News & Views Issue 9

May 2016

INDIA ALLIANCE

We are pleased to bring to you the ninth issue of the India Alliance Newsletter. These Newsletters provide updates on India Alliance

Fellowship schemes, funded research and its other activities such as Science communication workshops and Public Engagement

events. They also feature interesting research stories and interviews. Please send your comments and suggestions for these newsletters to

public.engagement@wellcomedbt.org so that we can make these a more useful read for you.

Updates on Fellowships: Interviews for the Senior and Intermediate Fellowships (SIF, basic research scheme) were held in April in

Chandigarh, results of which will be announced shortly. Applications submitted for the Margdarshi Fellowships, Clinical and Public Health

(CPH) Fellowships, and Senior and Intermediate Fellowships (basic research scheme) are currently under review. We are presently

accepting applications for our Early Career Fellowships (basic research scheme). Call for applications will be made for Senior and

Intermediate Fellowships (SIF; basic research scheme) and Research Training Fellowships in July 2016.

Professor Rakesh Aggarwal (Sanjay Gandhi Postgraduate Institute of Medical Sciences, Lucknow, India) joined our Early Career

Fellowship committee and Professor Raman Bedi (Department of Population & Patient Health, King's College London, United Kingdom),

Dr Matthew Burton (London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine) and Professor Sudhir Krishna (National Centre for Biological

Sciences, Bangalore) are now part of the Clinical and Public Health Fellowship committee. We would like to welcome them to the India

Alliance family and look forward to our association with them. We are thankful to our Senior and Intermediate Fellowship committee

members for participating at the one-day symposium organised at IISER Mohali on 20 April.

On the Public Engagement front, India Alliance supported, the Undivided Mind, a six-week long Art & Science Programme at Khoj

International Artists' Association which concluded successfully on April 17. This issue includes a short report on the programme and the

health/science-inspired artwork that was displayed on the Open day. This programme also brought together some of our Fellows and

the artists to discuss and collaborate on similar creative projects in the future. We will update you on this and more in our subsequent

issues. After the first public event on antibiotic resistance in Hyderabad in the “Voices for Health” series, the next programme will focus

on cancer in the North eastern Indian states and will be held in Shillong tentatively in July. More information on this will be shared on

our website shortly.

On the Science Communication front, our SciComm team conducted a one-day SciComm101 workshop at the National Institute for

Research in Reproductive Health on May 4 which was attended by around 80 PhD students and Postdoc researchers from 14 different

research institutions from around Mumbai. On March 21-22, we held our 13th biannual Science Communication workshop in Hyderabad

which had participants from 27 institutions from across the country. Our next biannual two-day workshop will be held in Hyderabad on

26-27 September 2016. Application forms for this workshop will be available on our website shortly. In keeping with our vision to

empower the communicators in young scientists and to enable them to make informed career choices, India Alliance has entered into a

partnership with Nature India to organise Science Communication and Career Workshop series. More information on this series is

included in this newsletter.

The recent Big data revolution is an important turning point for health research and for the medical field in general. In this issue, our

Early Career Fellow at AIIMS New Delhi, Dr Tavpritesh Sethi and his supervisor Dr Rakesh Lodha, have written an important piece “Data

science for Medicine: Unicorns and Workhorses” based on their current research which intends to integrate clinical and Big data to

enable early detection of sepsis in Paediatric Intensive Care Units. This issue also includes interviews of leading neurobiologist, Dr Vidita

Vaidya, associate professor at TIFR Mumbai, Dr Supriya Ray, Intermediate Fellow at Allahabad University and Dr Bela Desai, India

Alliance Grants Adviser. Heartfelt gratitude to them for sharing interesting and useful insights on their work and life. The Research

Highlights section features recently published work of Intermediate Fellow Dr Guruprasad Medigeshi that provides novel insights into

immune response of children to dengue infection and BBC news story on the SMART Mental Health programme led by Intermediate

Fellow Dr Pallab Maulik, which aims to provide mobile-based affordable evidence based mental health services in rural India. A big

thank you to all of them for sharing their novel research stories.

Last but not the least, thank you to Dr Tavpritesh Sethi for sharing the cover image. This image was one of the entries of the India

Alliance Research Image competition 2015.

We will continue to bring to you interesting research stories, announcements and discussions and as always look forward to your

valuable comments and suggestions.

Best wishes,

Sarah Iqbal, PhD

Public Engagement Officer

EDITORIAL

1.

CONTENTS

3 INDIA ALLIANCE FELLOWSHIP ANNOUNCEMENTS

Call for applications for Early Career Fellowships (basic scheme)

4 INDIA ALLIANCE FELLOWS

New Intermediate Fellows: Dr Abi T Vanak, Dr Shivarama Varambally

5 PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT CORNER

Art & Science programme, One-day symposium at IISER Mohali

9 SCIENCE COMMUNICATION

SciComm Hyderabad, SciComm101and Science Communication & Career workshop series

11 IN CONVERSATION WITH..

Prof Vidita Vaidya, Associate Professor, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR), Mumbai

12 INDIA ALLIANCE RESEARCH HIGHLIGHTS

Dr Guruprasad Medigeshi, Dr Pallab Maulik

13 INDIA ALLIANCE FELLOW IN SPOTLIGHT

Dr Supriya Ray, Intermediate Fellow, Allahabad University

15 DATA SCIENCE FOR MEDICINE: UNICORNS AND WORKHORSES

by Dr Tavpritesh Sethi & Dr Rakesh Lodha, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi

18 INDIA ALLIANCE STAFF CORNER

Dr Bela Desai, Grants Adviser, India Alliance

2

Eligibility:

• Applicant must be in the final year of PhD or have no more

than four years of post-PhD research experience from the

date of PhD viva to the full application submission deadline

(August 2016 for the current round of competition); due

consideration will be given to justified career breaks

• Applicant can have a PhD in any discipline of science

• There are no restrictions based on age or nationality

• Applicant need not be resident in India while applying, but

should be aspiring to launch an independent research career in

India

• Applicant must choose a not-for-profit host institution in India

that will administer the Fellowship for the full duration (5 years)

of the award. The applicant and the host institution will have to

abide by the India Alliance policies on time commitment.

• Applicant may or may not have a faculty position

Remit:

Full spectrum of biomedical science from fundamental molecular

and cellular studies through Clinical and Public Health research**

Interdisciplinary projects are welcome

Provisions:

The upper limit for an award is INR 1.7 Crores. The 5-year

Fellowship typically provides:

• Competitive personal support

• Generous research funds

• Funding to work overseas for up to 2 years and develop

international collaborations

Essentials on the application:

• A research proposal that seeks to answer an original

biomedical research question

• A Fellowship Supervisor who would supervise the applicant in

the proposed research and a letter of support to this end

• An additional letter of recommendation

Preliminary applications due by 6 June, 2016

Application forms will be available from 2 May, 2016 on the

India Alliance online application System (IASys) at

https://fellowships.wellcomedbt.org/Login.aspx

Please visit http://wellcomedbt.org/fellowships/early-career-

fellowships for further information on eligibility, remit, provisions,

and the application process. Queries may be addressed to

info@wellcomedbt.org

**We encourage Clinicians and Public Health researchers to apply in

the separate Clinical and Public Health competition which would be

announced later. Please check for updates at

http://wellcomedbt.org/fellowshiptype/clinical-and-public-health-

research-fellowships

3.

RECENTLY RECOMMENDED AWARDEES

EARLY CAREER FELLOWSHIPS 2016

This is a mentored Fellowship programme that provides a

unique opportunity for postdoctoral researchers to carry out

research in India towards building an independent research

career.

