Coordinator- Center for DNA Repair and Genome Stability
Associate Professor
Department of Public Health Genomics, Manipal School of Life Sciences, Manipal Academy of Higher Education (MAHE), Manipal, Karnataka, India.
Email: [email protected]; [email protected]

SN Institution/Place Position From (date) To (date)
1 Manipal School of Life Sciences, MAHE, India , Associate Professor 01-04-2021 Till date
2 Manipal School of Life Sciences, MAHE, India, Assistant Professor 23-09-2013 31-03-2021
3 Erasmus University Medical Center, The Netherlands Postdoctoral researcher 01-05-2018 31-12-2019
4 ThermoFisher Scientific, India Application Scientist, 01-02-2013 20-09-2013
5 Manipal Life Sciences Centre, MAHE, India Senior Research Fellow 01-02-2009 31-11-2012
6 Manipal Life Sciences Centre, MAHE, India Research fellow, 01-05-2007 01-02-2009
7 Manipal Acunova Pvt. Ltd., India Scientist, 01-09-2005 31-04-2007

Industry collaboration
1. Development of an oral cancer-on-a-chip device for assessment of drug sensitivity on patient-derived tumor samples for personalized medicine, under Establishing preclinical models for Drug discovery in collaboration with INFAB Semiconductor Pvt Ltd, Bangalore.
2. Development of an ex vivo bioassay based on microfluidic cancer-on-chip for breast cancer therapy efficacy assessment in collaboration with Biocon Biologics Limited, Bangalore.
3. Genomics analysis solutions with Aptus Therapeutics Private Limited.

International collaboration
1. MAHE Erasmus MC Joint Center on Genome Stability (MECGS) from 2020-2025. MoU signed between MAHE and Erasmus MC Rotterdam, The Netherlands (17th January 2019).
2. International Symposia on Genome Instability: From Bench to Bedside, organized at Manipal School of Life Sciences, 28-29 January 2020.
3. Erasmus+ Student and Staff mobility program with Erasmus University Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands (2020-2022).
PhD supervision

PhD guide: 08; Co-guide: 07
External PhD supervision: 04 (Co-guide, LVPEI, Hyderabad)
Completed PhD: 01, Dr. Raviprasad K.V. (29-05-2023)

MEMBERSHIPS IN PANELS, BOARDS, AND INDIVIDUAL SCIENTIFIC REVIEWING ACTIVITIES
• Doctoral Advisory Committee member, Manipal School of Life Sciences, Manipal Academy of Higher Education.
• Doctoral Advisory Committee member of JIPMER, Puducherry.
• Doctoral Advisory Committee member of LVPEI, Hyderabad.
• Editorial Manager: Public Health Genomics Journal (2015-2017)
• Editorial board member, British Journal of Cancer Reports.
• Special Issue Editor, "Integrative Omics Approaches to Decipher Cancer Signaling", International Journal of Molecular Sciences
• Guest Associate Editor, in Molecular Diagnostics and Therapeutics, Frontiers in Molecular Biosciences
• Review Editor in Cancer Cell Biology section, Frontiers in Cell and Developmental Biology

Nuclear-Mitochondrial Crosstalk in Regulation of Mitochondrial OXPHOS, DNA Damage Response, and Ferroptosis:
Mitochondrial dysfunction serves as a key contributor to pediatric and adult neurometabolic diseases that impact multiple organ systems. The global prevalence of mitochondrial disorders is approximately 1 in 5,000 individuals. A significant challenge in diagnosing and managing mitochondrial disorders lies in their pronounced clinical heterogeneity, attributable to the widespread involvement of mitochondrial function and the dual genetic control of the oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) system. While the mitochondrial genome encodes 37 genes, more than 1,500 nuclear genes are integral to mitochondrial DNA maintenance, OXPHOS, biogenesis, replication, transcription, post-transcriptional modifications, DNA repair, and metabolic pathways. Our research focuses on identifying novel genetic mutations and epigenetic alterations (such as miRNAs) that drive dysfunctional mitochondrial activity associated with neurodegeneration, ageing, and cancer.

Development of Tools for Studying Genome Stability and Assessing Ex Vivo Therapeutic Efficacy:
Culturing autologous tumors from patients represents a highly promising strategy for accurately predicting therapeutic response. Traditional preclinical cancer models are limited by the lack of controlled conditions, substantial tissue requirements, and the inability to facilitate real-time monitoring, which reduces their reliability as drug response assays. To address these limitations, we have developed a Cancer-on-Chip platform applicable to breast, prostate, and oral cancers, enabling advanced preclinical drug efficacy testing and comprehensive investigation of tumor-immune metabolic interactions.

Post PhD: 13 years

Awards and recognition:

1. Best paper award at the Annual Conference of the Society for Mitochondrial Research and Medicine, 2017.
2. Australia Awards Fellowships program entitled “Metagenomics guided management of drug-resistant tuberculosis and HIV: Advances in Diagnostics” in collaboration with the University of Sydney, 2017.
3. Dutch Cancer Society (KWF) fellowship for postdoctoral research at Dr. Dik van Gent group Department of Molecular Genetics, Erasmus University Medical Center, The Netherlands 2018.
4. Best Teacher award for 2022 and 2023, Manipal School of Life Sciences, MAHE, Manipal.

• Joint Secretary, Society for Mitochondrial Research and Medicine, India (SMRM).
• Life member of the Society of Biological Chemists, India (SBCI).
• Life member of the Environmental Mutagen Society of India (EMSI).
• Life member of the Society for Redox Biology and Medicine (SfRBM).
• Member of the European Association for Cancer Research (EACR).