On the Rare Disease Day, we approached Prof. Raghu Padinjat, Cell biologist, Dean Research, NCBS-TIFR, to learn about his work on using stem cells to understand Lowe Syndrome.

This is about our journey with our son Naithan John Mathew living with a rare disease called Lowe syndrome, or the Oculocerebrorenal syndrome; we call it as Peter Pan syndrome. It is a rare X-linked recessive disorder characterized by congenital cataracts, hypotonia, intellectual proteinuria.

“One of the most significant events in our distant past is still perhaps the greatest mystery: the origins of life itself.” - Neil Degrasse Tyson

Using maths to correct for natural selection in Mutation Accumulation experiments

The Bangalore Life Sciences Cluster (BLiSC), comprising of NCBS Bangalore, inStem and C-CAMP, has recently inducted an Early Career Researchers Council (ECRC), in a bid to involve its student, JRF and postdoc communities more actively in the day-to-day functioning of the campus.

Dr. Hiyaa Ghosh is among eight scientists to be named part of EMBOs Global Investigator Network for 2021.
Read More about Hiyaa's research here

Arunita Banerjee (https://www.arunitabanerjee.com/) caught up with her recently, and here is what Hiyaa had to say.

Prof. Mahesh Sankaran has been awarded the Infosys Prize for Life Sciences for his exemplary contributions to the field of ecosystem ecology. His work on savannas, specifically the drivers of savanna ecosystem structure and the potential responses of these ecosystems to climate change have been critical in shaping the research agenda in this field over the past decade.

The National Centre for Biological Sciences is delighted to welcome Archishman Raju, who joins the NCBS as its newest faculty member.

Archishman's research is in the theoretical modelling of biological systems. He is currently interested in modeling cell fate specification and finding general models for fitting experiments in developmental biology. He is also interested in how mathematical theories of evolution are changed by including development.

A major project has been launched to indigenously manufacture, in bulk quantities and at much lower costs, all reagents needed for RT-qPCR-based and other molecular methods of diagnostics of Covid-19. The Rockefeller Foundation has provided financial support for the project executed by the Bangalore Life Science Cluster, which would improve access to Covid-19 diagnostics across the country.