L. S. Shashidhara
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Lingadahalli Subrahmanya Shashidhara (born 1963) is an Indian developmental biologist, geneticist and a professor of biology currently serving as the Centre Director of National Centre for Biological Sciences, Bengaluru, India. He is a Professor at the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research, Pune, and at Ashoka University, Sonepat, India. He heads the LSS Laboratory at IISER and is known for his studies on
Drosophila ''Drosophila'' (), from Ancient Greek δρόσος (''drósos''), meaning "dew", and φίλος (''phílos''), meaning "loving", is a genus of fly, belonging to the family Drosophilidae, whose members are often called "small fruit flies" or p ...
, particularly the evolution of appendages and functions of homeotic selector genes. He is a J. C. Bose National Fellow of the Department of Science and Technology and an elected fellow of the Indian National Science Academy, Indian Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Sciences, India. The
Council of Scientific and Industrial Research The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR; IAST: ''vaigyanik tathā audyogik anusandhāna pariṣada'') is a research and development (R&D) organisation in India to promote scientific, industrial and economic growth. Headquarter ...
, the apex agency of the Government of India for scientific research, awarded him the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize for Science and Technology, one of the highest Indian science awards, in 2008, for his contributions to biological sciences. In 2018, L.S. Shashidhara was elected an Associate Member of European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO), making him the third scientist from India to join a group of about 1800 researchers. L. S. Shashidhara was elected as the president of th
International Union of Biological Sciences (IUBS)
in the 33rd General Assembly of IUBS held during th
Centenary Year Event of IUBS
at Oslo, in 2019. On behalf of IUBS, Shashidhara is steering an international project o
Climate Change Education (titled as TROP ICSU)
This project is supported by many unions and UN organizations.


Biography

L. S. Shashidhara, born on 23 March 1963 in the south Indian state of Karnataka, graduated in science from University of Agricultural Sciences, Dharwad (UAS) in 1985 and obtained a master's degree in Genetics and Plant breeding in 1987 from the same university. After a brief stint (1987–88) at UAS as a teaching associate, he moved to
University of Cambridge The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...
in 1988 for his doctoral studies to secure a PhD in 1991. On completion of his post-doctoral studies at Cambridge (1991–93), he returned to India to join National Centre for Biological Sciences and worked as a visiting fellow for two years. Subsequently, he moved to
Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology The Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (, IAST: ''Kośikīya evam āṇavik jīvavijñāna kendra'') or CCMB is an Indian fundamental biotechnology, life science research establishment located in Hyderabad that operates under the aegis ...
(CCMB) in 1995 as a scientist (group leader) where he served until 2007 when he was transferred, on deputation, to the
Pune Pune ( ; , ISO 15919, ISO: ), previously spelled in English as Poona (List of renamed Indian cities and states#Maharashtra, the official name until 1978), is a city in the state of Maharashtra in the Deccan Plateau, Deccan plateau in Western ...
centre of Indian Institutes of Science Education and Research (IISER) as a professor. Since then, he has been serving the institute as a professor and has served as the chair of Biology and the coordinator of the department of biology. He pursues his research interests as the head of the LSS Laboratory at IISER, where he hosts a number doctoral and postdoctoral scholars. He also serves as an honorary professor at Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research. He served as the vice-president of the Indian National Science Academy from 2015 to 2017 and secretary general of the International Union of Biological Sciences from 2015-2019.


Career

Shashidhara's research was focused on
developmental biology Developmental biology is the study of the process by which animals and plants grow and develop. Developmental biology also encompasses the biology of Regeneration (biology), regeneration, asexual reproduction, metamorphosis, and the growth and di ...
, specifically the development of limbs and the role played by Ultrabithorax, a
Hox gene Hox genes, a subset of homeobox, homeobox genes, are a gene cluster, group of related genes that Evolutionary developmental biology, specify regions of the body plan of an embryo along the craniocaudal axis, head-tail axis of animals. Hox protein ...
, functioning as a
transcription factor In molecular biology, a transcription factor (TF) (or sequence-specific DNA-binding factor) is a protein that controls the rate of transcription (genetics), transcription of genetics, genetic information from DNA to messenger RNA, by binding t ...
. Studying
Drosophila melanogaster ''Drosophila melanogaster'' is a species of fly (an insect of the Order (biology), order Diptera) in the family Drosophilidae. The species is often referred to as the fruit fly or lesser fruit fly, or less commonly the "vinegar fly", "pomace fly" ...
(commonly known as fruit fly) as a model, he elucidated the molecular pathways Wnt, TGF-? and EGFR/Ras that impact growth control and developed a ''fly model'' for studying
Adenomatous polyposis coli Adenomatous polyposis coli (APC) also known as deleted in polyposis 2.5 (DP2.5) is a protein that in humans is encoded by the ''APC'' gene. The APC protein is a Down-regulation, negative regulator that controls beta-catenin concentrations and i ...
, the
colon cancer Colorectal cancer (CRC), also known as bowel cancer, colon cancer, or rectal cancer, is the development of cancer from the colon or rectum (parts of the large intestine). Signs and symptoms may include blood in the stool, a change in bowel ...
gene in humans. His studies are reported to have assisted in a wider understanding of the relation between genes and diseases in humans and in the development of cancer drug discovery systems. His research findings have been published in a number of articles published in peer-reviewed journals, several of them have been listed in online article repositories such as
Metascience Metascience (also known as meta-research) is the use of scientific methodology to study science itself. Metascience seeks to increase the quality of scientific research while reducing inefficiency. It is also known as "research on research" and ...
,
PubMed PubMed is an openly accessible, free database which includes primarily the MEDLINE database of references and abstracts on life sciences and biomedical topics. The United States National Library of Medicine (NLM) at the National Institute ...
, and
ResearchGate ResearchGate is a European commercial social networking site for scientists and researchers to share papers, ask and answer questions, and find collaborators. According to a 2014 study by ''Nature'' and a 2016 article in ''Times Higher Education' ...
. He has also published many general articles and has delivered keynote addresses and featured talks. He served as the secretary-general of the International Union of Biological Sciences (IUBS), during 2015–2019 and is associated with the '' Journal of Genetics'' and '' Current Science'' as their associate editor and with ''
Scientific Reports ''Scientific Reports'' is a peer-reviewed open-access scientific mega journal published by Nature Portfolio, covering all areas of the natural sciences. The journal was established in 2011. The journal states that their aim is to assess solely ...
'' as a member of its editorial board.


