Ananda Mohan Chakrabarty ( bn, আনন্দমোহন চক্রবর্তী ''Ānandamōhan Cakrabartī''), PhD (4 April 1938 – 10 Jul 2020) was an
Indian American
Indian Americans or Indo-Americans are citizens of the United States with ancestry from India. The United States Census Bureau uses the term Asian Indian to avoid confusion with Native Americans, who have also historically been referred to ...
microbiologist
A microbiologist (from Ancient Greek, Greek ) is a scientist who studies microscopic life forms and processes. This includes study of the growth, interactions and characteristics of Microorganism, microscopic organisms such as bacteria, algae, f ...
, scientist, and researcher, most notable for his work in
directed evolution
Directed evolution (DE) is a method used in protein engineering that mimics the process of natural selection to steer proteins or nucleic acids toward a user-defined goal. It consists of subjecting a gene to iterative rounds of mutagenesis (cre ...
and his role in developing a
genetically engineered
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 ...
organism using
plasmid
A plasmid is a small, extrachromosomal DNA molecule within a cell that is physically separated from chromosomal DNA and can replicate independently. They are most commonly found as small circular, double-stranded DNA molecules in bacteria; how ...
transfer while working at
GE, the patent for which
[US Patent 4,259,444]
/ref> led to landmark Supreme Court case, ''Diamond v. Chakrabarty
''Diamond v. Chakrabarty'', 447 U.S. 303 (1980), was a United States Supreme Court case dealing with whether living organisms can be patented. Writing for a five-justice majority, Chief Justice Warren E. Burger held that human-made bacteria could ...
''.
Early life
Ananda (generally called "Al" by scientific colleagues) Chakrabarty was born in Sainthia
Sainthia (formerly Nandipur) is a city and a municipality in Suri Sadar subdivision of Birbhum district in the Indian state of West Bengal. The city is known as business city of Birbhum district. The city is under the jurisdiction of Sainthia po ...
on 4 April 1938. He attended Sainthia High School, Ramakrishna Mission Vidyamandira and St. Xavier's College, Calcutta
St. Xavier's College is a private, Catholic, autonomous higher education college under Calcutta University run by the Calcutta Province of the Society of Jesus in Kolkata, India. It was founded by the Jesuits in 1860 and named after St. Fra ...
—in that order—during the course of his undergraduate education. Prof. Chakrabarty received his PhD. from the University of Calcutta
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 ...
in 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 ...
, 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 ...
in 1965.
Scientific work
Prof. Chakrabarty genetically engineered a new species of ''Pseudomonas
''Pseudomonas'' is a genus of Gram-negative, Gammaproteobacteria, belonging to the family Pseudomonadaceae and containing 191 described species. The members of the genus demonstrate a great deal of metabolic diversity and consequently are able ...
'' bacteria
Bacteria (; singular: bacterium) are ubiquitous, mostly free-living organisms often consisting of one biological cell. They constitute a large domain of prokaryotic microorganisms. Typically a few micrometres in length, bacteria were among ...
("the oil
An oil is any nonpolar chemical substance that is composed primarily of hydrocarbons and is hydrophobic (does not mix with water) & lipophilic (mixes with other oils). Oils are usually flammable and surface active. Most oils are unsaturated ...
-eating bacteria") in 1971 while working for the Research & Development
Research and development (R&D or R+D), known in Europe as research and technological development (RTD), is the set of innovative activities undertaken by corporations or governments in developing new services or products, and improving existi ...
Center at General Electric Company
The General Electric Company (GEC) was a major British industrial conglomerate involved in consumer and defence electronics, communications, and engineering. The company was founded in 1886, was Britain's largest private employer with over 250 ...
in Schenectady
Schenectady () is a city in Schenectady County, New York, United States, of which it is the county seat. As of the 2020 census, the city's population of 67,047 made it the state's ninth-largest city by population. The city is in eastern New Y ...
, New York.
At the time, four known species of oil-metabolizing bacteria were known to exist, but when introduced into an oil
An oil is any nonpolar chemical substance that is composed primarily of hydrocarbons and is hydrophobic (does not mix with water) & lipophilic (mixes with other oils). Oils are usually flammable and surface active. Most oils are unsaturated ...
spill, they competed with each other, limiting the amount of crude oil
Petroleum, also known as crude oil, or simply oil, is a naturally occurring yellowish-black liquid mixture of mainly hydrocarbons, and is found in geological formations. The name ''petroleum'' covers both naturally occurring unprocessed crude ...
that they degraded. The genes
In biology, the word gene (from , ; "...Wilhelm Johannsen coined the word gene to describe the Mendelian units of heredity..." meaning ''generation'' or ''birth'' or ''gender'') can have several different meanings. The Mendelian gene is a ba ...
necessary to degrade oil were carried on plasmids
A plasmid is a small, extrachromosomal DNA molecule within a cell that is physically separated from chromosomal DNA and can replicate independently. They are most commonly found as small circular, double-stranded DNA molecules in bacteria; how ...
