Asis Datta is an Indian

biochemist Biochemists are scientists who are trained in biochemistry. They study chemical processes and chemical transformations in living organisms. Biochemists study DNA, proteins and Cell (biology), cell parts. The word "biochemist" is a portmanteau of ...

molecular biologist Molecular biology is the branch of biology that seeks to understand the molecular basis of biological activity in and between cells, including biomolecular synthesis, modification, mechanisms, and interactions. The study of chemical and physi ...

and

genetic engineer Genetic engineering, also called genetic modification or genetic manipulation, is the modification and manipulation of an organism's genes using technology. It is a set of technologies used to change the genetic makeup of cells, including t ...

, known for his research on

genetically modified foods Genetically modified foods (GM foods), also known as genetically engineered foods (GE foods), or bioengineered foods are foods produced from organisms that have had changes introduced into their DNA using the methods of genetic engineering. Genet ...

and food nutritional security. He was the founding Director of the National Institute of Plant Genome Research and is credited with the discovery of genes that assist in extended preservation of fruits and vegetables. He is a recipient of the

Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Award The Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize for Science and Technology (SSB) is a science award in India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-la ...

, the highest Indian award and in the Science category, and was awarded the fourth highest civilian award of the

Padma Shri Padma Shri (IAST: ''padma śrī''), also spelled Padma Shree, is the fourth-highest Indian honours system, civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan. Instituted on 2 January 1954, ...

, by the

Government of India The Government of India (ISO: ; often abbreviated as GoI), known as the Union Government or Central Government but often simply as the Centre, is the national government of the Republic of India, a federal democracy located in South Asia, c ...

, in 1999. In 2008, he was included again in the Republic Day Honours list for the third highest civilian honour of the

Padma Bhushan The Padma Bhushan is the third-highest civilian award in the Republic of India, preceded by the Bharat Ratna and the Padma Vibhushan and followed by the Padma Shri. Instituted on 2 January 1954, the award is given for "distinguished service ...

Biography

Datta, born on 2 February 1944, secured a PhD from

Calcutta University 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, C ...

for his doctoral work done at

Bose Institute Bose Institute (Basu Bigyan Mandir) is a public research institute of India and also one of its oldest. The Institute was established in 1917 by Acharya Sir Jagdish Chandra Bose, the father of modern scientific research in the Indian subcont ...

. He later followed it up by obtaining the degree of

Doctor of Science Doctor of Science ( la, links=no, Scientiae Doctor), usually abbreviated Sc.D., D.Sc., S.D., or D.S., is an academic research degree awarded in a number of countries throughout the world. In some countries, "Doctor of Science" is the degree used f ...

(DSc) from

. His doctoral work at

was facilitated by a fellowship from the Government of India from 1964 to 1968. After this he moved to New York as a research associate at the

Public Health Research Institute The Public Health Research Institute (PHRI) was founded in 1942 by New York City's mayor, Fiorello La Guardia, who appointed David M. Heyman to lead it as an independent not-for-profit research organization. In the late 1980s it was referred to ...

to continue research till 1971. His next move was to the

University of California, Los Angeles The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California St ...

, as assistant virologist, where he spent three years. Returning to India in 1975, he joined

Jawaharlal Nehru University Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) is a public major research university located in New Delhi, India. It was established in 1969 and named after Jawaharlal Nehru, India's first Prime Minister. The university is known for leading faculties and r ...

(JNU) at its

School of Life Sciences A school is an educational institution designed to provide learning spaces and learning environments for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is sometimes compul ...

and rose to the rank of a professor in 1978. He held several positions at JNU such as that of the dean from 1983 to 1985 and that of the rector from 1993 to 1996, eventually becoming the vice chancellor of the university in 1996 and holding the post till 2002. During this period, he also served as visiting scientist at

Roche Institute of Molecular Biology The Roche Institute of Molecular Biology was created on July 14, 1967 when John Burns, then the vice president of research at Hoffman-La Roche, persuaded biochemist Sidney Udenfriend to leave the National Institutes of Health and help him creat ...

for two academic years, 1976–77 and 1980–81. In 2002, when the National Centre for Plant Genome Research was upgraded as an autonomous institution under a new name, ''National Institute of Plant Genome Research'', Datta was appointed as its founder director. He worked at the institute till his superannuation in 2008. At the end of his official career, he was recognized as the emeritus professor by the

and as the distinguished emeritus scientist and professor emeritus by the National Institute of Plant Genome Research.

Positions

Datta has been associated with several central and state government and government-aided autonomous bodies in various positions. He chaired the ''Recruitment Assessment Board'' of 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 l ...

(CSIR) from 2003 to 2006 and has held the chair of the Integrated Long Term Programme (ILTP) of the Department of Science and Technology. He was the chairman of Scientific Advisory Committee (SAC) of the

National Institute of Cholera and Enteric Diseases National Institute of Cholera and Enteric Diseases or NICED (also known as ICMR-NICED) is an Indian medical institute that conducts research and develops prevention and treatment and control strategies related to enteric diseases and HIV/AIDS. The ...

