Sun Pharma Science Foundation, a non-profit organization registered under Societies Registration Act announced the Sun Pharma Science Awards to Indian Scientists for their outstanding work and exemplary contribution to medical research. These awards are presented in two categories - The Sun Pharma Research Awards for outstanding scientists and Sun Pharma Science Scholar Awards for young researchers. The winners for both these awards are identified in two sub-categories - Medical Sciences and Pharmaceutical Sciences. An eminent jury panel comprising well-known scientists from India selected the final winners. These Awards are presented annually to Indian scientists & young researchers working in India and abroad.
The awards were presented by Prof. Vishwajit Nimgaonkar, Professor of Psychiatry and Human Genetics at the University of Pittsburgh, USA and Mr. Dilip Shanghvi, Managing Director, Sun Pharma.
Sun Pharma Research Award Winners for 2016
Medical Sciences – Basic Research Award Winner
Dr. Rajan Sankaranarayanan
Chief Scientist CSIR-Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology Uppal Road, Hyderabad – 500 007, India
Dr. Sankaranarayanan receives this award for his outstanding contributions in the area of protein biosynthesis, by studying proofreading mechanisms using structural biology approaches. Registered Office : 8-C, 8th Floor, Hansalaya Building, 15-Barakhamba Road, Connaught Place, New Delhi-110001
Medical Sciences- Medical Research Award Winner
Dr. Vikram Mathews
Associate Director Professor and Head Department of Clinical Haematology Christian Medical College Vellore 632004, India Dr. Mathews receives this award for his outstanding work in Acute Promyelocytic Leukemia (APL) and the use of arsenic trioxide (ATO) in the treatment of this condition.
Medical Sciences- Clinical Research Award Winner
Prof. Ashish Suri
Professor of Neurosurgery Neurosciences Center All India Institute of Medical Sciences New Delhi, India Prof. Ashish Suri receives this award for his pioneering research in developing innovative techniques and treatment protocols for complex skull-base and brain tumour surgery.
Pharmaceutical Sciences Award Winner
Dr. D. Srinivasa Reddy
Senior Scientist Division of Organic Chemistry CSIR-National Chemical Laboratory Dr. Homi Bhabha Road, Pune 411008, India Dr. Reddy receives this award for his excellent work in the area of total synthesis of biologically active natural products and medicinal chemistry using “silicon incorporation approach” towards identification of lead molecules of therapeutic potential.
SUN PHARMA SCIENCE SCHOLAR AWARD WINNERS FOR 2017 Bio-Medical Sciences Award Winner
Ms. Punita Kumari
PhD student Biological Sciences & Bioengineering department Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur-208016, India Ms. Punita Kumari receives the award for developing a better understanding of the signalling and regulation of G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs), the largest class of drug targets in the human body. Ms. Aditi Jain PhD Candidate Senior Research Fellow Centre for BioSystems Science and Engineering Indian Institute of Science Bangalore-560012, India Ms. Aditi Jain receives the award for her research work on ‘Understanding cardiac failure using engineered materials’ that provides a suitable laboratory substitute to conduct research on cardiac cells for developing better therapies to treat heart diseases.
PHARMACEUTICAL SCIENCES AWARD WINNER
Mr. Gaurav Joshi
PhD Candidate Junior Research Fellow Laboratory for Drug Design and Synthesis Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Natural Products Central University of Punjab Bathinda-151001, India
Mr. Joshi receives the award for his research work entitled "Targeting chromatin coupled enzymes by small molecules in cancer cells" that explored the design strategies, synthesis and biological evaluation of the novel heterocycles as the multifunctional inhibitors of Epidermal Growth Factor Receptors (EGFR), Histone Deacetylases (HDAC) and Human Topoisomerases (hTopo) as anticancer agents.
Mr. Shasank Sekhar Swain
PhD Research Scholar, Central Research Laboratory, Institute of Medical Sciences & SUM Hospital, Siksha ‘O’ Anusandhan (Deemed to be University), Bhubaneswar-751003, Odisha, India Mr. Swain receives the award for his innovative research work, “Conjugation of a phytochemical with an obsolete drug as a novel strategy towards antimicrobial drug discovery: a case study with sulfonamide-monoterpene phenols against MRSA”.
Sun Pharma Science Foundation also conducted its Annual Conference on the subject, “Training Pathways for Physician Scientists” in association with Translational Health Science & Technology Institute, Faridabad. Prof. K. VijayRaghavan, Former Secretary DBT, Government of India delivered the Inaugural Address. Eminent scientists from India & abroad participated in the conference.