Welcome to MJ lab webpage. We are a new addition to the recently established Tata Institute of Fundamental Research Center for Interdisciplinary Science (TCIS), Hyderabad, India. This gives us a unique opportunity to work with physicists, chemists and biologists to address fundamental question in cell and neurobiology.

The integrity of a cell, especially neurons, requires constant maintenance and fight against cellular insults throughout the life. Failure of these processes leads to diseases such as neurodegenerative diseases. We use the powerful genetic model organism Drosophila melanogaster and human cells lines to uncover intricacies of cellular maintenance and stress response. Our experimental approach focuses on identification of genetic networks and biochemical processes by using unbiased genetic screens, genome editing, confocal & electron microscopy and a wide range of molecular biology and biochemical techniques.

The majority of genes and biological pathways are conserved between flies and humans. Studies in flies has provided significant insight to a number of human diseases. At TCIS, we plan to establish a collaborative research platform with an integrative biology approach to identify disease-linked mutations and associated mechanisms using “Integrated-Human- Drosophila-Pipeline” in collaboration with clinical geneticists.