Centre for DNA Fingerprinting and Diagnostics
Centre for DNA Fingerprinting and Diagnostics (CDFD) is an Indian biotechnology research centre, located in Hyderabad, India, operated by the Department of Biotechnology, Ministry of Science and Technology, Government of India. CDFD is a Sun Microsystems centre of excellence in medical bio-informatics, supported with a strong bioinformatics facility, and is the India node of the EMBnet. In addition, DNA fingerprinting and diagnostics services provided by the centre support some of the activities. The centre utilises the Combined DNA Index System for DNA profile matching. The CDFD and the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation signed a memorandum of understanding in 2014 for the acquisition of CODIS. CDFD receives funding from other agencies like the Wellcome Trust on specific collaborative projects. The centre is recognised by the University of Hyderabad and Manipal University for pursuing a doctor of philosophy in life sciences. Research at CDFD has focused largely on molecular epidemiology of bacterial pathogens, structural genetics, molecular genetics, bioinformatics and computational biology. History CDFD was conceptualised by then CCMB director Lalji Singh. It evolved into its current form of a modern institution encompassing both basic and applied research in diverse areas of modern biology under its founder director, Seyed E. Hasnain (former