Research

Our original short video entry by the Wastewater Analysis Treatment and Energy Recovery (WATER) Lab, Department of Biosciences, has been featured in the Science in Shorts video library on the Nature Portfolio YouTube channel. This entry, part of the ‘Science in Shorts 2024 competition’ organized by Springer Nature, highlights the innovative research conducted by our team.

The video, titled ‘Our DREAM – Measuring Bacterial Electron Transfer,’ showcases the indigenously developed Dye Reduction-based Electron-transfer Activity Monitoring (DREAM) assay. It stands out among the 82 entries shortlisted from a total of 250 submissions worldwide. The video was created by Ph.D. students Mr. Shakthi Thangavel and Mr. Sahashransu Satyajeet Mahapatra, under the supervision of Dr. A. S. Vishwanathan, Assistant Professor, Department of Biosciences. The team dedicated their work to our Founder Chancellor, Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba.

The Science in Shorts competition, organized by Springer Nature in partnership with Merck, invited active researchers to submit one-minute videos that presented their research in an informative, engaging, and entertaining manner.

SSSIHL congratulates the team from WATER Lab for their outstanding achievement and for showcasing their excellent work on a global stage.

In pursuit of sustainability, the Department of Food and Nutritional Sciences at SSSIHL organized a two-day national symposium titled “A Holistic Approach to Sustainable Food Systems: Integrating Agriculture, Nutrition, and Food Safety” on 1st and 2nd March 2024.

The event brought together experts in agriculture, nutrition, and food processing to discuss and examine the essential components of sustainable food systems. The symposium provided a platform for addressing and exploring the key challenges in this vital area.

We extend our gratitude to our esteemed speakers who contributed to the symposium:Scientists: Dr. A. Ashok Kumar, ICRISAT-Asia; Dr. B.V.S.K. Rao, CSIR-IICT, Hyderabad; Dr. P. Raghavendra, ICMR-NIN, Hyderabad; Dr. Jeevan Prasad Reddy D, CSIR-CFTRI, Mysore; and Dr. K.B.R.S. Visarada, CSIR-IIMR, Hyderabad

Academia: Prof. R. Jagan Mohan, NIFTEM, Thanjavur; Prof. D. Vijayalakshmi, ICAR., UAS, GKVK, Bangalore; and Prof. P. Sarala Kumari, UAS, GKVK, Bangalore.

Industry: Mr. Kalluri Suresh, Pranav Food Processor India Pvt. Ltd., Hyderabad, and Mr. Shyam Mohan, Tier 1 Network Pvt Ltd., Bengaluru

View Report

View Photos

Watch Recording:

1 March (Session-1)  – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XB-lIKX8_38

1 March (Session-2) – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OKW6n36fr-Y

2 March (Session-1) – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aopn0HkF2JQ

2 March (Session-2) – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XcEkPH7r5J8

The Centre for Excellence in Mathematical Biology (CEMB) at the Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Learning (SSSIHL) successfully concluded its 8-day Faculty Development Program (FDP) on “Dynamical Systems & Optimal Control Theory, AI/ML, and Bioinformatics with Applications to Healthcare.” This program was held online from July 8 to July 15, 2024.

This FDP featured lectures by domain experts from renowned institutions on topics such as Dynamical Systems & Optimal Control Theory, AI/ML, and Bioinformatics, with a specific focus on healthcare applications. In addition to theoretical insights, the program included hands-on sessions to enhance practical understanding.

We extend our heartfelt gratitude to all the experts for their participation and for sharing their invaluable expertise:

• Dr. Prof. Mukesh Doble, IIT Madras
• Dr. P. Muthu, NIT Warangal
• Dr. B. S. R. V. Prasad, VIT Vellore
• Dr. D. K. K. Vamsi, SSSIHL
• Dr. Darshan Gera, SSSIHL
• Dr. M. S. Srinath, SSSIHL
• Dr. K. N. Naresh, SSSIHL
• Dr. N. B. Gayatri, SSSIHL
• Dr. Bharat Parthasarathy, SSSIHL
• Mr. D. Bhanu Prakash, SSSIHL
• Mr. Rithwik Chandra Pandey, SSSIHL

For more details, please view the detailed report.

The Department of Humanities and Social Sciences hosted the inaugural session of the ‘Students’ Success School’ on Saturday, July 13, 2024, at the Anantapur Campus. This session marked the beginning of a series aimed at assisting students in preparing for competitive examinations.

