Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey

Turkish researchers have sequenced the genome of the novel coronavirus isolated from four patients, the head of the project said on May 29. 

Dr. Sadrettin Pençe, the vice-rector of Istanbul Medeniyet University, told Anadolu Agency the genomes were sequenced using the latest sequencing platforms.

A university in the Turkish metropolis Istanbul and the Swiss-based European Organization for Nuclear Research, also known as CERN, are set to collaborate on advanced interdisciplinary research.

The Defense Ministry has said necessary measures were being taken against the coronavirus outbreak for Turkish troops in the Operation Spring Shield region in northern Syria.

Scientists in western Turkey commenced the lab tests of an antigen they designed for a vaccine against the novel coronavirus.     
Research is ongoing with the collaboration of the Ege University Drug Development and Pharmacokinetic Research Application Center (ARGEFAR) in Izmir province and the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TÜBİTAK).     

Turkey has had remarkable progress in vaccine development projects to fight the coronavirus outbreak, determining innovative approaches to get fast results, the country's industry and technology minister said on April 2. 

Turkey has launched the mass production of respirators with 1,000 products on the manufacturing line for the Health Ministry to use, along with 5,000 others ordered, Science and Technology Minister Mustafa Varank said on March 26. 

The Turkish government is providing support to institutes and researchers in the country working to find vaccines, the industry and technology minister said on March 17.

"We fund and coordinate the studies through TÜBİTAK [the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey]," Mustafa Varank said during an R&D meeting in the Turkish capital Ankara.

Turkey is set to open a new training center for space enthusiasts and young people who consider going forward with such a career path.

The Gökmen Space and Aviation Training Center (GUHEM), Turkey's first space training base project will open its doors in the northwestern city of Bursa on April 23.

A workshop on the Kanal İstanbul project - a mega-infrastructure project involving the construction of a 45-kilometer shipping canal in Istanbul parallel to the Bosphorus Strait, was held by Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality on Jan. 10

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has vowed to realize the Kanal Istanbul project despite the opposition and said the government plans to build two "modern cities" as part of the project.