* indicates newly awarded host institute

Dr Sveta Chakrabarti, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore

Dr Mohammad Tauqeer Alam, Indian Institute of Technology

Delhi*, New Delhi

Dr Gajinder Pal Singh, International Centre for Genetic

Engineering and Biotechnology, New Delhi

Ms Paulomi Sanghavi, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research,

Mumbai

Dr Arunabha Chakrabarti, Tata Translational Cancer Research

Centre, Kolkata

Dr Debojyoti Chakraborty, Institute of Genomics and Integrative

Biology, New Delhi

Dr Aditi Maulik, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore

Dr Nisha N K, Indian Institute of Science Education and Research

Thiruvananthapuram, Thiruvananthapuram

Dr Preethi Badrinarayan, Institute of Microbial Technology,

Chandigarh

Dr Chitra P, National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences,

Bangalore

Dr Anchal Chandra, National Centre for Biological Sciences,

Bangalore

INDIA ALLIANCE FELLOWSHIP ANNOUNCEMENT

CALL FOR APPLICATIONS

EARLY CAREER FELLOWSHIPS Preliminary Application Deadline: 6 June 2016

CLINICAL AND PUBLIC HEALTH RESEARCH

INDIA ALLIANCE FELLOWS

I am an ecologist with broad interests in animal movement ecology,

disease ecology, savanna ecosystems and wildlife in human-

dominated systems. I completed my MSc in Wildlife Science from

the Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun in 1997, and worked for

several years with research and conservation organisations in India.

In 2008 I received a PhD from the University of Missouri studying

the competitive dynamics between free-ranging domestic dogs and

a native carnivore, the Indian fox. Subsequent to this, I did a post-

doc at the University of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa, studying the

movement ecology of elephants, large African carnivores and

savanna ecosystem dynamics. I returned to India in 2012 as an

inaugural National Environment Sciences Fellow of the Ministry of

Environment and Forests. At the same time, I was accepted as a

faculty member at the Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the

Environment (ATREE), in Bangalore.

My research in India has spanned across my interests, with projects

on the conservation of semi-arid savanna grasslands in peninsular

India, the adaptation of mesocarnivores to human-dominated

landscapes, and the impact of invasive species on grasslands. My

interests in disease ecology, which started during my PhD research

on dogs, has led me to explore the dynamics of pathogen

transmission between dogs and native carnivores. A natural

extension of this then was to examine zoonoses such as rabies that

are transmitted by the massive dog population in India (~60

million).

My motivation for the India Alliance fellowship

stemmed from a deceptively simple question: Why

is India not yet rabies free? At 20,000/annum (likely a

huge underestimate), India has the highest human mortalities from

rabies, with almost all of them being contracted from dogs. Yet,

rabies control measures are based on data obtained from other

countries with very different dog demography and ownership

patterns, and it is therefore no surprise that they have not been

properly implemented, and not really worked. With this

project I plan to examine rabies in India under the

“OneHealth” framework by combining ecology,

epidemiology and human health.

4.

I received my MBBS from Mysore Medical College and MD

(Psychiatry) from NIMHANS. At NIMHANS, I was lucky to be

mentored by Prof. B N Gangadhar and seniors like Dr.

Venkatasubramanian. The training at NIMHANS inculcated an

interest in the neurobiology of Schizophrenia and other psychotic

disorders.

A period of work in Australia from 2005 – 2007 broadened my

worldview and enabled me to understand that psychiatric disorders

though universal, are colored to a significant extent by societal

norms and environmental influences. On my return from Australia to

join as a faculty at NIMHANS, I continued work on neurobiological

factors in Schizophrenia, particularly soft neurological signs. I am

currently working as an Additional Professor of Psychiatry at the

Department of Psychiatry, NIMHANS.

I also developed an inclination for studying the use and mechanisms

of action of Yoga as a therapeutic tool in neuropsychiatry. At the

NIMHANS Yoga Centre, we have evaluated the therapeutic

potential for yoga in psychiatric disorders and also attempted to

critically evaluate and improve existing paradigms in yoga

research with a view to bring it into the mainstream of medicine.

Our studies on the effect of yoga in depression, mild cognitive

impairment, and in particular psychosis, have been pathbreaking

and well-recognized.

My India Alliance-funded research aims to test the effects and

mechanisms of a validated yoga module as an add-on treatment in

schizophrenia. The efficacy is proposed to be tested through a

randomized controlled study assessing clinical symptoms, emotion

processing, quality of life, and real-world functioning.

The Wellcome Trust/DBT India Alliance

Intermediate Fellowship seemed an ideal pathway

for me to pursue my twin interests in the

neurobiology of Schizophrenia as well as the use

of Yoga in psychiatric disorders, and will hopefully

provide scientific evidence for the neuroplastic

effects of yoga in this enigmatic disorder.

Dr Abi. T Vanak Clinical and Public Health Research

Intermediate Fellow 2015 Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment, Bangalore Website

Dr Shivarama Varambally Clinical and Public Health Research

Intermediate Fellow 2015

National Institute of Mental Health and

Neurosciences (NIMHANS), Bangalore

Website

Yoga and Schizophrenia – a comprehensive assessment of neuroplasticity

Bringing "OneHealth" to rabies research in India: Integrating animal ecology, disease ecology and human health

INDIA ALLIANCE PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT CORNER

ART & SCIENCE PROGRAMME

For centuries, science and art and those engaged in these fields, have

shaped the society and have informed each other’s practices. But more

recently there have been few active exchanges between the two fields

which have increasingly been seen as unconnected. This notion was

addressed and challenged at the recently held, the Undivided Mind,

Art and Science residency organised by one of the leading

contemporary art spaces in the country, Khoj International Artists

Association, from March 7 to April 15, 2016, wherein the participants

explored the distinct yet connected fields of art, science, health,

technology and design. Seven artists at the residency, from India and

abroad, who were selected through a competition, brought with them

different artistic insights and expertise and a keen interest to engage

in a dialogue with scientists and other practitioners of STEM (Science,

Technology, Engineering and Medicine) and social sciences. During the

six weeks, the artists explored various science and health-related

themes which ranged from, terrestrial and extra-terrestrial experience

of a four-armed human being, “tub of loss”- to experience the loss of

body (similar to in space) to urban laboratory for birds, wearable

sculptures to protect from air pollution and a body suit mimicking

microorganism invasion of our bodies. The artwork also reflected on

human conditions such as abnormal perception (schizophrenia) and

hysterectomy. The Open Studio Day at Khoj on 15 April 2016,

exhibited work by Tyska Samborska (Poland), Gagan Singh (India),

Johanna Schmeer (Germany), Mohan Polamar & Vivek

Muthuramalingam (India) Alexey Buldakov (Russia), and Sonia Khurana

(India). The artwork was presented as a collection of photographs,

videos, sculptures, sketches and installations. During the residency, the

artists also got the opportunity to interact and engage in conversations

with scientists, social scientists, science writers, philosophers and other

artists during a two-day public lecture series that invited eminent

speakers, Anil Ananthaswamy, Milind Sohoni, Bishnu Mohapatra, Sanil V

and Ashis Nandy, touched upon answers to questions- “how do these two cultures (of art and science) define the mind, the self and the other? How

does the greater project of science influence how we organize our lives, our politics, society and culture? Can the arts provide a critique of the

scientific endeavour or help express the cultural ambivalence towards the promise that science has offered?”. The programme also fostered

conversations and collaborations between the artists and India Alliance Fellows. For instance, sketch artist, Gagan Singh consulted and spent long

hours discussing mirror neurons and synesthesia with India Alliance Early Career Fellow Urvakhsh Mehta, associate professor at National Institute

for Mental Health and Neuroscience (NIMHANS). Following this residency, some of the artists and India Alliance Fellows are currently

brainstorming ideas together for similar creative public engagement projects.

