Deepak Shukla (born in India) is an American molecular

virologist Virology is the scientific study of biological viruses. It is a subfield of microbiology that focuses on their detection, structure, classification and evolution, their methods of infection and exploitation of host cells for reproduction, their ...

with expertise in herpesviruses. He contributed to the discovery of

HSV-1 Herpes simplex virus 1 and 2 (HSV-1 and HSV-2), also known by their taxonomical names ''Human alphaherpesvirus 1'' and '' Human alphaherpesvirus 2'', are two members of the human ''Herpesviridae'' family, a set of viruses that produce viral inf ...

entry receptors and establishing a link between the receptors and HSV-1 induced ocular diseases such as

keratitis Keratitis is a condition in which the eye's cornea, the clear dome on the front surface of the eye, becomes inflamed. The condition is often marked by moderate to intense pain and usually involves any of the following symptoms: pain, impaired e ...

and

retinitis Retinitis is inflammation of the retina in the eye, which can permanently damage the retina and lead to blindness. The retina is the eye's "sensing" tissue. Retinitis may be caused by a number of different infectious agents. Its most common form, ...

. He has authored over 100 published papers and several book chapters on herpes viruses.

Early life and education

Shukla was born in Sir Sunderlal Hospital of

Banaras Hindu University Banaras Hindu University (BHU) IAST: kāśī hindū viśvavidyālaya IPA: /kaːʃiː hɪnd̪uː ʋɪʃwəʋid̪jaːləj/), is a collegiate, central, and research university located in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, India, and founded in 1916 ...

Varanasi Varanasi (; ; also Banaras or Benares (; ), and Kashi.) is a city on the Ganges river in northern India that has a central place in the traditions of pilgrimage, death, and mourning in the Hindu world. * * * * The city has a syncretic t ...

. He studied at

Kendriya Vidyalaya BHU Kendriya Vidyalaya BHU (KV-BHU) is situated in the city of Varanasi in the campus of Banaras Hindu University. The school is affiliated to CBSE and has classes running from 1 to 12. The regional office of Varanasi Region of KVS is located in ...

and obtained his bachelor's degree in

chemistry Chemistry is the science, scientific study of the properties and behavior of matter. It is a natural science that covers the Chemical element, elements that make up matter to the chemical compound, compounds made of atoms, molecules and ions ...

from BHU. He also obtained a master's degree in

biochemistry Biochemistry or biological chemistry is the study of chemical processes within and relating to living organisms. A sub-discipline of both chemistry and biology, biochemistry may be divided into three fields: structural biology, enzymology and ...

before joining the

University of Illinois at Chicago The University of Illinois Chicago (UIC) is a Public university, public research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its campus is in the Near West Side, Chicago, Near West Side community area, adjacent to the Chicago Loop. The second campus esta ...

(UIC) for a PhD degree in

microbiology Microbiology () is the scientific study of microorganisms, those being unicellular (single cell), multicellular (cell colony), or acellular (lacking cells). Microbiology encompasses numerous sub-disciplines including virology, bacteriology, prot ...

and

immunology Immunology is a branch of medicineImmunology for Medical Students, Roderick Nairn, Matthew Helbert, Mosby, 2007 and biology that covers the medical study of immune systems in humans, animals, plants and sapient species. In such we can see there ...

. In 1996 he was awarded his PhD. He received his postdoctoral training with Patricia Spear at

Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world. Charte ...

in Chicago.

Family

He is the youngest son of Kala Rani Shukla and

Ram Chandra Shukla Ram Chandra Shukla (1925–2016) was an Indian painter and art critic. Early life Shukla was born in a small village called Shukulpura of district Basti, Uttar Pradesh, Basti, Uttar Pradesh in a farmer's family. Soon after that his father shifte ...

. He has six siblings: Rekha, Pradeep, Dileep, Prakash, Rachana, and Anand, who all live in India. Deepak Shukla became a naturalized citizen of the US in 2007.

Work and awards

In 2001 Shukla joined UIC as an assistant professor of

virology Virology is the Scientific method, scientific study of biological viruses. It is a subfield of microbiology that focuses on their detection, structure, classification and evolution, their methods of infection and exploitation of host (biology), ...

. He is jointly employed by the UIC Department of

Ophthalmology Ophthalmology ( ) is a surgical subspecialty within medicine that deals with the diagnosis and treatment of eye disorders. An ophthalmologist is a physician who undergoes subspecialty training in medical and surgical eye care. Following a medic ...

and Visual Science and the Department of

Microbiology Microbiology () is the scientific study of microorganisms, those being unicellular (single cell), multicellular (cell colony), or acellular (lacking cells). Microbiology encompasses numerous sub-disciplines including virology, bacteriology, prot ...

and

Immunology Immunology is a branch of medicineImmunology for Medical Students, Roderick Nairn, Matthew Helbert, Mosby, 2007 and biology that covers the medical study of immune systems in humans, animals, plants and sapient species. In such we can see there ...