, which could be transferred among species. By irradiating the transformed organism with UV light
Ultraviolet (UV) is a form of electromagnetic radiation with wavelength from 10 nm (with a corresponding frequency around 30 PHz) to 400 nm (750 THz), shorter than that of visible light, but longer than X-rays. UV radiation i ...
after plasmid transfer, Prof. Chakrabarty discovered a method for genetic cross-linking that fixed all four plasmid genes in place and produced a new, stable, bacterial species (now called ''Pseudomonas putida
''Pseudomonas putida'' is a Gram-negative, rod-shaped, saprotrophic soil bacterium.
Based on 16S rRNA analysis, ''P. putida'' was taxonomically confirmed to be a ''Pseudomonas'' species (''sensu stricto'') and placed, along with several other ...
'') capable of consuming oil one or two orders of magnitude faster than the previous four strains of oil-eating microbes. The new microbe, which Chakrabarty called "multiplasmid hydrocarbon-degrading ''Pseudomonas''," could digest about two-thirds of the hydrocarbons that would be found in a typical oil spill.
The bacteria drew international attention when he applied for a patent
A patent is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the legal right to exclude others from making, using, or selling an invention for a limited period of time in exchange for publishing an enabling disclosure of the invention."A p ...
—the first U.S. patent for a genetically modified organism
A genetically modified organism (GMO) is any organism whose genetic material has been altered using genetic engineering techniques. The exact definition of a genetically modified organism and what constitutes genetic engineering varies, with ...
. (U.S. utility patents had been granted to living organisms before, including two pure bacterial cultures, patented by Louis Pasteur. Chakrabarty's modified bacterium was granted a patent in the U.K. before the U.S. patent came through.) He was initially denied the patent by the Patent Office because the patent code was thought to preclude patents on living organisms. The United States Court of Customs and Patent Appeals
The United States Court of Customs and Patent Appeals (CCPA) was a United States federal court which existed from 1909 to 1982 and had jurisdiction over certain types of civil disputes.
History
The CCPA began as the United States Court of Customs ...
overturned the decision in Chakrabarty's favor, writing:
Sidney A. Diamond, Commissioner of Patents and Trademarks, then appealed to the Supreme Court
A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...
. The Supreme Court case was argued on 17 March 1980 and decided on 16 June 1980. This patent was granted by the U.S. Supreme Court (''Diamond v. Chakrabarty''), in a 5–4 decision, when it determined:
Prof. Chakrabarty's landmark research has since paved the way for many patents on genetically modified
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 Genetic engineering techniques, technologies used to change the gene ...
micro-organisms
A microorganism, or microbe,, ''mikros'', "small") and ''organism'' from the el, ὀργανισμός, ''organismós'', "organism"). It is usually written as a single word but is sometimes hyphenated (''micro-organism''), especially in olde ...
and other life forms, and catapulted him into the international spotlight.
Last work
His lab worked on elucidating the role of bacterial cupredoxins and cytochromes
Cytochromes are redox-active proteins containing a heme, with a central Fe atom at its core, as a cofactor. They are involved in electron transport chain and redox catalysis. They are classified according to the type of heme and its mode of bi ...
in cancer
Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Possible signs and symptoms include a lump, abnormal b ...
regression and arresting cell cycle
The cell cycle, or cell-division cycle, is the series of events that take place in a cell that cause it to divide into two daughter cells. These events include the duplication of its DNA (DNA replication) and some of its organelles, and subs ...
progression. These proteins have been formerly known for their involvement in bacterial electron transport
An electron transport chain (ETC) is a series of protein complexes and other molecules that transfer electrons from electron donors to electron acceptors via redox reactions (both reduction and oxidation occurring simultaneously) and couples thi ...
. He isolated a bacterial protein, azurin, with potential antineoplastic properties. He expanded his lab's work to include multiple microbiological species, including ''Neisseria
''Neisseria'' is a large genus of bacteria that colonize the mucosal surfaces of many animals. Of the 11 species that colonize humans, only two are pathogens, '' N. meningitidis'' and ''N. gonorrhoeae''.
''Neisseria'' species are Gram-negativ ...
'', '' Plasmodia'', and ''Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans
''Acidithiobacillus'' is a genus of the ''Acidithiobacillia'' in the "Pseudomonadota". The genus includes acidophilic organisms capable of iron and/or sulfur oxidation. Like all ''"Pseudomonadota"'', ''Acidithiobacillus'' spp. are Gram-negative. ...