The Unidivided Mind, attempted to bridge the gap between the discursive fields of art and science through the development of artwork inspired

by human health and which employed concepts of science and provided a platform for collaboration between the two fields and its practitioners.

This Art and Science programme was supported by the Wellcome Trust/DBT India Alliance through its public engagement programme.

More on the programme: http://khojworkshop.org/programme/the-undivided-mind-art-science-residency-2/

Photos from the Open Studio day can be found here https://www.facebook.com/India.Alliance/

5.

Entangled Bodies Johanna Schmeer

“Entangled Bodies” (work in progress) investigates the merging of

technology and the human body. Three sculptural wearables for the arm, the

leg, and the nose utilise three different technologies based on electricity,

nanoparticles, and biology. These sculptural wearables remove three

different types of air pollution: NO2, CO2, and particulate matter.

The NO2 Wearable is a 3D printed sculpture coated with nano

titaniumdioxide which removes NO2 from the air. It is connected to the nose.

The CO2 Wearable is a 3D printed sculpture filled with spirulina algae in

sodium alginate gel. It removes CO2 from the air and is worn on the arm.

The Particulate Matter Wearable is a 3D printed sculpture with electrostatic

properties. It uses kinetic energy from body movement to remove particulate

matter from the air and is connected to the leg.

Show me what you keep inside

Tyska Samborska

'Show me what you keep inside' is a project referring to the theme of

physical health and structure of the body. I concentrate my work on the

relations between our body as nourishment for microorganisms living inside

that could take control over our condition and the opposite; the consideration

of microorganisms as necessary, essential elements to keep our body healthy.

In this project, I try to look at a situation where microorganisms start to grow

and become dangerous for a human body, when roles start to change and

our body becomes weak, so easy to destroy and to be consumed.

I attempt to question importance of our body in the ecosystem and show its

dependence on other, smaller but also strong organisms. I try to make more

visible our 'invisible', interior part.

In a time when technology is increasingly moving onto and into our bodies, and smart phones have become prostheses for our brains, how do we

feel about becoming more and more entangled in technology, even for essential bodily functions such as breathing? Have we grown so

accustomed to digital technology and electronics that wearing something biological like algae on our body feels more unnatural to us than

wearing something electronic? And will we choose to adapt our own bodies to the environmental effects of the anthropocene through more

technology, or will we find strategies to reduce our impact on our surroundings?

Urban Fauna Laboratory Alexey Buldakov

Urban Fauna Laboratory is interdisciplinary project dedicated to observation of

urban wild life and artistic participation in the inter-species interactions in the city. The

main interest is the most common inhabitants of artificial landscapes: such expansive

species as pigeons, cats, crows, ruderal and invasive flora etc. – those synanthropes

who are not vulnerable to the modern city’s severe ecological conditions and don't

represent a direct threat to the human.

Interspecies altruism in the city is an unconscious attempt towards pure affiliation with

natural agency. It has all characteristics of a cult practice, continuous ritualistic event

happening on the background of segregation human and animal. Buldakov calls it

the ‘cult of urban parasitism’. This is because the most prominent definition for these

animals is parasites. I’m very determined to find and investigate interesting cases of

urban parasitism in India.

The main goal of Urban Fauna Laboratory is actual building of the Park of Urban

Fauna. The Park is a multispecies public space, an area of post-human bio-political

utopia. The place where the human community and communities of local animals are

experiencing intense interaction. During the residency, Buldakov will summon all the

elements together and produce the final design of the Park in sketches and models.

INDIA ALLIANCE

PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT CORNER THE ARTWORK

6.

Photo credits: Vivek Muthuramalingam, Tyska Samborska

Womb narratives

Sonia Khurana

women. Voice. Video. 2016

Womb narratives is an ongoing series of conversation with women

from different walks, with scientists, psychologists, medicine

women/men those who work on the ground level with hysterectomy,

its physio-psycho-social effect, and the striking normalisation of the

loss of this organ transcribed onto the body: how the removal of an

organ is seen as a ‘permanent solution’ and becomes routine

treatment. There are also the counter-narratives: women's attitudes

towards uterus removal often emerge along a spectrum including

freedom and pragmatic choice.

The narratives these women recount express the profound encounter

between medical science, the representation of female

reproductive processes and the whole complex of female desire

related to sexuality, maternity and sterilization, either for

achievement or negation, evidences the rebelliousness against

continuing to follow the cultural destiny of women, i.e. maternity.

Becoming sterilized, women also reveal the subjective castration

desire, for surgical sterilization could be considered as deviation or

substitution of desire, and may contribute to the understanding of

the ambiguity or even feelings of loss.

Gagan Singh

Thoughts, drawings, immediate responses, how I think, little acts, conversations. The room was

occupied to draw out a scene responding to what is "mental illness". I was in touch with Dr Urvakhsh

Mehta about what is Schizophrenia and Mirror Neurons and in between I noticed little things about

myself.

INDIA ALLIANCE

PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT CORNER THE ARTWORK

Mohan Polamar & Vivek Muthuramalingam

This piece of work is immersive, experiential and performance based. Ideas

will be introduced and supporting experiences will be induced both

vicariously and directly. These ideas will challenge the concept of being

human in this period of climate change. This technozoosemiotic installation

that brings together bio-art, neuroscience, robotics and the theories of

quantum mechanics will lay lightly on the grotesque. Grotesque being in the

fringes of ludicrous and terrible embeds in itself a powerful temperament

that brings the necessary to radical.

I become a Bangalorian when I leave Bangalore likewise, we become human

when we leave earth. As climate change ravages the earth the option of

interplanetary travel becomes urgent, leading us to train our focus on space

travel technology and evolution of the astronaut.

Astronauts lose weight in space and are left with resistance to remind themselves of their body. Yoga is similar as it is the practice of

interchanging weight and resistance within oneself. Continuous practice of Yoga became the foundation of the process. We built sensory

deprivation tank to experience weightlessness and to challenge the vestibular system, conducted kinematic study of asanas looking for clues in

its geometry and created objects that induce the experience of proprioception.

In space every concept spins on its head, like being superman is not being super at all. In space, astronauts become super if they can stay

grounded. The process threw up many ideas within the pre-defined confines of evolution and aesthetics. We chose one of the ideas and it

brought along with it the concept of the grotesque. So we studied the aesthetic, functionality and the extremity of this grotesque with a series

of pictures merging the experience of the astronaut with the plebeian.

Wandering womb

Nylon object, vitrine, water

Hippocrates said:

a woman's uterus is a living creature

that wanders throughout a woman’s body,

blocking passages, obstructing breathing, causing disease.

Missing womb

Self-cleansing, both external and internal, as a metaphor for the

liberation of the soul from the body, as the practice of self-

regulation that aims to consolidate and stabilize the interiority of

the subject against the disturbing effects of the impure external

world – purging one of historically accumulated sources of psychic

instability :the term ‘hysteria’ is the ancient origin of the word

‘uterus’.

7.

INDIA ALLIANCE SYMPOSIUM

CELLS TO CELLULAR PROGRAMMING 20 April 2016, IISER Mohali

The Wellcome Trust/DBT India Alliance and IISER Mohali

organised a one-day symposium titled “ Cells to Cellular

programming” at IISER Mohali on 20 April. Scientific talks were

given by India Alliance Fellowship Committee members. In the

afternoon session of the symposium, India Alliance Fellows and

PhD students from IISER Mohali, IMTECH and Panjab University ,

presented posters and discussed their research work with the

committee members and other attendees.

