Prof K. Subramaniam received his Ph. D. from the Indian Institute of Science in 1994. His postdoctoral training was at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. Dr. Subramaniam joined the faculty of IIT – Kanpur in the Department of Biological Sciences & Bioengineering in 2002. He was an International Senior Research Fellow of the Wellcome Trust during 2003-09. He joined the Department of Biotechnology, IIT Madras in 2014. |
A. Pon Ezhil Buvani
Ph.D. Scholar
M.Sc. (Biomedical Science), Bharathidasan University, Trichy R. Vishnupriya
M.S cum Ph.D. Scholar,
B.Tech (Industrial Biotechnology), Government College of Technology, Coimbatore A. GomathiPh.D. Scholar
M.Sc.(Biomedical Genetics), University of Madras, Chennai Sheba Annie PhilipPh.D. Scholar
M.Sc.(Zoology), St.Teresa's College, Ernakulam |
"Cell division is a basic biological process of any organism. Uncontrolled cell proliferation will result in cancer. On the other hand, failing to produce the required number of cells will affect the development, size and/or function of organ(s) involved. Due to its highly important role in many biological processes such as development, tissue homeostasis and reproduction, cell division is tightly regulated by different kind of regulators at each step of its progression. We have identified one such regulatory protein of cell division in Caenorhabditis elegans. Worms homozygous for the loss of function of this gene are sterile having a severely reduced germ line. In addition, none of these worms form proper vulva and somatic gonad. Detailed analysis of these phenotypes suggests that the cell division is severely perturbed in all these poorly developed tissues. Currently, I am working towards understanding the function of this protein during cell division in C. elegans."
"Translational regulation is crucial for germ cell development in any sexually-reproducing species. I am glad to be a part of the group that studies translational regulation using one of the best model systems, the C. elegans germ line. While several proteins are majorly involved in this process, more recently, small RNAs have been discovered to play an important role. In addition, the germ line has its own way of surveillance, to protect the DNA of germ cells. Interestingly, several RNA-binding proteins, which are key translational regulators, are part of the germline surveillance machinery. My journey started off with a gene that is predicted to have nucleic acid-binding activity. The journey became fascinating when I found that this gene is a part of the transgene-silencing machinery in the germ line. Solving the puzzle of how and where this particular gene functions, in protecting the germ line (although I am a bit too greedy), would form the rest of the story."
"Germ cells are the only cells in the body that are capable of undergoing meiosis to produce gametes, which carries the genetic information to establish the next generation. Primordial Germ Cells (PGCs) are the embryonic fore-runners of germ cells. In many organisms, PGCs are specified early during development, and this specific fate needs to be protected from the influence of extrinsic somatic signals for the normal development of germ cells. Every species has developed various levels of mechanisms to guard their PGCs from acquiring somatic fate. For example, in C. elegans and Drosophila melanogaster, PGCs are kept transcriptionally quiescent till they reach their somatic gonad, even though their somatic sister cells are transcriptionally active. Therefore understanding the mechanisms and factors that are involved in protecting the fate of germ cells are very crucial. By using C. elegans as a model organism, I am trying to understand the role of such factors that required for the proper germ cell development."
"Study of how germ cells form and develop is essential to understand sexual reproduction. The nematode C.elegans is an excellent model organism for this purpose. The highly conserved PUF family proteins regulate germ cell development in diverse organisms. The C.elegans PUF protein, PUF-8 plays a central role in maintaining a balance between self-renewal and meiotic differentiation. A recent study by G.Anil Kumar and K.Subramaniam, Development(2018) has shown that PUF-8 facilitates homologous pairing during meiosis by promoting proteasome activity. Towards this goal, I wish to perform an RNAi screen of potential mRNA targets of PUF-8, whose misexpression may be the cause for the observed defects. In addition, I also plan to carry out a yeast two-hybrid screen to test if PUF-8 interacts with any of the proteasome components."
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V. Hemalatha |
K.Revathi |
Lab Assistant
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Project Assistant
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