. Currently, he serves as the Marion H. Schenk Esq. Professor in Ophthalmology. He is also a professor of virology and the director of the Ocular Virology Laboratory of UIC. Shukla has been directly associated with the discoveries of

entry receptors, 3-O. Besides 3-O sulfated

heparan sulfate Heparan sulfate (HS) is a linear polysaccharide found in all animal tissues. It occurs as a proteoglycan (HSPG, i.e. Heparan Sulfate ProteoGlycan) in which two or three HS chains are attached in close proximity to cell surface or extracellular ma ...

, he also cloned and characterized the receptors (

HVEM Herpesvirus entry mediator (HVEM), also known as tumor necrosis factor receptor superfamily member 14 (TNFRSF14), is a human cell surface receptor of the TNF-receptor superfamily. Nomenclature This protein was originally known as herpesvirus entr ...

nectin-1 Poliovirus receptor-related 1 (PVRL1), also known as nectin-1 and CD111 (formerly herpesvirus entry mediator C, HVEC) is a human protein of the immunoglobulin superfamily (IgSF), also considered a member of the nectins. It is a membrane protein w ...

and 3-O sulfated heparan sulfate) for experimental HSV-1 infection in mice. His more recent works include identification of a phagocytosis-like pathway for HSV-1 entry into ocular cells, significance of heparan sulfate in ocular infection, significance of

autophagy Autophagy (or autophagocytosis; from the Ancient Greek , , meaning "self-devouring" and , , meaning "hollow") is the natural, conserved degradation of the cell that removes unnecessary or dysfunctional components through a lysosome-dependent re ...

in herpes infection, and development of a nanoparticle based herpes vaccine. He also discovered viral surfing in herpesviruses. His laboratory was first to implicate

heparanase Heparanase, also known as HPSE, is an enzyme that acts both at the cell-surface and within the extracellular matrix to degrade polymeric heparan sulfate molecules into shorter chain length oligosaccharides. Synthesis and structure The protein ...

in HSV-1 release and

syndecans Syndecans are single transmembrane domain proteins that are thought to act as coreceptors, especially for G protein-coupled receptors. More specifically, these core proteins carry three to five heparan sulfate and chondroitin sulfate chains, i.e. ...

in HSV-1 entry and cell-to-cell fusion. He has also used his knowledge of HSV-1 entry mechanism to identify new pharmaceutical agents to protect and treat HSV-1 infection in laboratory animals. His work has also focused on genital herpes and ways to control the spread of the disease. His work has been recognized with merit awards and research grants from various organizations, including from the American Herpes Foundation (2001) for herpesvirus research and his discovery of a receptor for HSV-1 entry; the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (2002–present); the Illinois Society to Prevent Blindness (2004); The Glaucoma Foundation (2007 and 2010); and the

National Eye Institute The National Eye Institute (NEI) was established in 1968. It is located in Bethesda, Maryland, United States. The NEI is one of 27 institutes and centers of the US National Institutes of Health (NIH), an agency of the US Department of Health and ...

(2013–present). Shukla received the Lew Wasserman Merit Award from Research to Prevent Blindness in 2009.

Selected works

"A novel role for 3-O-sulfated heparan Sulfate in herpes simplex virus 1 entry"
(1999)
"A novel role for phagocytosis-like uptake in herpes simplex virus entry"
(2006)
"Viral entry mechanisms: simplicity drives complexity"
(2009)
"Herpesviruses and heparan sulfate: an intimate relationship in aid of viral entry"
(2001)
"Striking similarity of murine nectin-1alpha to human nectin-1alpha (HveC) in sequence and activity as a glycoprotein D receptor for alphaherpesvirus entry."
(2000)
"A novel role for phagocytosis-like uptake in herpes simplex virus entry"
(2000)
"Anti-heparan sulfate peptides that block herpes simplex virus infection in vivo."
(2011)
"A novel function of heparan sulfate in the regulation of cell-cell fusion."
(2009)
"Heparanase is a host enzyme required for herpes simplex virus-1 release from cells."
(2015)
"Prophylactic, therapeutic and neutralizing effects of zinc oxide tetrapod structures against herpes simplex virus type-2 infection."
(2012)
"Extended Release of an Anti-Heparan Sulfate Peptide From a Contact Lens Suppresses Corneal Herpes Simplex Virus-1 Infection."
(2016)
"Autophagy stimulation abrogates herpes simplex virus-1 infection."
(2015)
"Cultured corneas show dendritic spread and restrict herpes simplex virus infection that is not observed with cultured corneal cells."
(2017)
"Intravaginal Zinc Oxide Tetrapod Nanoparticles as Novel Immunoprotective Agents against Genital Herpes."
(2016)

References

College of Medicine at Chicago: Deepak Shukla

"Nanoparticles hold promise as double-edged sword against genital herpes"
2016)
"Researchgate Profile""Top five most productive lab since 2010"
{{DEFAULTSORT:Shukla, Deepak Living people American virologists Kendriya Vidyalaya alumni Banaras Hindu University alumni Year of birth missing (living people) Fellows of the American Academy of Microbiology