Passionate researcher, resourceful molecular and cell biologist with graduate, undergraduate and high school teaching/supervisory and research experience. Interested in student development with student-centered learning pedagogy in laboratory environment. Advocator of diversity, equity and inclusiveness through propagation of collaborative projects that bring in more innovative ideas onto bench and promotes translational research. Interested in peer development and administrative responsibilities. Excellent grant writing, oral communication skills and computer skills; highly collaborative and organized.

Our lab investigates the interplay between diabetes mellitus, inflammatory signaling pathways, and bacterial infections such as melioidosis. We aim to understand how chronic inflammation in diabetes heightens infection susceptibility and impairs immune responses, focusing on T cells, bioenergetics, glycaemia, and mitochondrial metabolism. This research guides targeted therapies addressing inflammation, glycaemia, and infection control.

Immunometabolism Laboratory at KMC, Manipal under Center for Emerging and Tropical Diseases

Dr. Ranita Ghosh Dastidar is an Assistant Professor and full-time researcher at Kasturba Medical College (KMC), Manipal, MAHE, with 19 years of research and teaching experience. She earned her Ph.D. in Molecular and Cell Biology from the University of Texas at Dallas, where she investigated hypoxic responses in yeast using proteomic approaches. She further advanced her expertise during postdoctoral training at the University of California, San Diego, focusing on molecular techniques and cell line models.

Dr. Ghosh Dastidar’s research centers on immunology, with a particular emphasis on adaptive immune responses, mitochondrial function, hypoxia, and energy metabolism. Her current work explores the bioenergetics of T-cells in Melioidosis patients, especially in the context of diabetes as a co-morbidity. She has extensive experience in host-microbial interaction studies, proteomics/metabolomics, and cell culture techniques.

Her group investigates immune dysregulation during and after Melioidosis—a neglected tropical disease—examining the interplay between hyperglycemia and Burkholderia pseudomallei. Using patient samples and in vitro/in vivo models, her research aims to uncover proteomic and metabolomic perturbations across varied immunophenotypes to better understand innate and adaptive immune responses. Her long-term goal is to identify common mechanistic pathways in inflammatory responses across infectious diseases, contributing to preparedness against emerging tropical infections.

Dr. Ghosh Dastidar has mentored master's and Ph.D. students, contributing to peer-reviewed publications and collaborative research projects. She utilizes GC-MS/LC-MS facilities to identify critical molecular structures and pathways in bacterial pathobiology. A passionate educator and advocate for student-centered learning, she is committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion, fostering innovation through collaborative translational research. Her interests also include peer development and academic administration.

Awards and recognition:

DST-FIST 2024-2029 December, 2024

MAHE Intramural Fund 2024-2026 June, 2024

Chair of Session “Bacteria and Infections”, 51st Annual International Conference,
Immunocon 2024, IISc, Bengaluru October, 2024

2nd Prize for Poster Presentation, 15th Annual Conference and Workshop 2023,
October, 2023
The Cytometry Society, India at AIIMS, New Delhi

Khorana Program: Reviewer 2023-ongoing

ICMR Extramural Ad-hoc Grant (Indian Government) 2022

DST-FIST 2022-2027 2022

Seed Money Award (MAHE) 2021

Research Ignition Grant (Intramural MAHE) 2020

Innovation and Effectiveness Grant funding at San Diego Miramar College. Spring 2017

Selected Volunteer Monitor December, 2011
American Society for Cell Biology (ASCB) Annual Meeting 2011, Denver, Colorado.

Organizer of 21st Annual Royston C. Clowes Lecture Series. March, 2011
Featured Speaker: Prof. Joseph D. Puglisi, Professor and Chair,
Stanford University School of Medicine, Department of Structural Biology.

Graduate Travel Award 2010
American Society of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (ASBMB)
Experimental Biology Annual Meeting 2010; Anaheim, California.

Travel Award (to attend RSA Meet at Chicago, Illinois) 2007
University of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky.

Visva-Bharati Merit Scholarship for Post-graduation (M.Sc.) 2001-2002
Visva Bharati University, Santiniketan, India.