8.

Prof Shankar Subramaniam Prof Noel J Buckley

Prof Shyni Varghese Prof Ranajit Chakraborty

Prof Raimond L Winslow Prof Francois Guillemot

Prof Douglas Young Dr Shahid Jameel

INDIA ALLIANCE

SCIENCE COMMUNICATION WORKSHOPS

9.

The Wellcome Trust/DBT India Alliance’s 13th Science

Communication workshop was held in Hyderabad from 21-22

March 2016 which was attended by 30 PhD students, Postdocs,

junior Faculty and Clinicians from 27 different institutions across

India such as University of Madras, Jamia Hamdard, New Delhi,

Centre for DNA Fingerprinting and Diagnostics, Hyderabad, Public

Health Foundation of India, New Delhi, Advanced Centre for

Treatment, Research and Education in Cancer (ACTREC) Tata

Memorial Centre, Mumbai, Center for Cellular and Molecular

Biology, Hyderabad, Indian Institute of Science Education and

Research, Pune, George Institute for Global Health, Hyderabad, Sri

Sai College of Dental Surgery, Vikarabad, National Institute of

Nutrition (NIN), Hyderabad, National Centre for Cell Science

(NCCS) Pune, Regional Centre for Biotechnology, Faridabad, Indian

Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER) Bhopal, LEPRA

Society-Blue Peter Public Health and Research Centre, Hyderabad,

AIIMS, New Delhi, Institute of Advanced Study in Science and

Technology, Guwahati, Assam, India, Chebrolu Hanumaiah Institute

of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Guntur, National Institute of Mental

Health and Neuroscience (NIMHANS) Bangalore, Savitribai Phule

Pune University, Christian Medical College and Hospital, Vellore,

Tamil Nadu, Indian Institute of Technology (BHU), Lady Irwin

College, New Delhi, Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Medical Sciences,

Wardha, National Institute for Research in Tuberculosis NIRT (ICMR),

University of Delhi, Mumbai University, University of Mysore

The first day of the workshop focused on oral presentation

skills and important elements of an effective professional

presentation. This session was conducted by Ms Sumathy Haridas,

an HR consultant and behavior analyst from Bangalore, who gave

useful advice on how to prepare the message of a presentation,

appear confident, speak articulately and engage the audience.

Her session consisted of various hands-on exercises for the

participants that ensured active participation. Some of the

participants also received feedback on their PowerPoint

presentations during this session. Grants Adviser, Dr Madhankumar

Anandhakrishnan concluded the first day by giving a brief

overview of the India Alliance Fellowship schemes and

application process. The participants discussed various issues

concerning the workshop, career choices and their current research

with the India Alliance staff and the workshop mentors over the

Networking dinner.

The second day of the workshop covered topics such as, Ethics

in Research, Mentorship, Grant and Manuscript writing, talks on

which were given by Dr Joe Varghese (Research Ethics; Christian

Medical College Vellore), Dr Thomas Pucadyil (Manuscript writing,

IISER Pune), Dr Vidita Vaidya (Mentorship, TIFR Mumbai), and Dr

Shahid Jameel (Grants writing, CEO, Wellcome Trust/DBT India

Alliance). The Mentors stimulated various discussions on these topics

and ensured the participants were not wary of asking important

questions about research career development, setting up a lab,

postdoc opportunities, and many more. The highlight of the

workshop for the participants was the research proposal discussion,

where participants received useful feedback and advice on the

structure and content of their proposals from the mentors.

The enthusiasm and active questioning at the workshop by the

participants reinforced the importance of Science Communication in

nurturing and training the future researchers of India.

The next two-day Science Communication workshop in Hyderabad will

be held on 26-27 September 2016. Announcements for the same will

be made on our website shortly.

INDIA ALLIANCE

SCIENCE COMMUNICATION WORKSHOPS

Two-day SciComm workshop

26-27 September 2016, Hyderabad Application form will be available online

at www.wellcomdbt.org on 23 May

For more details visit "SciComm Workshop" under "Quick Links" on our website

Upcoming Workshops

10.

The one-day Science Communication workshop, SciComm101, was

held at the National Institute for Research in Reproductive Health in

Mumbai, where around 80 PhD students, and Postdoctoral scientists

were trained. Apart from the participants from the hosting institution,

attendees came from various other academic and research

establishments, such as, IIT Bombay Rafkine Mumbai University Seth GS

Medical college Sunandan Divatia School of School of Science SVKMs

NMIMS Ramnarain Ruia College P.D Hinduja National Hospital and

MRC Jaslok hospital and research center Haffkine Institute Narsee

Monjee Institute S. L. Raheja Hospital Tata Memorial Hospital UM-DAE

Centre for Excellence in Basic Sciences National Institute of

Immunohaematology.

Please visit our website http://wellcomedbt.org/science-

communication-workshop for more information on these workshops

and for requesting one at your institution.

One-day SciComm101 workshop National Institute for Research in Reproductive Health, 4 May 2016

Science Communication and Career workshop series In partnership with Nature India & Naturejobs

The Wellcome Trust/DBT India Alliance has entered into a partnership

with Nature India for organising one-day workshops at scientific

meetings in India. These workshops will aim to equip young science

researchers with tools and strategies for effective communication of

their ideas, experiments and scientific results from a science

communication perspective and help them to make science career

choices.

Structure & format

The workshop will be a one-day event preceding a biomedical (or

scientific) conference organised by reputed science

societies/organisations/institutes and Universities in India. A large

participation by PhD students, postdoctoral fellows and junior

scientists will be a pre-requisite for holding this workshop. The

workshop will include 3 separate sessions and will cover 2-3 topics

per session depending on the requirements:

Session 1: Scientific Writing (moderated by WT/DBT Alliance)

Topics to be covered:

• Ethics in research

• Presentation skills

• Manuscript writing

• Grants writing

• CVs and letters

Session 2: Science Communication (moderated by Nature India)

Topics to be covered:

• Science journalism

• Popular science writing

• Effective press releases

• Hands-on skills on dejargonising science

Session 3: Alternate Science Career (moderated by Nature Jobs)

Topics to be covered:

• Career in the Industry

• Career in Science Promotion/Intellectual Property

• Career in Policy/Grant organizations / Journalism

If you would like to request this workshop at a conference you are

organising please write to workshops@wellcomedbt.org with the

expression of interest.

One-day SciComm and Career workshop 18 October 2016

XXXIV Annual Meeting of Indian Academy of Neurosciences

NBRC, Manesar

IN CONVERSATION WITH

DR VIDITA VAIDYA

Dr Vidita Vaidya is an associate professor at TIFR Mumbai and a leading

neurobiologist in the country. Her research group is interested in the pathways that

regulate adult neurogenesis and their contribution to depression-related behavior. Their

lab uses pharmacological and genetic approaches, and tools such as microarrays, in situ

hybridization, immunohistochemistry and behavioral tests to understand the neurocircuitry

of emotion. Dr Vaidya is a recipient of Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize for Science and

Technology for Medical Sciences in 2015 and is a Senior Overseas Research Fellow of

the Wellcome Trust.

What motivated you to become a scientist?