Awards and honours

Shashidhara, a J. C. Bose National Fellow of the Department of Science and Technology, received the Technology Prize in Biological Sciences of the
Council of Scientific and Industrial Research The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR; IAST: ''vaigyanik tathā audyogik anusandhāna pariṣada'') is a research and development (R&D) organisation in India to promote scientific, industrial and economic growth. Headquarter ...
in 2003 and the Outstanding Research Investigator Award of the Science Research Council of the Department of Atomic Energy in 2006. The Indian academy of Sciences elected him as a fellow in 2007 and he became an elected fellow of the Indian National Science Academy and the National Academy of Sciences, India in 2008. The same year he received the
Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize Shanti or Shanthi may refer to: In Sanskrit * Inner peace, a state of being mentally and spiritually at peace, with enough knowledge and understanding to keep oneself strong in the face of discord or stress * Kshanti, one of the paramitas of B ...
of the
Council of Scientific and Industrial Research The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR; IAST: ''vaigyanik tathā audyogik anusandhāna pariṣada'') is a research and development (R&D) organisation in India to promote scientific, industrial and economic growth. Headquarter ...
, one of the highest Indian science awards, for his contributions to Biological Sciences. In 2018, L.S. Shashidhara has been elected an Associate Member of European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO). He is currently elected as the president o
International Union Of Biological Sciences.


Selected bibliography


Scientific articles

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *


General Articles, Books and Policy Documents

* *L. S. Shashidhara (2010) Convener, Vision Group of INSA which drafted
Vision document for Indian Science in 2010
* * * * * * * *(2017–18) Commissioned and Edited, an anthology on
Impact of Science in Independent India
*L. S. Shashidhara (10 January 2017) Co-author:
Scientific advancements in Independent India. Current Science, Vol. 112


Selected Videos and Podcasts


Science for Society: Science to Fight Covid-19 and Cancer: Perspectives from Pune
, by Pune International Center (2021)
A journey in science...a journey in life
, by BIIS (2021)
Science on the Pandemic and Science through the Pandemic
, a webinar as a part of the Vigyan Setu Webinar Series by INSA-INYAS (2020)
Gender Equality in Science
, a podcast by the
International Science Council The International Science Council (ISC) is an international non-governmental organization that unites scientific bodies at various levels across the social and natural sciences. The ISC was formed with its inaugural general assembly on 4 July 20 ...
, as a part of the celebration of
International Day of Women and Girls in Science
, at
UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...
(2020)
COVID-19 and Animals: doubts clarified
, by Talking It Up (2020)
"Leadership and Mentoring"
at th

Science Leadership Workshop, (2020)
SDGs Learning, Training & Practice
as a part of the High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development, High-level Political Forum, by the
United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...
(2019) *
Why and how to integrate research and education?
, uploaded b
IndiaBioScience
(2019) *
QnA session with Professor L S Shashidhara, IISER Pune
, uploaded b
LivingScience
(2016) *
Eureka with Prof L S Shashidhara
, uploaded by Rajya Sabha Television, an Indian public broadcast service (2016) *
Impact of Science on Society
, uploaded b
LivingScience
(2016) *
NCBS Talk 1
, uploaded b
Bangalore Life Sciences Cluster
(2010)


See also

*
Drosophila melanogaster ''Drosophila melanogaster'' is a species of fly (an insect of the Order (biology), order Diptera) in the family Drosophilidae. The species is often referred to as the fruit fly or lesser fruit fly, or less commonly the "vinegar fly", "pomace fly" ...
* Homeotic selector gene *
Adenomatous polyposis coli Adenomatous polyposis coli (APC) also known as deleted in polyposis 2.5 (DP2.5) is a protein that in humans is encoded by the ''APC'' gene. The APC protein is a Down-regulation, negative regulator that controls beta-catenin concentrations and i ...
* Ultrabithorax


Notes


References


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Shashidhara, L. S. Recipients of the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Award in Biological Science 1963 births Scientists from Karnataka Alumni of the University of Cambridge Academic staff of the National Centre for Biological Sciences 20th-century Indian biologists Indian geneticists Fellows of the Indian Academy of Sciences Fellows of the Indian National Science Academy Fellows of the National Academy of Sciences, India Living people Academic staff of the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research, Pune Presidents of the International Union of Biological Sciences