Santanu Bhattacharya (born 1958) is an Indian chemical biologist and former professor at the
Indian Institute of Science
The Indian Institute of Science (IISc) is a public, deemed, research university for higher education and research in science, engineering, design, and management. It is located in Bengaluru, in the Indian state of Karnataka. The institute was ...
. At, present he is the Director of the
Indian Institute of Science Education and Research, Tirupati (IISER-Tirupati).
He is known for his studies of unnatural
amino acids,
oligopeptides
An oligopeptide, often just called peptide ('' oligo-'', "a few"), consists of two to twenty amino acids and can include dipeptides, tripeptides, tetrapeptides, and pentapeptides. Some of the major classes of naturally occurring oligopeptides inc ...
, designed and natural lipids and biologically active natural products
and is an elected fellow of the
Indian National Science Academy
The Indian National Science Academy (INSA) is a national academy in New Delhi for Indian scientists in all branches of science and technology.
In August 2019, Dr. Chandrima Shaha was appointed as the president of Indian National Science Acade ...
The World Academy of Sciences
The World Academy of Sciences (TWAS) is a merit-based science academy established for developing countries, uniting 1,000 scientists in some 70 countries. Its principal aim is to promote scientific capacity and excellence for sustainable deve ...
and the
Indian Academy of Sciences
The Indian Academy of Sciences, Bangalore was founded by Indian Physicist and Nobel Laureate C. V. Raman, and was registered as a society on 24 April 1934. Inaugurated on 31 July 1934, it began with 65 founding fellows. The first general meet ...
The
Council of Scientific and Industrial Research
The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research ( IAST: ''vaigyanik tathā audyogik anusandhāna pariṣada''), abbreviated as CSIR, was established by the Government of India in September 1942 as an autonomous body that has emerged as the ...
, the apex agency of the Government of India for scientific research, awarded him the
Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize for Science and Technology
The Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize for Science and Technology (SSB) is a science award in India given annually by the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) for notable and outstanding research, applied or fundamental, in biology, ...
, one of the highest Indian science awards, in 2003, for his contributions to chemical sciences.
He is also a recipient of the
National Bioscience Award for Career Development of the
Department of Biotechnology
The Department of Biotechnology (DBT) is an Indian government department, under the Ministry of Science and Technology responsible for administrating development and commercialisation in the field of modern biology and biotechnology in India. It ...
(2002)
and the TWAS Prize (2010).
Biography
![Kolkata univ jeroje](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c0/Kolkata_univ_jeroje.jpg)
Santanu Bhattacharya, born on 23 April 1958 in Calcutta (now called Kolkata) in the Indian state of
West Bengal
West Bengal (, Bengali: ''Poshchim Bongo'', , abbr. WB) is a state in the eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabitants within an area of . West Bengal is the fou ...
, graduated in Chemistry (B.Sc. Honors) from the
Calcutta University
The University of Calcutta (informally known as Calcutta University; CU) is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate State university (India), state university in India, located in Kolkata, West Bengal, India. Considered ...
and continued at the university to complete his master's degree from
Rajabazar Science College
The University College of Science, Technology and Agriculture (commonly or formerly known as Rashbehari Siksha Prangan & Taraknath Palit Siksha Prangan or Rajabazar Science College & Ballygunge Science College) are two of five main campuses of ...
campus of
University of Calcutta
The University of Calcutta (informally known as Calcutta University; CU) is a public collegiate state university in India, located in Kolkata, West Bengal, India. Considered one of best state research university all over India every year, ...
.
Moving to the US, he enrolled for his doctoral studies on bioorganic chemistry at the laboratory of Professor Robert A. Moss of the
Rutgers University – New Brunswick
Rutgers University (; RU), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a public land-grant research university consisting of four campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's College, and was a ...
and after securing a PhD in 1988, he had a post-doctoral stint with Professor
Har Gobind Khorana
Har Gobind Khorana (9 January 1922 – 9 November 2011) was an Indian American biochemist. While on the faculty of the University of Wisconsin–Madison, he shared the 1968 Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine with Marshall W. Nirenberg and ...
, a
Nobel laureate at the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private land-grant research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Established in 1861, MIT has played a key role in the development of modern technology and science, and is one of the ...
; the theme of his studies being
signal transduction of
membrane proteins.
On his return to India, he joined the
Indian Institute of Science
The Indian Institute of Science (IISc) is a public, deemed, research university for higher education and research in science, engineering, design, and management. It is located in Bengaluru, in the Indian state of Karnataka. The institute was ...
where he served as an assistant professor (1991–96), associate professor (1996–2001) and a professor (since 2001);
he continued at IISc as the chair of the department of organic chemistry till 2023.
He also serves as an honorary professor of
Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research
The Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR) is a multidisciplinary research institute located at Jakkur, Bangalore, India. It was established by the Department of Science and Technology of the Government of India, to ...
at its Chemical Biology unit.
He also served as the Director of the oldest research institute of Asia, the
Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science
Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science (IACS) is a public, deemed, research university for higher education and research in basic sciences under the Department of Science & Technology, Government of India, situated at the heart of ...
