Navigating Endophytic Research for Next-generation Therapeutics

Dr. Vagish Dwibedi is an academic researcher with over eight years of experience in biotech research and development. He received his PhD from NIPER Mohali and Thapar University in Patiala, India and is currently a Visiting Scientist at the Agriculture Research Organization (ARO) - The Volcani Institute in Rishon Lezhion, Israel. Before joining ARO, he served two years as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Biotechnology at Chandigarh University and was a Research Scientist at Agpharm Bioinnovations LLP. Dr. Dwibedi’s work is directed towards the development of screening platforms for different biological activities such as anti-microbial, antioxidant, anti-cancer, or finding novel molecules that interfere in the mechanism of development of diseases such as Alzheimer's Dementia (AD), Parkinson's disease (PD), Obesity, Anti-gout (arthritis) and Type 2 Diabetes. He has published more than 30 research papers in various national and international journals and has two Indian patents.

Dr. Neha Kapoor is a distinguished researcher who earned her PhD from Thapar University, Patiala. She is presently working as Associate Professor in the School of Applied Sciences at Suresh Gyan Vihar University, Jaipur. With an academic and research career spanning over 13 years, she is an expert in microbial biotechnology, molecular biology, and bioinformatics. Her research centers around investigating and characterizing microbial systems that possess the unique ability to emanate groundbreaking therapeutic molecules, specifically tailored to combat prevalent human lifestyle and metabolic diseases viz. cancer, cardiovascular disorders, diabetes, inflammatory and neurological disorders etc. Her outstanding contributions to the field are evidenced by the publication of more than 30 research papers in international and national journals and 4 book chapters.

Dr. Lokesh Gambhir is Associate Professor and Dean of Research at Shri Guru Ram Rai University, Dehradun, Uttarakhand. He received his Doctorate degree in radiation biology and immunology from the Bhabha Atomic Research Center (BARC) in Mumbai He is an accomplished academician and researcher with more than 13 years of experience. He is also a recipient of research project grant from DST-SERB SRG (2022), UCB, USERC, Uttarakhand for the probable development of cancer therapeutics from fungal endophytes. Apart from this, Dr. Gambhir has four research projects sponsored by UCB and USERC, Uttarakhand for development of drugs against human disorders. He has published over 25 research papers in peer-reviewed journals and is a recipient of the Young Scientist Award from the Uttarakhand Council for Biotechnology. His research endeavors are centered on the development of innovative drugs and therapies to combat cancer, infectious, and inflammatory diseases.

Dr. Swapnil Kajale is currently working as a Postdoctoral Scientist at the Agriculture Research Organization (ARO) - Volcani Institute in Rishon Lezion, Israel. He earned his PhD from Savitribai Phule Pune University in India. Dr. Kajale has over to years of research experience in Microbiology. He has completed several research projects in microbial ecology and microbial taxonomy, barcoding etc. using multi-omics approaches. Before joining the ARO, he was at the National Centre for Microbial Resource (NCMR) which has one of the largest microbial culture collection at DBT-National Centre for Cell Science (NCCS), Pune, India. Here, he was responsible for maintaining the patent deposits in the International Depository Authority (IDA) under the Budapest Treaty. He awarded a ARO-Postdoctoral Fellowship in Israel to conduct the research within the framework of an Israeli Ministry of Agriculture project on antibiotic resistance in agro-environments. He has published 20 research papers in various international journals.