PCLGCIR820 composite nanoparticles as theranostic agents for cancer therapy
Recently, photothermal therapy (PTT) has attracted tremendous attention because of its high efficacy in tumor ablation and minimal damage to normal tissues. A variety of organic photothermal agents have also emerged in recent years, aiming at replacing their inorganic counterparts, which usually are not biodegradable Among various cyanine derivatives, ICG is one of the most commonly employed medical imaging dyes and approved by US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for clinical use on patients, which has been widely investigated for photothermal cancer therapy.
Drug delivery device for management of chemotherapy induced nausea and vomiting
Emesis in general is natural defensive mechanism of the body to prevent the absorption of the noxious substances in the Gastro Intestinal tract by forceful expulsion of contents. National Cancer Institute at National Institute of Health explains the phenomenon, ‘Nausea is a subjective phenomenon of an unpleasant, wavelike sensation experienced in the back of the throat and/ or the epigastrium that may culminate in vomiting (emesis). Vomiting is the forceful expulsion of the contents of the stomach, duodenum, or jejunum through the oral cavity.
A novel point-of-care detection device using nanotechnology for diagnosing periprosthetic infection following orthopedic surgery
Periprosthetic infection becomes a dilemma when the signs and symptoms that commonly coincide are absent, or when infection occurs in the immediate post-operative period when the usual biologic markers such as erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) and C-reactive protein (CRP) are still elevated from the surgical procedure. The use of interleukins has become
Development of nanoengineered dual release graft for pain /inflammation management in osteoarthritis
Osteoarthritis (OA) is a chronic degenerative disorder of joints, which has multi- factorial etiology. OA is the second most common rheumatological problem and is most frequent joint disease with prevalence of 22-39% in India. Injectable polymeric composite gel are synthesised with tailor-made polymeric nanoparticles to achieve both controlled release and thermo-responsive on application of a heat pad on the desired site. The main objective of the project is to develop an intra- articular drug delivery system for OA using a composite in situ gelling system.
Low-cost indigenously developed bioresorbable bone screw for bone and soft-tissue fixation applications
Our research work focuses on indigenous development of low-cost bioresorbable medical bone screw for bone-soft tissue Fixation applications. There is a huge demand for orthopedic devices in India and worldwide. It is estimated that more than 100 million screws are used for bone or soft-tissue fixations per year globally.
To demonstrate proof-of-concept of bioresorbable bone screw prototype composed of novel composite biomaterial with advanced functionality:
Design and development of point-of-care test kit for early diagnosis of chronic kidney disease
The risk of chronic kidney disorder, preeclampsia and other diseases which affect the albumin and creatinine level can be detected at an earlier stage by estimating the albumin and creatinine ratio. According to many reports including WHO 2014, 8-10% of the world population is affected by kidney related diseases. In India, there are more than 10 million cases every year for chronic kidney disease (CKD). Preeclampsia is another life-threatening disorder that occurs during pregnancy (affecting 1 in 20 pregnancies), childbirth and postpartum period.It causes high blood pressure and a
Proteomics for translational research:Focus on brain tumors and infectious diseases
Proteomics is the study of entire protein complement in a cell at a given time. It is a rapidly growing field, and is set to become an integral part of translational research. The implementation of proteomics in clinical research can lead to novel developments in the field of personalised medicine, biomarker discovery. This also provides mechanistic insights about disease occurrence and pathogenesis.
Sensors for all
The Biosensors and Bioinstrumentation (BSBI, pronounced busybee) lab works on the development of sensors and instrumentation systems for widescale deployment. The sensors are mostly optical fiber based, although electrochemical sensors also form a part of the lab activities. These sensors and sensing platforms can be adapted to detect a wide variety of chemicals, be they biological or non-biological in origin.
Understanding effect of lifestyle decisions on health and wellness
Modern lifestyle is associated with high risk towards several diseases such as obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular heart disease, PCOS and liver / kidney malfunction which are associated with metabolic syndrome arising due to sedentary life style and rich diet. Early diagnosis and lifestyle management is essential in preventing metabolic syndrome in the population.