As a 12 year old kid I remember sitting in a cold auditorium at the

Ciba-Geigy Research Centre in Goregaon, Mumbai listening to a

fascinating talk by visiting scientists on the aggressive behavior of the

hippopotamus. I remember walking back home to our house with my

parents, both physician-scientists, and telling them that I thought

studying behavior was the coolest thing. Growing up on the Ciba-

Geigy Research Centre, I had plenty of opportunities to be around

scientists of all different hues, including my parents. So it wasn't very

surprising perhaps that I found myself veering towards the sciences. It

was a home in which scientific curiosity was always encouraged. It was

also a home in which storytelling was part and parcel of all

conversations. My grandfather who lived with us was a novelist and

we had poets and writers in the extended family. To be able to get

airtime at the dining table it was important to be able to tell a story. I

meandered through a phase of an interest in archaeology and

anthropology. I was fascinating by what made people tick and what

were the drivers of individual personality traits and quirks. While

there was no one Aha! moment in which I knew I wanted to be a

neuroscientist, everything I got interested and excited in, took me

towards trying to understand behavior. By the time I was 18 I knew I

wanted to eventually study the brain and behavior, and I wanted to

head that way through a broad degree in Life science rather than

studying medicine.

Could you briefly take us through your scientific journey and

about your interest in studying the brain?

I did my undergraduate in Life sciences and Biochemistry at St

Xavier’s College. Post that I headed to Yale University, USA for my

PhD. My first rotation was in a lab that did not feel was the right fit. It

was highly competitive but I worried that all the fun and magic may

get sucked out of science if I stayed in that environment for my PhD.

My second rotation was in the lab of Prof Ronald Duman, and I knew I

had found my PhD lab. I loved the questions the lab was asking and

the atmosphere in which they were doing so. The Duman lab is

focused on studying the neurobiology of depression. I spent five years

there and took away with me a life-long interest in studying

neurocircuits that regulate emotion. I also realised that since our entire

life-span is spent largely grappling with the research questions we

chase. To do so in an environment in which we are happy and

productive and are able to take our work seriously but perhaps not

take ourselves too seriously, is critical. I gained some amazing mentors

who have continued to be the cheering section, critics and support

group long after I graduated from Yale. After two short postdoctoral

stints at Karolinska and Oxford I was champing at the bit to come

home and start my own lab. I was very lucky that the Department of

Biological Sciences at TIFR was willing to take a gamble with a young

29 year old.

What according to you are the challenges women scientists face in

India? What solutions would you offer?

The challenges that women scientists face in India perhaps don't differ

so much from those faced by women scientists all over the world. The

scientific community has traditionally been a male bastion and so

women are amongst the new faces on the block in that sense. In some

ways we are facing all the issues that new entrants face in established

domains. We challenge status quo and by doing so create a certain

degree of discomfort. Of course, the natural and important question

that comes up is whether a status quo that has systematically left out

half the population is even worth protecting. Change of this scale is

slow but needs to really be speeded up. The number of women in

senior scientific positions is seriously limited. We have a leaky pipeline

and seeking to plug it is viewed almost as relaxing the rules. But

perhaps it is time to ask what are the rules that have resulted in our

present situation, which has led to a serious paucity of women in the

STEM disciplines. We need to change the framework that results in this

kind of exclusion. It will not be sufficient to simply apply a few

bandage solutions. In India, we need to work at so many different

levels from the earliest stages of education all the way to institutions

that need to sort out their working environment to be more gender-

sensitive. There is unfortunately no fast, fix it solution. It needs a multi-

pronged approach at multiple levels.

If you were not a scientist, you would be..

A teacher - I love the idea of having the chance to share "oh this is so

cool" moments with the younger generation.

What is the best advice you have ever received?

Retain the ability to laugh at yourself- it makes the most awful

moments slowly switch into being ludicrous.

Your message for young students and researchers.

Make sure that your choices in science don't take you

down a road in which the magic, fun and joy of

science disappears.

11.

Of all the mosquito-borne viruses, dengue virus accounts for maximum

disease burden with close to two-third of the world population living

in dengue endemic areas. India contributes to about 35% of global

dengue cases and as per the recent estimates, the total economic cost

of dengue in India is over $1 billion. The first dengue vaccine has

been introduced for use in children over 9 years of age and adults in

few countries. Further studies are under progress to determine the

long-term protection against dengue in vaccinated individuals. There

are no licensed therapeutics and the correlates of protection are also

not known. As there are four serotypes of dengue virus, the problem

of antibodies against one serotype enhancing subsequent infection

with a different serotype (antibody-dependent enhancement) is a

major contributor to disease severity. Since most primary dengue

infections are asymptomatic, the population at risk for severe

infections upon subsequent exposure to a different serotype increases

manifold. Therefore, characterizing the immune responses in both

primary and secondary infections and identifying correlates of severe

disease and protection in dengue-infected patients is likely to aid

both vaccine and therapeutics development.

We initiated a study to establish pediatric dengue cohort in New

Delhi and enrolled 97 patients over three years with varying disease

severities which were classified based on WHO guidelines. We

estimated the presence of virus in the blood (viremia) and quantified

the inflammatory mediators in the plasma of these patients both at

the time of admission and at discharge from the hospital. Furthermore,

we identified the cell types positive for dengue virus in peripheral

blood mononuclear cells. Using a multivariate analysis we identified

factors that correlate with severe disease and clinical recovery.

Although severe dengue disease was observed in secondary

infections, as expected, over 30% of the primary infections also had

severe disease, suggesting that factors other than pre-existing

antibodies may contribute to disease severity. Blood viremia had no

association with disease severity but high viremia correlated with

prolonged thrombocytopenia (low platelet counts) and delayed

recovery from severe disease. Severe dengue cases had low Th1

cytokines and a concurrent increase in the inflammatory mediators

such as IL-6, IL-8 and IL-10. A transient increase in CD14+CD16+

intermediate monocytes was observed early in infection. Sorting of

monocytes from peripheral blood mononuclear cells of dengue

patients revealed that it is the CD14+ cells, but not the CD16+ or the

T or B cells, that were infected with dengue virus and were major

producers of IL-10. Using the Boruta algorithm, reduced interferon-α

levels and enhanced pro-inflammatory cytokines were identified as

some of the distinctive markers of severe dengue. Furthermore, the

reduction in the levels of IL-8 and IL-10 were identified as the most

significant markers of clinical recovery from severe disease. Our

results provide further insights into the immune response of children to

primary and secondary dengue infection and help us to understand

the complex interplay between the intrinsic factors in dengue

pathogenesis.

INDIA ALLIANCE

RESEARCH HIGHLIGHTS

Bridging India’s mental health treatment gap Intermediate Fellow, Dr Pallab Maulik

George Institute for Global Health India

Immune Response to Dengue Virus Infection in Pediatric Patients in New Delhi, India-Association of Viremia, Inflammatory Mediators and Monocytes with Disease Severity. Mohit Singla , Meenakshi Kar, Tavpritesh Sethi, Sushil K. Kabra, Rakesh Lodha, Anmol Chandele, Guruprasad R. Medigeshi. PLoS neglected tropical diseases (2016).

12.

The global burden of mental disorders and treatment gap is large, especially in countries

like India due to poor awareness about mental health and few available mental health

professionals for providing care. The recently published BBC story narrates the strategy

undertaken by George Institute for Global Health India, which aims to narrow this gap by

enabling the available primary-care workforce through provision of affordable, accessible

and high-quality electronic clinical decision support.

Watch the BBC story here or read it online

Read Pallab’s article on m-health that was featured in the first issue of our newsletter here

Image above : Double-stranded RNA in dengue virus infected cells. Human hepatoma-7 cells were infected with 1 plaque forming unit/cell of dengue virus-2. Cells were fixed and stained 24 hours post-infection using antibodies that recognise dsRNA (red) which are intermediates in viral replication. Nuclei is stained with DAPI (4',6-diamidino-2-phenylindole) (blue). Dengue infected cells are identified by the presence of dsRNA staining.