The event commenced with the ceremonial lighting of the lamp by the Chief Guest, Sri Megha Swaroop, IAS, Municipal Commissioner of Anantapur, along with the Campus Director, Prof. Rani P L, the Dean of the Humanities, Social Sciences, and Languages and Literature departments, and faculty members Dr. M R Geetha Bala, Dr. M Venkatalakshmi, and Ms. Arunima Pant from the Department of Humanities and Social Sciences.

Following the lamp lighting, students performed an invocatory Vedam. Dr. M R Geetha Bala, Associate Professor of Economics and former Dean, delivered the welcome address, expressing gratitude to the Chief Guest and highlighting the importance of the session series in guiding students toward successful careers. Prof. Rani P L, Campus Director, emphasized the foundational educational values championed by our Founder Chancellor, Sri Sathya Sai Baba, particularly the idea that “The End of Education is Character,” and thanked the Chief Guest for their participation and the department for organizing the initiative.

Sri Megha Swaroop, IAS, then delivered the inaugural address, focusing on essential values for UPSC aspirants, systematic study techniques, and insights into the exam’s stages, drawing from personal experience. A question-answer session followed, where he provided valuable tips and addressed students’ queries. Dr. Arun Kumar from the History Department elaborated on UPSC subjects and necessary subject knowledge, concluding the enriching session.

The event wrapped up with a vote of thanks and Mangala Arathi. This initiative by the Department of Humanities and Social Sciences proved to be both informative and inspiring providing valuable guidance and motivation for the students in attendance.

The 7th International Conference on Food and Nutrition, organized by the Universal Society of Food and Nutrition (USFN) in collaboration with UCSI University, Malaysia, was held in hybrid mode on June 29-30, 2024. The conference, themed “Culinary Diversity and Health: A Global Perspective,” attracted a diverse group of professionals, including nutritionists, dieticians, professors, scientists, research scholars, health experts, industrialists, and students, who gathered to discuss the latest advancements and research in food science and nutrition. Over 100 presenters from around the world showcased their work during the two-day event.

Faculty members and students from the Department of Food and Nutritional Sciences (DFNS) at Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Learning (SSSIHL) participated in the conference in the following capacities:

Keynote Address

• Prof. B. Andallu, Honorary faculty and former Head of the Department, delivered the keynote address on “Herbs and Spices in the Prevention and Treatment of Stress-Induced Diseases.” Her presentation emphasized the role of phytochemicals in herbs and spices in enhancing health and slowing degenerative processes associated with aging. Prof. Andallu highlighted the potential of common kitchen herbs and spices in preventing serious chronic diseases and managing stress-related health issues. Her talk was well-received, sparking an engaging discussion session.

Organizing Committee Member and Session Chair

• Dr. Jhinuk Gupta, Assistant Professor, served as an organizing committee member and session chair, and evaluator for one of the virtual presentation sessions on June 30, 2024. Dr. Gupta, an active researcher in food safety and quality monitoring, facilitated discussions on advanced research in food safety and its critical role in nutrition.

Research Presentations

• Ms. Amrita Shaw, a Doctoral Research Scholar, presented her research on “Detection of Re-used Cooking Oil through Micro-Raman Spectroscopy.” This research, guided by Dr. Jhinuk Gupta and Dr. Sai Muthukumar V (Associate Professor, Dept. of Physics), addressed a crucial issue in the food industry and was commended by the session chairs for its significance. Dr. Muthukumar, a meticulous researcher in the field of Applied Spectroscopy, played a pivotal role in the presented work.
• Ms. Shreya P Sarathy, who completed her M.Sc. dissertation under Dr. Jhinuk Gupta during the academic year 2023-2024, presented her project on “Mislabeling in the Indian Health Food Market: Market Survey and Analytical Testing,” co-authored by Ms. Tharani Lakshmi Tharuni and Ms. Amrita Shaw. Her presentation illuminated the widespread issue of mislabeling in the health food sector and the importance of detecting such practices. The panelists praised her work and the relevance of the research.

The active participation and contributions from the DFNS team at SSSIHL were highly appreciated and added significant value to the conference.