(IACS). In 2023, Professor Bhattacharya has been appointed the Director of the
Indian Institute of Science Education and Research, Tirupati (IISER-Tirupati).
Legacy
Focusing his researches on the interfaces of chemistry and biology, Bhattacharya is reported to have made notable contributions in the design and synthesis of unnatural amino acids, cyclic peptides, DNA binding small molecules, and other biologically active natural products.
He has carried out several projects which include lipid molecular design and biophysics, peptide designs, structural studies of micelles, DNA binding anti-cancer agents,
and design and synthesis of nanomaterials.
He has published his researches by way of several peer-reviewed articles;
the online repository of the Indian Academy of Sciences has listed 117 of them.
On the academic administration front, he established a laboratory for bio-organic and supramolecular studies at Indian Institute of Science. He has supervised the post-graduate, doctoral and post-doctoral studies of several scholars and has sat in the editorial boards of journals such as
Bioconjugate Chemistry
''Bioconjugate Chemistry'' is a monthly peer-reviewed scientific journal covering research in bioconjugation and the interface between man-made and biological materials. The journal was established in 1990 and is published by the American Chemical ...
and
Langmuir of
American Chemical Society
The American Chemical Society (ACS) is a scientific society based in the United States that supports scientific inquiry in the field of chemistry. Founded in 1876 at New York University, the ACS currently has more than 155,000 members at all ...
, and the Journal of Materials Nanoscience.
Awards and honors
Bhattacharya received the B. M. Birla Science Award in 1997
Swarnajayanti Fellowship Award (DST) in 1998, the Material Research Society of India Medal in 1999 and the Chemical Research Society of India Bronze Medal in 2000.
The
Department of Biotechnology
The Department of Biotechnology (DBT) is an Indian government department, under the Ministry of Science and Technology responsible for administrating development and commercialisation in the field of modern biology and biotechnology in India. It ...
awarded him with the
National Bioscience Award for Career Development in 2002
and the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research awarded him in 2003 with the
Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize
The Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize for Science and Technology (SSB) is a science award in India given annually by the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) for notable and outstanding research, applied or fundamental, in biology, ...
, one of the highest Indian science awards.
He received the
TWAS Prize
This is a list of recipients of the TWAS Prize, awarded annually by The World Academy of Sciences (TWAS).
Summary
Agricultural Sciences
Biology
Chemistry
Earth Sciences
Engineering Sciences
Mathematics
Medical Sc ...
in 2010
the Ranbaxy Research Award in 2013 and SASTRA-CNR Rao Award in 2017.
P. U. Bhagyatara National Award (2004), CDRI Award of the
Central Drug Research Institute
The Central Drug Research Institute is a multidisciplinary research laboratory in Lucknow, India, employing scientific personnel from various areas of biomedical sciences. Prof. Tapas Kumar Kundu, a molecular biologist, academician and recipien ...
(2004) and the G. D. Birla Award (2007) are some of the other notable awards he has received.
Holder of J. C. Bose National Fellowship in 2008 and Swarna Jayanti Fellowship of the
Department of Science and Technology during 1998–2003, he was elected as a fellow by the
Indian Academy of Sciences
The Indian Academy of Sciences, Bangalore was founded by Indian Physicist and Nobel Laureate C. V. Raman, and was registered as a society on 24 April 1934. Inaugurated on 31 July 1934, it began with 65 founding fellows. The first general meet ...
in 2000
and he became an elected fellow of the
Indian National Science Academy
The Indian National Science Academy (INSA) is a national academy in New Delhi for Indian scientists in all branches of science and technology.
In August 2019, Dr. Chandrima Shaha was appointed as the president of Indian National Science Acade ...
in 2007 and
The World Academy of Sciences
The World Academy of Sciences (TWAS) is a merit-based science academy established for developing countries, uniting 1,000 scientists in some 70 countries. Its principal aim is to promote scientific capacity and excellence for sustainable deve ...
in 2012.
He has also delivered several award orations including the D. Ranganathan Memorial Lecture of the Chemical Research Society of India (2007) and the Nitya Anand Endowment Lecture of the Indian National Science Academy (2007).
See also
*
Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science (IACS)
*
Amino acids
*
Cyclic peptides
Cyclic peptides are polypeptide chains which contain a circular sequence of bonds. This can be through a connection between the amino and carboxyl ends of the peptide, for example in cyclosporin; a connection between the amino end and a side cha ...
*
Har Gobind Khorana
Har Gobind Khorana (9 January 1922 – 9 November 2011) was an Indian American biochemist. While on the faculty of the University of Wisconsin–Madison, he shared the 1968 Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine with Marshall W. Nirenberg and ...
I
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bhattacharya, Santanu
Recipients of the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Award in Chemical Science
1958 births
Indian scientific authors
Fellows of the Indian Academy of Sciences
Fellows of the Indian National Science Academy
Living people
Scientists from West Bengal
Indian organic chemists
N-BIOS Prize recipients
TWAS fellows
University of Calcutta alumni
Massachusetts Institute of Technology alumni
Rutgers University alumni
Academic staff of the Indian Institute of Science
TWAS laureates