Novel insights into immune response of children to dengue infections Imbalance in inflammatory response, a major determinant of disease severity

Dr Guruprasad R. Medigeshi, Intermediate Fellow,

Translational Health Science and Technology Institute, Faridabad

INDIA ALLIANCE FELLOW IN SPOTLIGHT

DR SUPRIYA RAY Intermediate Fellow, Allahabad University

Dr Supriya Ray is a Wellcome Trust/DBT India Alliance Intermediate Fellow based at Centre of Behavioural and Cognitive Sciences (CBCS), University of Allahabad. His research group at CBCS examines the neural mechanisms of decision making for coordinated eye-hand movements using three complementary techniques: human psychophysics, primate electrophysiology and computational modeling.

13.

What are you working on? and what impact do you hope it will

have?

Most of our daily activities involve visually guided movements, we

see something and then act on it. Usually saccadic eye movement,

which rapidly orients gaze to an object of interest, precedes limb

movement. Visual perception and attention are closely linked to eye

movement. Have you ever seen your own eye movement in mirror?

We simply cannot, because our perceptual ability is suppressed

around the time of saccade. More interestingly, attention shifts

covertly to the future location of gaze, which means, the mind’s eye

moves before physical eye movement. However, sometimes a

situation may also arise when you must inhibit your intended or

planned eye movement – you may not want to put your life at risk

by taking eyes off the road while driving, or making an eye contact

with your neighbor’s aggressive canine who has mistaken you as an

intruder, or when you are watching news on television and your

spouse is excited to tell you about upcoming vacation plan.

Currently we are investigating how perception and

attention influence control of eye movement. We

manipulate detectability of a stop-signal (similar to a red light in a

traffic signal) that appears unexpectedly, and examine the ability

of human participants to inhibit their impending eye movements in

response to that signal. Our data suggests that the detection of the

stop-signal was critical to cancel saccadic eye-movement but has no

effect on saccadic reaction time. We further manipulated spatial

orientation of attention. Participants selected a peripheral target

by summoning attention either around the center of the screen, or at

the peripheral location of the target. A central visual stop-signal, as

mentioned above, appeared infrequently in both cases requiring

cancellation of impending saccade. Deployment of attention on the

peripheral target relatively expedited saccade but did not affect

stopping performance, suggesting divided attention between the

saccade-goal and stop-signal.

These findings cannot be accounted for by the classical theory of

inhibitory control that assumes a pair of competing mental

processes, one that evolves to generate a saccade, and the other

that evolves to stop the saccade – whomsoever wins the race, that

behaviour is observed. The reason is that the model largely ignores

role of cognition, especially perception and attention, in inhibition

of action. We are planning to test some of these ideas in

coordinated eye-hand movements as well. In future, we will record

EEG activity from human participants and action potentials from

monkeys to understand underlying mechanisms and interplay

between perception, attention and action in the network between

frontal and parietal areas of the brain. We hope that our study will

improve our understanding of the brain functions and will also help

us to explain why attention deficit people sometimes exhibit

impulsive behaviour.

What role can scientists play in the society?

Most definitely, the first and foremost responsibility of

a scientist is to accrue and propagate quality

scientific knowledge, and to ensure that the benefit

of their research reaches the common people. By

‘quality’ I mean novel, in-depth and robust. The second most

important duty of scientists, I think, is to eradicate superstition and

misinformation from society.

Primate lab under construction at Allahabad University

To this end we must involve ourselves in outreach programs – for

example organise scientific exhibitions, science quiz, debates, lab

tours etc – at the grass root level of our education system. We

should also encourage bright youngsters to consider research as a

career option. Further, I believe, scientists in India have much bigger

role than just doing research in isolation and presenting their

findings in front of only a handful of qualified people who

understand their jargon. We have obligation not only to guide our

students, but the nation as well, by helping government to make

policies that are rational and have strong scientific foundation.

How has Wellcome Trust/DBT India Alliance funding helped you

and your research?

I was extremely fortunate to receive funding from Wellcome Trust /

DBT India Alliance. When I was planning to relocate to India from

USA, my primary concern was how would I buy instruments for my

lab, who would support recurring expenses? Wellcome Trust / DBT

India Alliance is known for its generosity; however, the best part of

this grant is its flexibility – their fellows are free to plan budget that

suits the Fellow’s requirement. This grant has also helped me to get

financial support from my university to build a primate research

facility, which is currently under construction. Wellcome Trust / DBT

India Alliance always insists on quality of research, their periodic

assessment has helped me to refine thoughts and techniques.

What keeps you going everyday?

Actually quite a few things, for example, my never ending urge to

know the brain slightly better than before, frequent questions by a

bunch of smart students- their excitement to show me what new they

have found in their data., and currently, setting up electrophysiology

labs for human and non-human primates. I always feel that I still

have a lot of things to do and the clock is ticking very fast. I work

hard to live up to the expectations of my family, friends and of

course my funding organisations.

Eye tracking lab, Allahabad University

14.

POSTDOC POSITION AVAILABLE AT DR RAY’S

RESEARCH GROUP

Centre for Behavioural and Cognitive Sciences

(CBCS), University of Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh, India

Wellcome Trust/DBT India Alliance Intermediate Fellow

Position of a Postdoctoral Fellow is open in a project

funded by The Wellcome Trust/DBT India Alliance.

Applications are invited from candidates who have

finished their Ph.D in Neuroscience/ Physics/ Mathematics/

Computer Science/ Engineering/ Medicine/ Applied

Physics/ Systems Biology / Cognitive Science or related

fields from a reputed institute, with good understanding

of brain and cognition.

Candidates with experience in electrophysiology or

computational modelling will be given preference. An

ideal candidate should have at least one publication in a

high-impact international peer reviewed journal (or h-

index at least 3). Sound knowledge in Statistics, and

experience in programming using C / C++ / Matlab is

expected. Fellowship will be as per directives by The

Wellcome Trust DBT India Alliance.

Interested candidate may apply with their CV, a

statement of purpose, reprint(s) of selected paper(s),

and contact details of two referees.

Contact: Dr. Supriya Ray, sray@cbcs.ac.in

Lab website : http://facweb.cbcs.ac.in/supriya-ray

INDIA ALLIANCE FELLOW

DR SUPRIYO RAY

DATA SCIENCE FOR MEDICINE: UNICORNS AND WORKHORSES

Dr Tavpritesh Sethi (Early Career Fellow) & Dr Rakesh Lodha

Medicine is undergoing a global change catalyzed by the Big Data

revolution. However, while Big Data focuses mostly on technology, it

is the “science of data” which could be the key enabling factor.

Generating knowledge from data is more challenging than

capturing the data itself- a sobering lesson learnt from the Human

Genome Project and the subsequent “omics” revolution. Clinical

medicine too is adopting “Data science for Medicine” to distil

knowledge out of medical Big data. Since the disciplines are still in

its infancy, Data Science is often confused with statistics and

defining features of Big data are evolving. While traditional data

resides in neatly organised tables, Big data starts greedily with

whatever can be reliably captured and ranges from numbers to text

and even images. If traditional data are likened to a

library’s catalogue, Big data would be Einstein’s

messy desk and Data science would be Einstein’s

brain that creates Value out of the mess. In contrast,

most statistical analysis generates value upon the neat data (Figure

1 a). Thus, the “dirty nature” of Big data has led to Veracity being

an important component in its 4V’s definition, Volume, Velocity,

Variety and Veracity. Some definitions have already incorporated

Value as the fifth V. We believe that Value and Veracity are the

most important components to be addressed for the successful

implementation of programs on Data science for medicine and that

India is a unique crucible for precipitating this new discipline with its

enormous patient numbers and diversity.