Kolkata Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , the official name until 2001) is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal, on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary business, comme ...

from 2005 to 2007 and has been holding the chair of the Scientific Advisory Committee of the Vector Control Research Centre,

Puducherry Puducherry or Pondicherry may refer to: * Puducherry (union territory), a union territory of India ** Pondicherry, capital of the union territory of Puducherry ** Puducherry district, a district of the union territory of Puducherry ** Puducherry t ...

from 2007 till date. He has served as a member of the Scientific Advisory Committee of the

Prime Minister of India The prime minister of India (IAST: ) is the head of government of the Republic of India. Executive authority is vested in the prime minister and their chosen Council of Ministers, despite the president of India being the nominal head of the ...

and was involved in the Tenth Five–Year Plan of India as a member of the Steering Committee on Science and Technology of the Planning Commission. He was also a member of the Steering Committee of Biotechnology of the states of

Maharashtra Maharashtra (; , abbr. MH or Maha) is a states and union territories of India, state in the western India, western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. Maharashtra is the List of states and union te ...

Odisha Odisha (English: , ), formerly Orissa ( the official name until 2011), is an Indian state located in Eastern India. It is the 8th largest state by area, and the 11th largest by population. The state has the third largest population of ...

Madhya Pradesh Madhya Pradesh (, ; meaning 'central province') is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal, and the largest city is Indore, with Jabalpur, Ujjain, Gwalior, Sagar, and Rewa being the other major cities. Madhya Pradesh is the seco ...

and

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 fourt ...

. Datta was the president of the Society of Biological Chemists in 2000 and the

Indian Science Congress Indian Science Congress Association(ISCA) is a premier scientific organisation of India with headquarters at Kolkata, West Bengal. The association started in the year 1914 in Kolkata and it meets annually in the first week of January. It has a ...

from 2003–2004 term. He sat in the governing body of the

and the steering committee of the National Bioresource Board. He was associated with 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 Academ ...

as its council member (2002–2004) and vice president, and the

National Academy of Sciences, India The National Academy of Sciences, India, established in 1930, is the oldest science academy in India. It is located in Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh. Prof. Meghnad Saha was the founder president. Fellows *Suddhasatwa Basu * Sudha Bhattacharya * Ch ...

(NASI) as its president (2009–2011). He served the Governing Bodies of the

Indian Council of Agricultural Research The Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) is an autonomous body responsible for co-ordinating agricultural education and research in India. It reports to the Department of Agricultural Research and Education, Ministry of Agriculture. Th ...

(ICAR) (2007–2010) and the

Indian Council of Medical Research The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), the apex body in India for the formulation, coordination and promotion of biomedical research, is one of the oldest and largest medical research bodies in the world. The ICMR is funded by the Gove ...

(ICMR) 2007–2010, and has chaired the Biomedical Board of the latter. He has been a member of the Science and Technology Forum, Japan, the Review Committee of ICMR, the ICAR Society and the Board of Governors of the ICFAI University, Dehradun and the

Indian Institute of Technology, Guwahati The Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati (IIT Guwahati) is a public technical university established by the Government of India, located in Amingaon area, North Guwahati city, in the state of Assam in India. It is the sixth Indian Institute ...

. He sits in the general bodies of

National Institute of Technology, Silchar National Institute Of Technology Silchar (NIT Silchar or NITS) is one of the 31 NITs of India and was established in 1967 as a Regional Engineering College in Silchar. In 2002, it was upgraded to the status of National Institute of Technology and ...

and the

Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research The Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research (AcSIR) is an Indian institute of national importance, headquartered at the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research-Human Resource Development Centre Campus, Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh. The in ...

, Chennai. He is also a President's nominee at

University of Delhi Delhi University (DU), formally the University of Delhi, is a collegiate central university located in New Delhi, India. It was founded in 1922 by an Act of the Central Legislative Assembly and is recognized as an Institute of Eminence (IoE) ...

, Central University of Hyderabad,

Northeastern University Northeastern University (NU) is a private university, private research university with its main campus in Boston. Established in 1898, the university offers undergraduate and graduate programs on its main campus as well as satellite campuses in ...

Career

Human tongue infected with oral candidiasis

Besides his academic contributions as a teacher, Datta is reported to have contributed in developing the

by establishing schools and centres of excellence within the university. He is also credited with pioneering researches in the field of

molecular biology Molecular biology is the branch of biology that seeks to understand the molecular basis of biological activity in and between cells, including biomolecular synthesis, modification, mechanisms, and interactions. The study of chemical and physi ...

. His researches on

Candida albicans ''Candida albicans'' is an opportunistic pathogenic yeast that is a common member of the human gut flora. It can also survive outside the human body. It is detected in the gastrointestinal tract and mouth in 40–60% of healthy adults. It is us ...