''. In 2001, Prof. Chakrabarty founded a company, CDG Therapeutics, (incorporated in Delaware
The Delaware General Corporation Law (Title 8, Chapter 1 of the Delaware Code) is the statute of the Delaware Code that governs corporate law in the U.S. state of Delaware. Adopted in 1899, the statute has since seen Delaware become the most imp ...
) which holds proprietary information related to five patents generated by his work at the University of Illinois at Chicago. The University of Illinois
The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (U of I, Illinois, University of Illinois, or UIUC) is a public land-grant research university in Illinois in the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana. It is the flagship institution of the University ...
owns the rights to the patents, but has issued exclusive licences to CDG Therapeutics.
In 2008, Prof. Chakrabarty co-founded a second biopharmaceutical discovery company, Amrita Therapeutics Ltd., registered in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, to develop therapies, vaccines, and diagnostics effective against cancers and/or other major public health threats derived from bacterial products found in the human body. Amrita Therapeutics Ltd. received initial funding in late 2008 from Gujarat Venture Finance Limited, and later received a grant for a two-year research program in 2010 from the Indian Department of Biotechnology under the Biotechnology Industry Promotion Program (BIPP).
Academic career
Chakrabarty was a Distinguished University Professor in 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 ...
in the University of Illinois at Chicago College of Medicine. Ananda Chakrabarty has been an advisor to judges, governments, and the UN. As one of the founding members of a United Nations Industrial Development Organization
The United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) (French: Organisation des Nations unies pour le développement industriel; French/Spanish acronym: ONUDI) is a specialized agency of the United Nations that assists countries in e ...
committee that proposed the establishment of the International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology
The International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (ICGEB) was established as a project of the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) in 1983. The Organisation has three Component laboratories with over 45 ongo ...
, he has been a member of its Council of Scientific Advisors ever since. He has served the U.S. government as a member of NIH
The National Institutes of Health, commonly referred to as NIH (with each letter pronounced individually), is the primary agency of the United States government responsible for biomedical and public health research. It was founded in the late ...
Study Sections, a member of the Board on Biology of the National Academy of Sciences
The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) is a United States nonprofit, non-governmental organization. NAS is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and the Nati ...
,
and the Committee on Biotechnology of the National Research Council National Research Council may refer to:
* National Research Council (Canada), sponsoring research and development
* National Research Council (Italy), scientific and technological research, Rome
* National Research Council (United States), part of ...
.
He has also served the Stockholm Environment Institute
The Stockholm Environment Institute, or SEI, is a non-profit, independent research and policy institute specialising in sustainable development and environmental issues, with seven affiliate offices around the world. SEI works on climate change ...
of Sweden. He has been on the scientific advisory boards of many academic institutions such as the Michigan Biotechnology Institute, the Montana State University
Montana State University (MSU) is a Public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in Bozeman, Montana. It is the state's largest university. MSU offers baccalaureate degrees in 60 fields, master's degrees in 6 ...
Center for Biofilm Engineering
The Center for Biofilm Engineering (CBE) is an interdisciplinary research, education, and technology transfer institution located on the central campus of Montana State University in Bozeman, Montana. The center was founded in April 1990 as the Ce ...
, the Center for Microbial Ecology at the Michigan State University
Michigan State University (Michigan State, MSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the fi ...
, and the Canadian Bacterial Diseases Network based in Calgary, Alberta
Calgary ( ) is the largest city in the western provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Alberta and the largest metro area of the three Canadian Prairies, Prairie Provinces. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,30 ...
, Canada. Dr. Chakrabarty has also served as a member of the NATO
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...
Industrial Advisory Group based in Brussels
Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...
, Belgium. He was a member of the board of directors of Einstein Institute for Science, Health and the Courts, where he participated in judicial education.
For his work in genetic engineering
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 ...
technology
Technology is the application of knowledge to reach practical goals in a specifiable and reproducible way. The word ''technology'' may also mean the product of such an endeavor. The use of technology is widely prevalent in medicine, science, ...
, he was awarded the civilian 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 2007.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chakrabarty, Ananda Mohan
1938 births
2020 deaths
Bengali scientists
20th-century Bengalis
21st-century Bengalis
Bengali Hindus
Indian emigrants to the United States
Indian microbiologists
People from Birbhum district
Scientists from West Bengal
University of Calcutta alumni
Recipients of the Padma Shri in science & engineering
University of Illinois Chicago faculty
American people of Bengali descent
American academics of Indian descent
20th-century Indian biologists
Fellows of the American Academy of Microbiology
Indian American
American people of Indian descent
Indian scholars