The core-skillset of a Data scientist lies at the intersection of domain

expertise, quantitative skills and hacking (used in the original sense

of the word, which means the skills to code as per needs). The

obvious question that arises is whether a medical data scientist is a

mythical Unicorn trained at the interface of Medicine, Mathematics

and Computer-programming? Our answer is an emphatic “No”.

Many medical graduates have the right quantitative temperament

developed over years of dealing with complexity of human health.

Visionary institutes around the world are launching the discipline of

Data science for Biomedicine to encourage cross-talk between the

two disciplines. Supported by the Wellcome Trust/DBT India

Alliance, we have started a Data science initiative, Sepsis Advanced

Forecasting Engine for Intensive Care Units (SAFE-ICU) to create

models capable of forecasting sepsis in sick children and neonates

admitted to the ICUs at the Department of Pediatrics, All India

Institute of Medical Sciences (Figure 1.b). SAFE-ICU is being

developed within the clinical environment to incorporate clinical

domain expertise into the machine learning and artificial

intelligence models.

SAFE-ICU is being implemented in graded steps,

starting with addressing of killer conditions such as

sepsis in pediatric ICUs (PICUs). Sepsis is a devastating

disease and delay in the recognition of sepsis increases the

mortality-rate, which is as high as 50% in India. Since the data

generated in the ICUs are often lost because of lack of

computational and informatics support, we proposed to derive a

composite index from Big data to forecast sepsis and its impending

complications. Data science tools such as Artificial intelligence and

machine learning algorithms would be implemented to achieve these

objectives. In addition, through SAFE-ICU we also aim to improve

the precision of diagnosis by looking for data-driven sub-

phenotypes and assess the Value of the forecasting models through

a Pilot Trial. This bridging of clinical domain expertise and Data

science is guided by the principles of Capture reliably, Approach

systemically, Phenotype deeply and Enable decisions.

Capture reliably

Unlike standard data, which can be manually inspected for errors

and loss of fidelity, the Volume and Velocity of Big data often

makes this infeasible. Therefore, additional layers of data-checking

mechanisms are needed to ensure its reliability. Our data-module

of SAFE-ICU captures data every 1-second on physiological

variables such as heart rate, respiration rate, oxygen saturation,

blood pressure, end tidal CO2 etc. from each bed and we have

implemented various automated .processes to check for data

quality. Our in-house computational codes, written using open-

source programming tools perform automated parsing, cleaning

and plotting of data every day (Figure 1 c, d). We have also

incorporated for checks related with physical events, such as loose

cables, by writing programs that send a message on a mobile

device every time a data connection is stopped or restarted (Figure

1 c).

Approach systemically

Human body and cellular physiology are complex inter-connected

systems. Diseases and symptoms tend to cluster together. As in social

networks, these communities can be discovered using graph theory

and networks analysis. In social networks, friendships and

community affiliations can change over time. In a similar manner,

disease associations may evolve and form trajectories mapped in

time. Visualization of these changes can provide novel insights into

the evolution of the system. In a recently published work (Lancet

Global Health, 2015), we demonstrated the utility of such

algorithms to a unique patient resource generated by Chest

Research Foundation (CRF), Pune.

15.

16.

Data science for Medicine: Unicorns and Workhorses By Dr Tavpritesh Sethi & Dr Rakesh Sodha

Figure 1, a. Data science is not statistics re-invented but an end-to-end approach to generate knowledge from large, growing, heterogeneous and dirty data, b. Our SAFE-ICU supported by India Alliance at AIIMS is a quintessential Data science initiative to enable better critical care, c. Our Big data pipelines make use of open source hardware and software platforms for automated checks sent to a mobile device and, d. Automated daily plotting and summary statistics are generated for data quality.

Phenotype deeply

Genomics has shown that seemingly simple traits such as height,

long known to be genetically influenced, are complex traits, which

are very difficult to predict. Similarly, the occurrence and trajectory

of diseases are widely heterogeneous and difficult to predict at the

individual level. However, Data-science provides a hope by

churning through millions of patients’ records across thousands of

Figure 2. Visualizing complex data to discover patterns is a key feature of Data-science. The alluvial plot visualization above was created on 2,04,912 patients data collected on a single day all across India as a part of POSEIDON study conducted by Chest Research Foundation, Pune. We confirmed existing medical rhetoric through the visualization of merging bands and also proposed novel hypothesis which are being tested.

CRF collected disease data on 2,04,912 patients

all across India on a single day and called the

study POSEIDON (Prevalence of Symptoms on a

singlE Indian Healthcare Day on a Nationwide scale,

Figure 2). Diseases, which have more “friends”,

automatically get mapped to thick lines that settle

down in the alluvial plot. This visualization

confirmed medical rhetoric, such as differential co-

evolution of heart-disease with diabetes and of

reproductive anemia in females in rural versus

urban settings in India. The correlation can be seen

in Figure 2 captured by the merging of bands

labeled Female Genital and Anemia in the

reproductive age group and their separation

thereafter. This example illustrates the key role of

Visualization in Data science. Unlike traditional

statistics, Big data are often difficult to understand

through tables and summaries and require novel

visual techniques. These help the human brain to

organize complex information to generate testable

knowledge. SAFE-ICU would rely heavily on the

network of physiological markers to enable specific

alerts.

hours to provide plausible predictions through finding “similar” cases.

The mathematical quantification of similarity needs to be defined in

terms of detailed depth of information and in a wide set of variables.

SAFE-ICU is geared towards capture and analysis of dense data in

the form of patient vitals and text notes. Thousands of hours of

recordings could help us save more lives by making early predictions

and prescriptions using these heterogeneous data.

Enable decisions

SAFE-ICU has a primary focus of expediting clinical decision

making in sepsis, a trend the next-generation medicine is also

evolving towards. While Big data is defined by 4-V’s, next-

generation medicine is aimed towards 4-P’s, i.e., Preventive,

Personalised, Predictive and Participatory. Precision medicine drills

down a level deeper by using Data science to precisely define

the disease before treatment as many diseases can give rise to

overlapping symptoms. Thus, clinical decisions will increasingly

depend upon Big data, implying the need to move beyond p-

values and statistical associations. In March, 2016, the American

Statistical Association took a strong stand on the inappropriate

use of p-values in science, especially medicine. In this official

release, the association has expressed concern for the “non-

reproducibility”

issue in science and has strongly advised more rigorous

application of statistics and analysis. Many such rigorous models

are already in use in other disciplines such as weather

forecasting, economics, fraud detection etc. and can be adapted

to clinical and community health situations.

Challenges

Although promising, Data science for medicine is not expected to

be without challenges. Apart from the scientific challenge of

bridging expertise, one of the major challenges is the technical

harmonisation of data-standards across medical equipment and

healthcare software. Inter-operability of medical databases and

equipment standards would enable clinicians to access the digital

raw data that rightfully belongs to them and policy makers are

slowly enforcing this change. Community driven efforts such as R,

Python, Linux and forums such as Stack Overflow are

instrumental in driving Data science. With medical device and

software protocols becoming open, Data scientists and software

engineers would have to put efforts in writing open-source

pipelines thus making it into a community effort. In our project,

we have created a data-access and warehousing module for

SAFE-ICU for the existing monitoring system at PICU at AIIMS.