, a pathogenic variety of

fungus A fungus ( : fungi or funguses) is any member of the group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and molds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as a kingdom, separately from th ...

which causes

candidiasis Candidiasis is a fungal infection due to any type of '' Candida'' (a type of yeast). When it affects the mouth, in some countries it is commonly called thrush. Signs and symptoms include white patches on the tongue or other areas of the mouth ...

, an infection to humans, have assisted in designing a drug to combat the disease. The team led by him have carried out biological researches which have applications in the fields of agriculture, medicine, science and industry; discovery of genes which helps in extending the shelf life of fruits and vegetables and development of genetically modified food are two such applications. His team was successful in receiving US patents, the first time an Indian firm receiving US patent for genes. His researches on the ''structure-function-application'' of eukaryotic genes paved way for the creation of the ''National Institute of Plant Genome Research'', the first institute in India for genetic research. He has published several articles, documenting his researches, in peer reviewed journals and

Google Scholar Google Scholar is a freely accessible web search engine that indexes the full text or metadata of scholarly literature across an array of publishing formats and disciplines. Released in beta in November 2004, the Google Scholar index includes p ...

has listed 226 of them, with an

h-index The ''h''-index is an author-level metric that measures both the productivity and citation impact of the publications, initially used for an individual scientist or scholar. The ''h''-index correlates with obvious success indicators such as winn ...

of 20 and i10-index of 35 (since 2010). He holds 7 Indian patents, 5 US patents and 5 patents of other countries for his research findings. He has also mentored over 45 research scholars in their doctoral research.

Awards and honours

Datta is an elected Fellow of all the three major Indian science academies,

(1988),

(1991) and

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 ...

(1992)

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 devel ...

(TWAS) also elected him as their Fellow in 1998.

University of Burdwan The University of Burdwan (also known as Burdwan University or B. U.) is a public university in Purba Bardhaman, West Bengal, India. It was established by the West Bengal Government as a teaching and affiliating university on 15 June 1960 wit ...

conferred the degree of Doctor of Science (honoris causa) on him in 2002, and Bidhan Chandra Agricultural University,

Vidyasagar University Vidyasagar University was established by an Act of the West Bengal legislature which was notified in the ''Calcutta Gazette'' on 24 June 1981. It is an affiliating university in Paschim Medinipur district of southern West Bengal, India. It o ...

and Pandit Ravi Shankar Shukla University also awarded DSc to him in 2004, 2008 and 2017. While working as a Professor at JNU, Datta was awarded

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 science, applied or Fundamenta ...

, the highest Indian science award, by the

, in 1980. Towards the end of 1980s and in early 90s, he received three awards, namely, ''Guha Memorial Award'' (1988), the inaugural ''G. D. Birla Award for Science and Technology'' (1991) and ''Dr. Nitya Anand Endowment Award'' of the

(1993). The

Federation of Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry The Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FICCI) is a non-governmental trade association and advocacy group based in India. History Established in 1927, on the advice of Mahatma Gandhi by Indian businessman G.D. Birla an ...

awarded him their annual honour for research and development in Life Sciences in 1994 and he received the

Om Prakash Bhasin Award Om Prakash Bhasin Award for Science and Technology is an Indian award, instituted in 1985 to recognize excellence in the areas of science and technology. The award, given individually or collectively to a group, is annual in cycle and carries a p ...

in 1995. 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 ...

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 devel ...

reached him in 1996, the same year as he received three more awards, ''Goyal Prize'', ''Ranbaxy Award'' in Medical Sciences and ''D. M Bose Gold Medal'' of the Indian Science News Association. The Government of India awarded him the civilian honour of the

in 1999; they would honour him again in 2008 with the

. He received the ''R. D Birla Award'' for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology in 2001, ''Dr. B. R. Ambedkar Centenary Award'' for Excellence in Biomedical Research of the

in 2003 and the Lifetime Achievement of the Society of Biological Chemists in 2005. He was again honoured the same year by the

West Bengal Government The Government of West Bengal also known as the West Bengal Government, is the subnational government of the Indian state of West Bengal , created by the National Constitution as the state's legislative, executive and judicial authority. The ...

with

P. C. Mahalanobis Prasanta Chandra Mahalanobis OBE, FNA, FASc, FRS (29 June 1893– 28 June 1972) was an Indian scientist and statistician. He is best remembered for the Mahalanobis distance, a statistical measure, and for being one of the members of the first ...

Memorial award. The

awarded him the ''Asutosh Mookerjee Medal'', the same year and followed it up with the Lifetime Achievement award in 2006. The year 2011 also brought him three awards, namely, Lifetime Achievement award of the Biotech Research Society, ''Priyadarshini Gold Medal'' and ''G. M. Modi Science Award''. He has also delivered several award orations; Sir Amulya Rattan Oration, Bashambar Nath Chopra Lecture and Sir Edward Melbary Oration are a few among them.

References

External links