With the 2nd IndiaBioscience Outreach Grants, select scientists step out of their labs to connect with communities beyond academia. In this piece, Hansika looks at the initiatives being funded by IndiaBioscience in the current edition.
A recent study by Rajan Sankaranarayanan’s group from the CSIR-Centre for Cellular & Molecular Biology, Hyderabad has found a novel mechanism of lipid metabolism. This opens up new avenues to understand the production of lipid-based bioactive molecules such as antibiotics.
The Infosys Prize awardees this year were felicitated on 2 December, 2021. They represent the different disciplines of Engineering and Computer Science, Humanities, Life Sciences, Mathematical Sciences, Physical Sciences, and Social Sciences. The awardees have been recognised and lauded for extraordinary contributions in their respective fields.
The International Genetically Engineered Machine (iGEM) is a non-profit organization that aims to promote research in synthetic biology. In this article, Gauri Saini talks about the iGEM Competition, which invites students working in the field of synthetic biology to showcase their projects.
A team of researchers from the Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru has explored a new approach to treat mycobacterial infections, which are becoming increasingly drug-resistant. They found that a cocktail of mycobacteriophages – viruses that infect mycobacteria but not humans– were effective against slow- and fast-growing mycobacteria, in cultures. This has clinical significance in treating tuberculosis (caused by M.tuberculosis, a slow-growing mycobacterium), which is of concern, especially in developing countries. In this article, Edna George reports on this recent study by Rachit Agarwal’s team.
Stem cells of an embryo are pluripotent – they can grow into almost any cell type in the body. Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC) are artificially reprogrammed body cells that can be made to function like embryonic stem cells, offering therapeutic advantages. However, understanding the genetic machinations of pluripotent stem cells is vital to successfully culture iPSC and is an active research area. In an exciting breakthrough, scientists have identified the group of genes responsible for maintaining distinct states of human pluripotency.
The German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) offers multiple funding schemes encouraging Indians across career stages to sojourn in Germany for internships, research projects, and networking. In this article, Manasvi CM highlights the salient features of these programs and their deadlines.