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Alleviating healthcare challenges by augmenting efficacy of antibiotics

Dr Sutharsan Govindarajan, Assistant Professor, Department of Biological Sciences, SRM University – AP, Andhra Pradesh received an outlay of Rs 55 lakhs by the Department of Science and Technology (DST)- Science and Engineering Research Board (SERB), Government of India to advance the project “Mechanistic understanding of bacterial cytoskeleton inhibition by antibiotics and novel bacteriophage proteins”. The research grant is provided to support active researchers in undertaking research and development in the frontiers of Science and Engineering. Dr Sutharsan exclaims, “It is thrilling to see that my proposal has been accepted for funding. This is a huge recognition for the science that we do at SRM University – AP. Through this funding, I will be able to establish an independent molecular microbiology lab at the university.”

While the entire world is aggressively working to end the menace of COVID19, antimicrobial resistance has been a long-standing unsolved threat. This project is dedicated to interpreting the mechanism of inhibition of bacterial cytoskeleton by antibiotics, which has an immediate impact on the society as it strives to unravel the mystery of ‘how bacteria are able to outsmart antibiotics and survive’. In this project, Dr Sutharsan will be probing antibiotics to comprehend the response of bacteria to them. The scholar says, “Currently, antibiotic resistance is one of the greatest health care challenges of this century leading to serious clinical manifestations. In countries like India, the situation is alarming since nearly 58 thousand new-born babies are dying every year due to bacteria escaping the antibiotics.”

Dr Sutharsan informs, “Largely, solutions to antibiotic resistance problem is directed towards discovering new antibiotics and therapies. However, there are hundreds of existing antibiotics that could be made more effective to kill bacteria. But these antibiotics are not considered as compelling options in the market due to their poor efficiency or lack of understanding. In this project, we will investigate one such antibiotic and attempt to assess its response to the killing agent. By understanding how bacteria escape the antibiotic action, we hope to find effective strategies to combat them.”

The laboratory of phage-bacteria interaction will be established and led by Dr Sutharsan at SRM University-AP, where he will be relentlessly working on various aspects of bacteriology including antibiotic resistance, bacteriophage engineering, and therapy. Sharing his plans of advancing the work, Dr Sutharsan says “In the near future, we are planning to connect with the clinicians and explore the possibility of taking our research findings to actual patients – a bench to bedside model of research.”

“Startups and Government bodies must be complementing one another to steer space industry towards excellence”- Sri S Somanath, Director, VSSC

Research Day 2021 ceremony at SRM University-AP, Andhra Pradesh encompasses various endeavors aimed at appreciating and encouraging scholars to carry out extensive research works to enrich the society. Applauding the initiative, Dr P Sathyanarayanan, President, SRM AP stated “Research Day is when SRM University-AP commemorate the faculty and students for their outstanding research contributions. This university, though just a three-year-old one, has grown leaps and bounds in research and is now clearly the front runner among all the universities in the region.”

Prof V S Rao, Vice-Chancellor, SRM AP welcomed the Chief Guest Sri S Somanath, Director, Vikram Sarabhai Space Center (VSSC), Thiruvananthapuram, and other revered audience. Prof V S Rao highlighted, “Research day brings an excellent opportunity for the scientific community to showcase their accomplishments and impactful research works.”

Advancing the celebration, Prof D Narayana Rao, Pro Vice-Chancellor, SRM AP took the virtual podium to comment “Science and Technology is the driving force for the economic development of India. We need to encourage young scholars by providing a vibrant and conducive research environment. Expanding the frontiers of knowledge by triggering interest among students must be the priority of the institutions. Also, focus should be on translational research with societal applications through collaborative research to make our nation a global leader.”

During his motivating speech on “The Indian Space Enterprise Achievements & New Directions”, Dr S Somanath interpreted the complexities of Space Engineering by describing details pertaining to space infrastructure, and technology elements in rocket production involving the development of space vehicles capable of operating for years unattended in the space. He further informs, “The high cost and low volume production remains the challenge associated with Space Engineering.” He also stated that there are increasing demand and scope for satellite startups and the export potential is on the higher side for satellites in India.

Dr S Somanath proceeded to illuminate the audience on the changing horizons of the space industry, contributed by the emerging technologies such as integrating satellites, drones, and terrestrial imagery. In addition, he addressed the disruptive technologies that led to reusable rockets, space technology-driven drones, etc., enhancing the market substantially for the satellite production and reducing the market for the launching vehicles.

