Malur R. Narasimha Prasad or M.R.N. Prasad (1 May 1923 – 7 October 1987) was an Indian Endocrinologist and

Professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an Academy, academic rank at university, universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a "person who pr ...

, known for his research in the field of

reproductive physiology Reproductive endocrinology and infertility (REI) is a surgical subspecialty of obstetrics and gynecology that trains physicians in reproductive medicine addressing hormonal functioning as it pertains to reproduction as well as the issue of in ...

and the regulation of fertility. His major contributions were in the areas of comparative endocrinology, the regulation of male fertility, and the use of non-human primates in

biomedical research Medical research (or biomedical research), also known as experimental medicine, encompasses a wide array of research, extending from "basic research" (also called ''bench science'' or ''bench research''), – involving fundamental scientif ...

. He was the Founder of the International Society of Andrology, a member of the Research Committee of the International Planned Parenthood Federation (1964-1975), and was associated with the Special Program of Research, Development and Research Training in Human Reproduction at the

World Health Organization The World Health Organization (WHO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for international public health. The WHO Constitution states its main objective as "the attainment by all peoples of the highest possible level of h ...

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Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

(1977-1983). At a national level, he worked closely with the Indian Council of Medical Research and the Ministry of Health, Government of India in research on human reproduction and family planning programs in India.

Career

M.R.N. Prasad began his career as a lecturer in

Zoology Zoology ()The pronunciation of zoology as is usually regarded as nonstandard, though it is not uncommon. is the branch of biology that studies the Animal, animal kingdom, including the anatomy, structure, embryology, evolution, Biological clas ...

at Central College, Bangalore, University of Mysore in 1945. In 1955, he was awarded a

Fulbright Fellowship The Fulbright Program, including the Fulbright–Hays Program, is one of several United States Cultural Exchange Programs with the goal of improving intercultural relations, cultural diplomacy, and intercultural competence between the people of ...

and began doctoral studies at the

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. From 1959 to 1977, he was Professor of

at the

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) ...

, where he established a research group in the Department of Zoology that was recognized internationally in

. During this period, he assumed advisory roles at the national level. He was a member of the National Coordination Committee of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India (1972–77); Member of the Expert Committee on Biomedical Research of the Indian Council of Medical Research (1971-1973); and Chairman of the Research Committee, Biology Division of the National Institute of Health and Family Welfare (1971-1975). From 1977 to 1983, he worked with the Special Programme of Research, Development and Research Training in Human Reproduction at the

. At this time, he was also involved in the coordination of research and research training at the

All India Institute of Medical Sciences The All India Institutes of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) is a group of autonomous government public medical universities of higher education under the jurisdiction of Ministry of Health and Family Welfare , Government of India. These institutes ha ...

New Delhi New Delhi (, , ''Naī Dillī'') is the capital of India and a part of the National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, Parliament House ...

, the Institute for Research Reproduction in

Bombay Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...

, and the Indian Institute of Science in

Bangalore Bangalore (), officially Bengaluru (), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan population of around , making it the third most populous city and fifth most ...

Students

Hari Reddi was a graduate student of Professor Prasad from 1963 to 1966.

Books edited

Progress in Comparative Endocrinology: General and Comparative Endocrinology. Suppl.2. Proceedings of the V International Symposium on Comparative Endocrinology held in New Delhi, 1967. Ed. M.R.N. Prasad, Academic Press, New York, 1969. Control of Fertility in the Male, J. Reprod. Fertil. Suppl.2. Proceedings of the Fifth Biological Workshop: International Planned Parenthood Federation, held in New Delhi, Eds. M.R.N. Prasad and J.P. Porter, Blackwell, London, 1976. Use of Non-human Primates in Biomedical Research. Proceedings of an International Meeting held in New Delhi, 1975. Eds. M.R.N. Prasad and T.C. Anand Kumar, Indian National Science Academy and the Delhi University Press, 1976.

Awards

* 1955

, USA (1955-1958) * 1958 Knapp Centre Fellow:

, USA * 1973

Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry The Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FICCI) is a Non-governmental organization, non-governmental trade association and advocacy group based in India. History Established in 1927, on the advice of Mahatma Gandhi by Ind ...

, (FICCl) Award for Outstanding Research in Science and Technology * 1974 National Family Planning Award. Ministry of Health and Family Planning, Government of India * 1975 Jagdish Chandra Bose Award for Research in Life Sciences, Hari Om Ashram Trust and the University of Grants Commission * 1975 National Lecturer in Zoology, University Grants Commission * 1983 Shantha Rao Memorial Oration. Institute for Research in Reproduction and Indian Council of Medical Research

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Prasad, Malur R. Narasimha 1923 births 1987 deaths Indian endocrinologists 20th-century Indian medical doctors Medical doctors from Bangalore