Another key challenge is to ensure reproducibility of results. Data

quality, parameter optimisation and preserving the fidelity of

information can be overwhelming. Therefore, reproducibility is

one of the prime directives in Data science and can be easily

achieved by documenting all the codes used for collecting and

analyzing data. This is facilitated by the most common

programming languages used for Data science, R and Python, by

providing options for knitting the steps of the code into

documents in the most common formats. Finally, the success of

these approaches will rely upon the translational value

generation for clinicians and public health researchers. Models

will have to pass through stringent processes similar to drug-

development to be utilizable in the real healthcare settings. This

is a lofty goal but one that can be achieved through common

scientific, technological and social endeavors.

Cover Image: Comparative thermal images for a child without

circulatory shock (above) and with shock (below). Gradient in skin

surface temperature from center to peripheries is clearly seen in

shock. Imaging was done using Seek Thermal camera, kindly

provided by Dr Richard Fletcher, MIT-D Lab, USA.

17.

Team: Tavpritesh Sethi1, Rakesh Lodha1, Aditya Nagori2, Anurag

Agrawal2, Vinod K. Paul1

1, Department of Pediatrics, All India Institute of Medical Sciences,

New Delhi, India

2, CSIR-Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology, Delhi, India

Acknowledgements: We acknowledge the Wellcome Trust/DBT

India Alliance for this supporting this initiative. We thank Prof Samir

K. Brahmachari (CSIR-IGIB, India), Prof Charles Auffray (EISBM,

France) for their mentorship, Dr. Nigam Shah (Stanford School of

Medicine, USA), and Mr. Gautam Morey (Sofomo Embedded

Solutions, Pune, India) for valuable discussions. We also

acknowledge the generous technical support provided by Mr. Burt

Wang, Mr. Suresh M. Babu, Ms Manju Goyal, Ms Apeksha Jain and

Mr Rameshwar Yadav from Mindray Support for patient monitors

installed at PICU/NICU, AIIMS, New Delhi.

Dr Tavpritesh Sethi is a Physician Data scientist and a Wellcome Trust/DBT India

Alliance Early Career Fellow (Clinical and Public Health Research Fellowship scheme)

based at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi. Dr Sethi obtained his

PhD at CSIR-Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology, New Delhi, during which he

also received MIT-India Young Innovator Awards in 2013 for his methodology for

detecting early small airway disease using computational physiology. Click here to

find out more about Tavpritesh’s current work.

Data science for Medicine: Unicorns and Workhorses By Dr Tavpritesh Sethi & Dr Rakesh Sodha

INDIA ALLIANCE STAFF CORNER

DR BELA DESAI, Grants Adviser

Bela Desai joined the grants team in 2014 right after her return from the USA, where she did her Postdoc. When not busy advising Fellowship applicants or taking Science Communication workshops, Bela enjoys being a bookworm and tries to keep the writer in her alive.

What is your background? I have the wanderer's curse. I have lived in so many places that by now I can’t say that I belong to any one city in particular. I was born in Bombay but I have hardly lived there. I grew up in Sharjah, one of the Emirates that make up the United Arab Emirates (no street food like shawarmas!). When I was growing up Sharjah was a small town, where everyone knew everyone. My neighbours were Punjabi and the rest of the families in our locality were from Afghanistan, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. My school friends were Keralites (so I picked up an appreciation for shark curry from there). After a brief sojourn in Baroda, Gujarat to do my MSc and getting married to a Bengali during my PhD in Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR), Bombay, here I am in Delhi. There was a short interlude in San Diego but that was quite uneventful except for the coming of my firstborn and my discovery of sushi. Delhi is slowly but steadily growing on me! How has your India Alliance journey been so far? I have loved working in India Alliance. A congenial atmosphere in the office and being around people who are so dedicated to their jobs makes it a pleasure to come into work every day. I love that I am able to make a difference in the lives of scientists and help them to make this country a leader in scientific research. I have fond memories of the time when I started out and there was no Delhi office. This was a time when I had to spend the first 3 months of my job in Hyderabad - a city I had never been to before. At only 2 weeks in the city I had to find a house to rent! But somehow we managed it in the end. I loved the city as I have never loved a city before. I still hope that someday I will return to Hyderabad to live life as it should be - with mutual respect, cheap real estate and affable craziness (I still don’t get why the Hyderabadis go bonkers over that clock at the museum but it is heartening that a clock doing its clock-like duties should make an entire audience applaud!). During my time in India Alliance, I have learned that a good supervisor can make all the difference to the way you look at work. What was the last piece of research that excited you? It was exciting to read about the research of Kim Nader from McGill University which is currently making waves in the field of neuroscience. His work has shown that we can program our long term memory. Every time we remember a memory it is undergoing protein synthesis dependant storage. So by preventing a memory from being re-stored it is possible to erase a memory completely. He has used this to help patients of Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). So a future shown in the movie "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" (where all the protagonists have to do to forget about their past painful relationships is to take a drug and "sleep it off") could actually come true! When not busy on the job, what do you enjoy doing? When I am not planning my next gastronomic adventure, I like to read and write about history. Not the larger history of nations and races drawn with broad brush strokes on a large canvas but history on a smaller scale - the squiggles by the side of the canvas; sort of like a microhistory (of buildings or localities). My interests in this subject

started during my time in South Bombay where every building has a peculiar history (a building that used to store ice is now a research institute!) Seeing the neo-Gothic architecture (Mumbai University, High Court and CST station) jostling next to the second largest block of Art Deco buildings in the world (topped by the triumvirate of the three grand Art Deco movie theatres that is Eros, Regal and Metro which are still functioning as movie theatres!) gives a history junkie a sky high literally. The other thing that drives my love of local history is my own personal history is linked with it. My grandfather worked in the textile mills of Girangoan, Mumbai. A whole community sprung up around these mill workers - a community where space was shared. My father grew up in a two room house in a chawl which we used to visit during vacations until it was demolished to build a skyscraper. With the mills now giving way to malls, this communal culture is fast disappearing. There were and still are many communities in Mumbai with their own distinct culture and traditions. It is this part that needs to be catalogued before it is swamped by greater pan-Indian forces. Whenever I have time, I write, expand and maintain articles (on Wikipedia) about the old buildings and culture of Maharashtra in general and Mumbai in particular. Who inspires you (living or dead)? For me, Robin Williams personifies all things funny. As a kid, I enjoyed the side splitting antics of the genie in the movie Aladdin, the kid-at-heart from Jumanji or the gender bending protagonist of Mrs Doubtfire. Any scene Robin Williams is in, he had the power to transform it into a laugh a second comedy. As I grew up I discovered his other movies on more serious topics like The Birdcage, Good Morning Vietnam and Dead Poets Society. His improvisations on the show “Whose Line is it anyway?” are classics. It is even more poignant that throughout his life he suffered from depression, as geniuses are often prone to. In the end, it is his own depression that finally consumed him. But it is the lasting testimony of his life that a person with such deep personal issues could make so many people laugh. What book are you reading right now? I just finished reading Terry Pratchett’s “Small Gods”. It is, as most of Terry Pratchetts books are, a tongue in cheek account of the subject he is macerating. In “Small Gods”, Terry Pratchett takes on organized religion. Studded with meta-references, it is a romping rollicking account of a person in the fictional universe of Discworld who a God contacts to be a Prophet but really no one believes the God- least of all the chosen Prophet. It could be taken as a satire on or in praise of organized religion depending on which way you lean. I also enjoyed reading "When You Reach Me" by Rebecca Stead. I picked this book from a flea shop with no expectations, that is, without reading any reviews on the internet and had no idea what I was in for. I finished it in one sitting and now it has become my favourite book. It aptly describes the small horrors of childhood and the meanness of schoolkids. But it is the fantastic twist in the end that takes the book to a whole new level.

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