areas and provide a forum for discussion of their research interests. Such a forum was vital for establishing a basis of cooperation amongst biochemists who were playing increasing important roles in medical and agricultural research as well as running hospital and private laboratories. The first annual biochemistry conference was organized in 1974 to cater to needs of such biochemists. It must be borne in mind that this meeting was organized during an era when such scientific meetings were rare. The first meeting was so successful in reaching its objectives that a second annual meeting followed in 1975. Such a meeting of biochemists has since become and annual affair, thus establishing a tradition. We have followed this tradition faithfully so far and hope that it will be continued for many years to come. Our conferences are highly scientific in nature and followed by a proceeding as a permanent record of the transactions. These proceedings have since been replaced with the society's academic journal, the Malaysian Journal of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology that was launched in 1997. This journal complements the Journal of Biochemistry, Molecular Biology and Biophysics, run by the Federation of Asian and Oceanian Biochemists and Molecular Biologists (FAOBMB) as a platform for the needs of biochemists and molecular biologists in the region.
In all its activities, the society has not forgotten the significant role of students in keeping the flame of biochemistry and molecular biology burning. In 1986, the undergraduate students at Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia organised the first Intervarsity biochemistry seminar exclusively for their fellows from other universities. The remarkable success of this seminar turned it into an annual affair, with each university student biochemistry club taking turns to organize the annual event. The seminars provide opportunities to students to learn how to organize seminars and derive benefit from them, as well as to help in honing their leadership skills and teamwork.
The society has organized workshops, seminar and lectures by visiting scientists. All these keep the members abreast of the latest development in their areas of particular interest. A newsletter is also published from time to time by the society to keep its members informed of the various activities organized by the seminar as well as international biochemistry and molecular biology related events pertinent to the members. In recent times, the society has engaged in dialogue, as a non-governmental organization, with the Chief Secretary to the Malaysian government on problems faced by its members as well as on other issues. The society has been affiliated with the Confederation of Scientific and Technological Associations in Malaysia (COSTAM) and this has enabled the society to interact and work together with other professional associations in the country with similar objectives.
The conference organizing ability of the Malaysian Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology spread into the international arena when it organized the Federation of Asian and Oceanian Biochemists and Molecular Biologists (FAOBMB) Symposia in 1979 and again in 1988. During both these occasions, the society did well and won praise from all participants. Its abilities were tested again when it was given the mandate to organize the Eighth FAOBMB Congress in November 1998 in Kuala Lumpur. The mandate was taken as a challenge, which successfully reiterated the society's abilities to bring together the international community of biochemists and molecular biologists to share and to inform the scientific community of the latest developments in the fields of biochemistry and molecular biology. With a theme of "Biochemistry and Molecular Biology in the Era of Technology" this congress has contributed to spearheading the growth and development of biotechnology as outlined by the government.
It is our hope that the Malaysian Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology will continue to move forward and to be able to contribute to the future of Malaysian biochemistry and molecular biology.