Columns

• COVID-19 Vaccines in India: Frequently Asked Questions

  

  Widespread vaccination against COVID-19 began in India on 16 Jan 2021. However, it can be difficult to keep track of all the information related to the same, with several different vaccines being offered by different manufacturers, as well as the rise of new virus variants. Recently, Indian Scientists’ Response to COVID-19 (ISRC) collated publicly available information related to the vaccines globally in use in an easy-to-access format. We present an abridged version of some frequently asked questions answered in this document, reproduced here with permission.

  Posted on Feb 25, 2021 in COVID-19

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• iGAP: Helping Indian researchers access international grants

  

  In 2019, IndiaBioscience launched the International Grants Awareness Program (iGAP), an initiative that aims to raise awareness about international funding opportunities available to Indian researchers, as well as to train and motivate them to apply for the same. This article looks back at some of our past activities and provides a snapshot of all the resources we have created under this project.

  Posted on Feb 15, 2021 in Career Development, Funding & Database/Resource

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• Roots before wings: Setting up a laboratory as a new investigator

  

  Himanshu Shekhar is an Assistant Professor at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Gandhinagar. He was one of the Young Investigators selected to attend YIM 2020 in Mahabalipuram. In this invited article, he talks about the importance of learning and applying strategic management skills when a researcher is first setting up their independent lab.

  Posted on Feb 03, 2021 in Personal Experience, Advice & Young Investigators

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• YIM 2020 – Musings from Mahabalipuram (Part 2)

  

  The 12th Young Investigators’ Meeting (YIM 2020) was held in Mahabalipuram, Tamil Nadu, from 14 to 18 February, 2020 and was attended by nearly eighty young researchers, in addition to several senior scientists, institutional representatives, guest speakers, and panellists. This article is the second in a two-part series reporting on its proceedings.

  Posted on Feb 01, 2021 in YIM, Young Investigators & Mentorship

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• Glimpses of the year 2020 at IndiaBioscience

  

  2020 has been an exceptional year, one with unprecedented global events that left an indelible impact on our lives and forced us to reexamine our priorities. This was also a year of many new beginnings, innovations, and breakthroughs, aided by courageous efforts from across the scientific ecosystem. In this article, Smita Jain, Executive Director, IndiaBioscience, reflects on what this year has meant for IndiaBioscience.

  Posted on Jan 01, 2021 in Networking and Collaboration

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• From lab to market: the journey of an innovation

  

  It is a well-known fact that many of innovations made within academic labs fail to make the leap into the market and general circulation. We approached Praveen Vemula, a researcher-entrepreneur whose team has recently developed a face mask with germicidal properties, to learn about some of the key factors that influence successful translation of a technology developed in the lab.

  Posted on Nov 27, 2020 in COVID-19 & Entrepreneurship

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• Why do we have so many different tests for COVID-19?

  

  From RT-PCR to rapid antibody kits to sewage surveillance - It is easy to become confused by the variety of different tests currently available for COVID-19. In this article, Somdatta explains the different ways in which each of these tests work, the pros and cons of each method, and the nuances involved in interpreting the results obtained from each of these tests.

  Posted on Nov 20, 2020 in Biotechnology & COVID-19

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