From studying indigenous dyes to developing cancer therapies, a look at the changing priorities of IISc’s Department of Biochemistry The Department of Biochemistry at IISc turns 100 next year. It holds the distinction of being the first department dedicated to the studies of biological chemistry in India. In the century since it was established, […]
The first head of the Department of Biochemistry was one of the most consequential researchers of his time Gilbert John Fowler wore many scientific hats: he was a chemist, a biologist and an environmental scientist – decades before environmental science became an active field of scientific investigation. He even fancied himself as an economist. […]
HS Savithri graduated with a PhD from the Department of Biochemistry in 1976. After a short stint abroad, she returned to the same department, where she worked on the architecture, genome organisation and expression of plant viruses, before becoming the first and only woman to be Chair of the department. On the occasion of the […]
G Padmanaban has spent decades trying to understand the lifecycle of the malaria parasite and develop a cure A few years ago, researchers from Michigan State University tracking malaria in Malawi made a gut-wrenching discovery. The reason why many children with cerebral malaria were dying was because their brain was swelling up so much […]
Having laid the foundations for fermentation technology research in India, he is remembered for the breadth and clarity of his scientific pursuits In 1941, a new Fermentation Technology laboratory was set up at IISc. It was something of a travelling entity, having been founded at the Department of Biochemistry and transferred at different points […]
PB Seshagiri, Sandhya S Visweswariah and Varsha Singh talk about their academic journeys There is no doubt that IISc attracts some of the best students in the country. But a few of them have come full circle, returning to the Institute – some even to the same building – where they took their baby […]
Experiments in PS Sarma’s lab at the Department of Biochemistry in the 1960s explored a mystery disease caused by excess consumption of seeds of a controversial pulse crop For many years, the Department of Biochemistry at IISc worked extensively on nutrition. Its researchers have analysed the importance of vitamin B1 in our diet. They […]
PR Krishnaswamy, alumnus of the Department of Biochemistry, has had a distinguished yet unconventional research career. In the second of this two-part profile, he recounts how he went from academia to industry to the corporate world and back, all the while pursuing his research interests It was a rainy day in July 1973 when […]
IISc’s neighbourhood has a long and rich history In the late 1890s, JN Tata was hunting for a suitable location for what eventually came to be known as the Indian Institute of Science (IISc). By the early 1900s, Bangalore had become the frontrunner to host the research institute, not least because of the wholehearted support […]
PR Krishnaswamy, who was a student in the Department of Biochemistry in the 1950s, went on to have a distinguished yet unconventional research career. In the first of this two-part profile, Krishnaswamy, now 91, describes the influence of his mentors in the Department.