Consequently, Dr S Somanath accentuated that the government bodies such as ISRO, IN-SPAC, and NSIL should remodel its direction of operation. He suggests, “Government of India should be opening the space sector and assist the new participants by sharing technological expertise. Startups and government bodies must be complementing one another to steer this industry towards excellence.”

Progressing with the celebration, eminent scientific works and contributions of various faculty, research scholars, and undergraduate students were rewarded. As part of the research day programme, the students and faculty were urged to submit abstracts of their research. Among 176 submissions from students and 40 from the faculty community of SRM AP, 20 were awarded with gold medals while 6 were presented with silver medals. Further, a special issue of abstracts was unveiled during the Research Day celebration that comprised of all the submitted abstracts for public consumption.

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Research Day Celebration 2021 SRM University-AP

Republic Day is observed in SRM University-AP to commemorate the day on which the Constitution of India came into effect, in the year 1950, and the country became a republic. Like every year, this year too the faculty, staff and students of SRM University-AP gathered around to honour the day. Amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, the university celebrated Republic Day by following the safety rules and regulations. The Celebration started with a Rangoli Competition, in which our neighbours from the surrounding villages joined us. This was followed by flag hoisting ceremony and march past of the staffs. Prof D Narayana Rao, Pro-Vice-Chancellor, did the honour of hoisting the National Flag. Mr Ernest Samuel Ratnakumar, Registrar; Ms Revathi B, Assistant Director-Student Affairs, Mr Abdul Mohimin, Assistant Director-Sports were among the dignitaries.

In his address, Prof Narayana Rao briefly explained India’s progress since independence in the fields of Education, Industry, Healthcare, Agriculture, Information Technology and others. At the time of independence, India was a poor country with 12% literacy rate and 35-40 years of average life expectancy. In the past 70 years, India has emerged as one of the world’s leading knowledge superpowers. Many other countries also earned independence at the same time as India’s. But only India has been able to utilise its human resources and wisdom to achieve greatness. In the following years after independence, India did not even have enough food grains to feed a country of 30 crores people. Food grains had to be imported from other countries like Myanmar. However, today, India not only is solvent enough to feed its 130-crore people but also exports food grains to other needy and poor countries. Be it agriculture, education or healthcare, India’s progress so far has been remarkable. The reputed institutes such as IITs, IISERs, NITs, IISc, ISIs, AIMs are performing beyond expectations educating the people of this country. Leading research organisations and regulatory bodies such as CSIR, ISRO, DRDO, DST, DBT are rigorously working to make this country do big and achieve big. “These organisations came into being with great vision, and we feel very proud to say that they are on par with any other organisations of the leading developed countries. COVID-19 pandemic brought an unprecedented crisis all over the world. But Indian biotech companies were able to make the COVID vaccines within a very short span of time. It is a moment of pride for every Indian that India has become the world’s vaccine factory. No other country has the capability to produce vaccines in such a large number”, asserted Prof Rao. He further added that India had progressed very much in establishing communication even in the remote villages with the help of satellites. India’s advancement in designing, developing and launching satellites is exceptional. Data connectivity and Internet are the basic needs of today’s world, and India is the country that provides such connectivity at the lowest price in the world. Over the years after independence, India has learnt to use its human resource effectively. In today’s world, India produces the most numbers of skilled professionals to meet the need of this era. Indians are scaling greater heights in every sphere. Satya Nadela, Sundar Pichai are a few examples of how Indians are taking over the world with their brilliance and intellect. This country has been politically independent for a while, and it is now the high time to be technologically independent. “We are progressing very fast, and we have the power and potential to emerge as one of the major economic powers in the coming days. With a capability to turn every crisis into an opportunity, we move forward towards an ‘Atma-Nirbhar Bharat’ following our Prime Minister’s advice of Innovate, Patent, Produce and Prosper,” said Prof Narayana Rao.

Adhering to the spirits of patriotism, Mr Raviteja Reddy, Mr A Chaitanya, Mr P M Aditya, Mr K Praveen, K Yeshashwini, A Sravya, K Vasu, G Priyanka, students of mechanical engineering, demonstrated their eco-friendly bike which was made recently by converting IC Engine bike to electric bike, under the mentorship of Dr Venkata Nori and Dr P Jayaprakash Sharma. Their successful venture was highly praised by the dignitaries present in the event.