Open bipolar electrolysis for disinfection of water
Disinfection of drinking water, swimming pool water, and water used in washing food processing equipment, surgical instrument, food packaging, etc., is an important step from the health consideration. Variety of disinfectants such as chlorine, sodium hypochlorite and bleaching powder are used for this purpose. These generate free chlorine, which is a very effective biocide even at very low concentrations. However, when concentration of chlorine in water is high, it reacts with humic acids present, producing polychloro-derivatives which are potent carcinogens.
3D graphene adsorbent for water treatment
Graphene is a very active adsorbent due its polycyclic aromatic structure and hence can be used for removal of harmful pollutants such as dyes, heavy metals, pesticides and antibiotics from water. It can be most conveniently used in the form of three dimensional graphene (3D graphene). For example, plugs of 3D-graphene (see figure) can be stacked into point-of-use water treatment devices. Key point of the technology is to produce 3D graphene with fully exfoliated single-sheets of graphene. Such a material has both very high surface area and activity.
Membrane protein purification using engineered micelles
■Membrane proteins comprise one third of the transcription products of human genome ■Associated with diverse human diseases and key target for drug development ■X-ray crystal structures of membrane proteins are scarce due to paucity of good quality crystals
Antiparasitic activity of pyranonaphthoquinones and imidazoles
■ Pyranonaphthoquinones (PNQs) and imidazoles are highly bioactive compounds
■ PNQs have been synthesised through stereoselective organocatalytic reactions
■ Quinine-derived squaramide catalysed the asymmetric cascade reaction of hydroxynaphtho-quinone with α-acetoxymethylnitrostyrenes for the synthesis of PNQs
■ Functionalised imidazoles have been synthesised regioselectively from amidines and α-acetoxy/α-bromomethylnitrostyrenes
■ PNQs and imidazoles exhibited trypanocidal activity against Trypomastigote form of T. cruzi which causes Chagas disease
Anticancer activity of α -functionalised nitroalkenes
α -Functionalised nitroalkenes
■ Small multi-functional molecules with high potential in synthesis and biology
■ Synthesised through one-pot, multi-component reactions at room temperature
■ Inhibit HeLa cell proliferation by binding to tubulins and depolymerising microtubules at low micromolar concentrations
■ Bind to tubulin at a site distinct from the vinblastine and colchicine binding sites and induce conformational changes in the tubulin
■ Promising lead compounds for cancer therapy
Chemical biology of nucleic acids targeting drugs and damaging agents
(1) Chemically modified functional nucleic acids (siRNAs, DNA enzymes and aptamers)
Designing molecular catalysts and potential metallo-pharmaceuticals using well defined transition metal complexes
Subscribing to the view of building ‘molecules with purpose’, we design and develop transition metal complexes for utility as initiators in homogeneous catalysis. We specialise in synthesising well-defined molecular catalysts for academically challenging and industrially relevant transformations through enhanced mechanistic understanding.
A systems biology approach to understand the influence of signaling pathways in altering the cell cycle dynamics
In a mammalian system, not all the cells are continuously growing and dividing but many of them remain in a quiescent state even though they reside in a rich growth factor medium. Similarly, in a malignant tumor the population of cell had been found to be extremely heterogeneous. Usually the tumor contains cells ranging from highly proliferative to quiescent category, and thus these cells respond quite differently under chemotherapy treatment. Most often the aggressive cells die, but the quiescent cells somehow survive the chemotherapy.
Understanding the role of fluctuations in mammalian cell cycle regulation
Cell cycle in eukaryotes is a sequence of molecular events that ultimately leads to precise duplication of cells. Most cells of a multi-cellular eukaryotic organism proliferate only when they sense that they are stimulated by specific growth factors above a certain threshold. In cancerous cells, this growth factor sensing mechanism gets perturbed for more than one reason and the cells start to proliferate even when the appropriate signal is absent.
Psychophysiology of cognition
The study of human cognition includes aspects of thinking, memory, decision-making, learning, problem-solving, as well as other basic and executive functions. Such research can include experiments with the general population, to understand how such cognitive functions operate, as well as with clinical samples, to understand how disruptions in normal cognition can facilitate our understanding of the same.
Jellow communicator: A communication aid for children with speech difficulties
Children with developmental disabilities including Cerebral Palsy and Autism Spectrum Disorder frequently have speech impairments. Based on the 2011 census, there are around 1.9 million individuals with speech disability in India, of which around 80% completely lack speech or have unintelligible speech. Lack of a functional mode of communication can impede children’s overall social communication, emotional, and cognitive development.