Sri Undavalli Venkata Gopi, a Research Scholar from the Department of Chemistry, under the supervision of Dr. Kumar Sai Smaran, delivered an oral presentation titled “Defect Engineering Pathways Towards Unlocking the Potential of Perovskites in Supercapatteries” at the 18th International Symposium of Polymer Electrolytes (ISPE-18). The event took place from 23-28 June 2024, in Langkawi, Malaysia, and was organized by the ACS Malaysia Chapter.

Sri Gopi’s oral presentation explored how the inherent options to manipulate the stoichiometries (defects) in perovskite derivatives and their higher-order analogues can be utilized. Specifically, their oxygen deficiency attributes can be employed in anionic intercalated mechanism-based supercapatteries, which was the core of his presentation at the conference.

Sri Gopi was also the recipient of the ISPE 18 Young Researcher Travel Award, which acknowledges young talents for their contributions to the field of energy storage. To encourage participation from young researchers worldwide, the ISPE 18 Young Researcher Travel Award is awarded to eligible and deserving scholars who demonstrated academic excellence through the quality of their research. The travel award (100,000 INR approx.) was awarded to only four participants worldwide, including Sri Gopi.

The International Symposium on Polymer Electrolytes (ISPE) is a premier conference in the field of energy storage. The 18th session held in Langkawi, Malaysia, focused on the theme “Zero Carbon Emission by Revolutionizing Energy with Polymer Electrolytes.” The conference encouraged scientific presentations on a variety of topics, including Lithium-ion batteries and related technologies, Supercapacitors and allied technologies, Solar cells, Fuel cells, Sensors,
Actuators, and emerging energy-related themes

The conference featured esteemed pioneers in the energy storage field, such as Prof. Michel Armand, Prof. Stefano Passerini, Prof. Maria Forsyth, Prof. Masayoshi Watanabe, and Prof. Vito di Noto.

Watch: Sri Gopi Receiving the Young Researcher Travel Award

Identifying the Issue

• In silico technique to replace or assist and reduce the cumbersome experimental techniques in protein engineering.
• In silico validation using mutations with known functional implications in homologs.

Objective of the Research

• To use in silico techniques as a replacement for experimental techniques for protein engineering.
• To validate the findings using experimentally verified mutations with known functional implications from homologous proteins.

Who should read this?

It is helpful for all the experimentalists who are interested in protein engineering and understanding the role of single nucleotide polymorphisms from genomic studies after high throughput analysis.

Solution

Protein engineering by directed evolution is time-consuming. Hence, in silico techniques using software for ∆∆G calculation, and predicting propensity for aggregation, amyloid formation, and chaperone binding are employed to design proteins. We employed these techniques to engineer BDNF-NTF3 interactions. The effect of different mutations was screened for their favourable, unfavourable, and lack of effect in the BDNF NTF3 system. The unfavourable mutants showed fewer hydrophobic interactions and higher hydrogen bonds compared to the wild-type or other mutants with similar solvent-accessible surface area, suggesting solvent-mediated disruption of hydrogen-bonded interactions.

The predictions in the BDNF system were validated using mutations with known functional effects in the NGF system where similar results were obtained. The results suggest that mutations with known effects in homologous proteins could help validation, and in silico-directed evolution, experiments could be a viable alternative to or for arriving at informed decisions or as a supplement to the experimental technique used for protein engineering.

Key Features and Benefits

• High throughput data generation for informed decisions to aid protein engineering.
• Validation from the experimentally available data using in silico
• The method can help to understand the effect of single nucleotide polymorphisms from the genomic data.

Impact

• This workflow helps to make informed decisions before performing or helping replace experiments.
• This workflow will help to reduce the cumbersome experiments required in protein engineering.
• The method can help to understand the effect of single nucleotide polymorphisms from the genomic data.
• Validation from the experimentally available data using in silico methods/techniques.

Team

• V.M. Datta Darshan, Department of Biosciences, Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Learning
• Venketesh Sivaramakrishnan, Department of Biosciences, Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Learning
• Subbarao Kanchi, Department of Physics, Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Learning
• Natarajan Arumugam, Department of Chemistry, College of Science, King Saud University
• Abdulrahman I. Almansour, Department of Chemistry, College of Science, King Saud University

Title of paper: “In silico energetic and molecular dynamic simulations studies demonstrate potential effect of the point mutations with implications for protein engineering in BDNF”

Read Paper Here: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2024.132247