The event concluded with the Prize Distribution Ceremony. The Winners and Participants of Rangoli Competition and Fancy-Dress Competition for Kids were congratulated by Prof D Narayana Rao, Mr Ernest Samuel Ratnakumar and Smt Priya. Prof Rao felicitated Dr Sutharsan Govindrajan, Department of Biological Sciences; Dr Mannathan, Dr Mahesh Kumar Ravva, Dr Nimai Mishra, Department of Chemistry; Dr Jatis Dash, Dr Siddhartha Ghosh, Department of Physics for their research contribution in Nature Index Ranking-2020.

Students of SRM University AP, Andhra Pradesh get the opportunity to attend the 73rd outreach programme titled “Overview of Geo-processing using Python” arranged by Indian Institute of Remote Sensing (IIRS) -Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO). In the modern era, satellite imagery fused with the power of Geographic Information System enhances environmental management system by providing solutions pertaining to issues such as disasters, global climate change, natural resources, wildlife, and land cover. Effectively processing the massive data to decipher useful information is considered the most challenging aspect of geospatial technology. This programme encompassing a session from January 18, 2021 till January 29, 2021 will enable the participants to use Python to visualize geospatial data and derive the desired knowledge, mitigating the aforementioned challenge. Students of SRM AP are encouraged to attend this programme to broaden the prospect of achieving their career aspirations.

Programme Schedule: Please Click Here

Registration Link: Please Click Here

For further details, Visit Here

Awareness Programme at SRM University-AP to ensure participation in the electoral process

SRM University-AP organised a Voter Awareness Programme on National Voters’ Day to inspire voters to enhance their participation in the electoral process. National Voters’ Day is observed every year on January 25 to spread awareness among the voters. Guest of Honour, Shri G V Ram Prasad, M.R.O. and Assistant Electoral Registration Officer-Mangalagiri explained why it is crucial for people in a democracy like India to take part in the Electoral Process. Prof D Narayana Rao, Pro-Vice-Chancellor, Mr Ernest Samuel Ratnakumar, Registrar attended the event along with the faculty and staffs of SRM University- AP.

In his presidential address, Prof D N Rao explained why we have this need to celebrate National Voters’ Day. The main objective of the Voters’ Day is to ensure the facilitation of new voters and encourage their participation into casting votes. To understand this power of Democracy, one must be aware of this nation’s history. The journey from Monarchy to Democracy was arduous. In previous days, to change one’s king or leader, the people have to go through a violent process such as revolt or execution of the king. Now the process is much easier. One only needs to cast his vote to the person he prefers. In this way, only those who are chosen by the people of the country will be elected to run the nation. Therefore, it is essential to cast one’s vote. Votes are the voices of people in a democracy. In the absence of votes, the nation might not get the leaders it needs.

Shri Ram Prasad further added that the Voters’ Day was initiated by Mrs Pratibha Patil, former President of India, on the 61st foundation day of Election Commission. He said, “It is unfortunate to note that, in this largest Democracy of the world, only 50-60% of the votes are being cast in an average. It clearly shows that many people of this great country still unaware of the great power that Democracy provides them. The concept of celebrating Voters’ day came into being with this goal to make these people understand their power in deciding the nation’s future. He also informed that this year, the Government of India has agreed to launch e-EPIC card for voters’ benefit. e-EPIC is a portable document format(PDF) version of the EPIC which can be downloaded on mobile or in a self-printable form on the computer. A voter can thus store the card on his/her mobile, upload it on Digi locker or print it and self-laminate it. This is in addition to PCV EPIC being issued for fresh registration. Mr Earnest Samuel concluded reminding the audience that in or after 1947, several countries got their independence. But none carries a legacy as ours. It is each and every one of our duty to carry forward this legacy so that India can be Democratic in its true notion.

The smart minds of SRM University-AP, Andhra Pradesh receives an opportunity to present their creative skills in the Toycathon-2021. Organized by the Ministry of Education’s Innovation Cell, Toycathon- 2021 challenges India’s contemporary minds to conceptualize Toy and Games inspired by Indian civilization, history, culture, mythology, and ethos. This unique opportunity will also enable exceptional innovators to win prizes worth Rs. 50 lakhs. In addition, the winning team’s efforts will be commercialized with support from the industry and investors.

The Department of Innovation and Entrepreneurship, SRM University AP has developed a panel of experts who will validate the presentation of the groups eager to participate in the contest. Further, assistance will be provided to the groups at every stage of the competition including support in preparing an enthralling pitch. This will empower the teams to have an edge while representing SRM AP in the national forum.

Last Date of Submission: January 29, 2021, at 7 PM

Registration Link: Click Here