Mutagenicity: Assays and Applications (ePub)

degree in Biotechnology from Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology (Moscow, Russia) and PhD degree in Molecular Biology from the Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry of the Russian Academy of Sciences (IBCh RAS). In 1998, Dr. Dobrovolsky has joined the US Food and Drug Administration as a staff fellow at the National Center for Toxicological Research (Jefferson, Arkansas). Currently as a Senior Scientist, he oversees a group consisting of postdoctoral students, support personnel and staff scientists who are involved in research projects in the field of basic and applied genetic toxicology. His group is using advanced flow cytometry, fluorescence microscopy and next generation sequencing for designing and validating methodologies used for safety assessment of FDA-regulated products. Over the years Dr. Dobrovolsky published over 70 research and scholar articles in peer-reviewed journals and books on detecting in vitro and in vivo mutation, using transgenic and knockout animals in biotechnology and mutation research, characterizing spectra of mutations with high throughput methods. Dr. Dobrovolsky is a member of an influential Genetic Toxicology Technical Committee of the Washington, DC, based Health and Environmental Sciences Institute that advances genetic toxicology and human risk assessment through the international collaboration of experts from industry, government and academia.

Professor Alok Dhawan is currently Director, CSIR-Indian Institute of Toxicology Research, Lucknow and Outstanding Professor, Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research, New Delhi. He is the Test Facility Management of the GLP compliant toxicity test facility at CSIR-IITR. He served as Founding Director, Institute of Life Sciences, and Dean, Planning and Development, Ahmedabad University, Gujarat. Before joining as Director, CSIR-IITR, he worked as Scientist C, Principal Scientist and Senior Principal Scientist at CSIR-IITR, Lucknow. He obtained his Ph.D. Degree in Biochemistry from the University of Lucknow, India in 1991 and was awarded D.Sc. Degree (h.c.) from University of Bradford, U.K., 2016. He has been a Visiting Scholar, Michigan State University, USA; BOYSCAST Fellow, University of Surrey, Wales & Bradford, UK. He has over 30 years of research experience in toxicology and has contributed significantly in the areas of in vitro-, genetic- and in silico- toxicology. Professor Dhawan initiated the area of nanomaterial toxicology in India and published a guidance document on the safe use of nanomaterials. His group elucidated the mechanism of toxicity of metal oxide nanoparticles in human and bacterial cells and also looked at the environmental impact of nanomaterials.

Professor Dhawan has won several honours and awards including the INSA Young Scientist Medal in 1994, CSIR Young Scientist Award in 1999, the Shakuntala Amir Chand Prize of ICMR in 2002 and the Vigyan Ratna by the Council of Science and Technology, UP in 2011. His work in the area of nanomaterial toxicology has won him international accolades as well and he was awarded two Indo-UK projects under the prestigious UK-IERI programme. He was also awarded two European Union Projects under the FP7 and New INDIGO programmes.

He founded the Indian Nanoscience Society in 2007. In recognition of his work he has been elected Fellow, Royal Society of Chemistry, UK; Fellow, The National Academy of Sciences, India; Fellow, The Academy of Toxicological Sciences, USA; Fellow, The Academy of Environmental Biology; Fellow, Academy of Science for Animal Welfare; Fellow-Society of Toxicology (India); Founder Fellow, Indian Nanoscience Society; Fellow, Gujarat Science Academy; President, Uttar Pradesh Academy of Sciences (2017-); Vice President-Environmental Mutagen Society of India (2006-07); Member-National Academy of Medical Sciences; Member, United Kingdom Environmental Mutagen Society, U.K.; Member, Asian Association of Environmental Mutagen Societies, Japan.

He has to his credit over 125 publications in peer reviewed international journals, 18 reviews/book chapters, four patents, two copyrights and has edited three books. He serves on the Editorial Boards of several scientific journals of repute such as Mutagenesis, Nanotoxicology, Xenobiotica and Mutation Research.

Professor Rishi Shanker, currently serves as Consultant to Center for Innovation & Translational Research (CITAR), CSIR-Indian Institute of Toxicology Research, Lucknow and also Advisor to ABC Genomics (India) Private Ltd, Biotechnology Park, Lucknow, India. He has served as Professor & Associate Dean at the School of Arts & Sciences, Ahmedabad University, Gujarat, India (2014-16). Prior to joining Ahmedabad University, he served as Chief Scientist and Area Coordinator - Environmental & Nanomaterial Toxicology Groups at CSIR-Indian Institute of Toxicology Research, Lucknow (2001-2013). He also served as Principal Scientist at CSIR-National Environmental Engineering Research Institute, Nagpur (1991-2001). He obtained his Masters in Biochemistry from University of Lucknow and a PhD in Environmental Microbiology & Toxicology from CSIR-IITR & CSJM University(1985). Dr Shankers’ post-doctoral research addressed methanogen microbiology, deep subsurface microbiology and protein engineering at University of London and Pennsylvania State University, USA (1987-1990).

Dr. Shanker’s research contributions range from genetically engineered bacteria for bioremediation and molecular probes for pathogen detection to alternate models in toxicity assessment of chemicals and engineered nanomaterials. He has successfully steered over 34 national and international research projects including Indo-US program: Common Agenda for Environment, Indo-Swiss Program in Biotechnology, Indo-German, EU FP7, EU New Indigo & Inno Indigo program and Unilever. He has more than 80 publications and 20 reviews/book chapters to his credit in aforesaid areas. He has mentored 11 PhD students and 20 research projects of Masters’ students in life sciences.

His work on ‘pathogen detection and water quality’ received recognition in form of ‘Vigyan Ratna’, conferred by the Government of Uttar Pradesh, India. He was awarded the Visiting Research Fellowship of Society for General Microbiology, UK at the Anaerobic Microbiology Laboratory, Queen Mary College, University of London. He has served as Visiting Scientist and Visiting Professor at the University of Washington, Seattle, USA; Pasteur Institute & CEA, France; and Pohang University of Science & Technology, Republic of Korea. He is founder fellow of Indian Nanoscience Society and Fellow of Society of Toxicology, India.