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Ranjana Srivastava (born 1951), former Deputy Director and Head of Microbiology Division at  CSIR-Central Drug Research Institute, Lucknow, India is a molecular biologist turned into an entrepreneur. She is recognized  for her research on development of DNA probe for diagnosis of Tuberculosis, development of molecular lux, GFP, lac Z, IVET and IVIAT reporter systems for rapid screening of NCEs and  identification of  genes expressed during TB infection for use as new drug targets. She is the founder Director of a Biotech R&D company Nextec Lifesciences Private Limited,  involved in biomedical products related to infectious diseases and therapies. Her most significant contribution is identification of Mycobacterium tuberculosis specific DNA sequence which was developed as DNA probe for diagnosis of TB directly in clinical samples. She won BIRAC TiE WiNER award for women in Entrepreneurial Resaerch 2019 for developing a rapid, specific and real time test for online detection of less than 10 copies of M.tb in clinical samples within 20 minutes

Biography

Ranjana srivastava, born on 5 April, 1951, earned her masters degree from Kanpur University. She started her research in University of Brussels, Belgium with Prof René Thomas, on DNA dependent RNA Polymerase of Escherichia coli and its interaction with Phage lambda, the work she continued in CSIR Central Drug Research Institute, Lucknow, After securing her PhD degree, she left for Brown University, Providence, RI, USA to do her postdoctoral resaerch on polytene chromosomes of fungus fly Sciara coprophila, later moving as faculty member in CSIR-Central Drug Research Institute and continued therein. She retired  as Head of Microbiology Division in 2011. In 2012, along with Dr Brahm S. Srivastava, she founded a Biotech company Nextec Lifesciences Private Ltd, as a research platform for promoting research and innovations in the area of infectious diseases and other molecular therapies. She has served as a visiting faculty in Center for Vaccine Development, University of Maryland, USA and Pasteur Institute of Lille, Lille, France.

Her research covers an intensive investigation into mining genome of Mycobacterium tuberculosis for identification of M. tb specific sequence1, which was developed as probe for TB diagnosis2, the first biological patent filed from India, M. tb genes expressed during infection in macrophages, lungs and in hypoxic conditions, developing lux, GFP , lacZ reporters for screening of new chemical enteties against M. tb 3-10,  developing animal model for NTM infection 11, resuscitation promoting factors as wake up call for dormant M. tb for which she won CSIR New Idea Fund award12-13. Two new insertion sequences were identified from mycobacterium sp (EMBL Accession AJ 315500. 2002). During her tenure in CSIR-CDRI, her PCR based technology for “ A new diagnostic reagent based on sequence specific M. tuberculosis DNA fragment’ was licensed as Mycoview MTB PCR Detection Kit to Biotron Healthcare (I) Pvt Ltd for early diagnosis of TB.

In 2011 after superannuation from CSIR-CDRI, she started her own company Nextec Lifesciences Private Limited at Lucknow in 2012. The company received Biotechnology Ignition Grant (BIG) from BIRAC, Department of Biotechnology, Government of India (2015-2017) for Development of DNA based diagnostic kit for Early and Accurate diagnosis of Tuberculosis. The test uses IPR protected primers for amplification of M. tb specific DNA sequence (patented) and its detection through hybridization with a fluorescent probe using Recombinase Polymerase Amplification technology. The newly developed Point of Care (POC) test detects presence of  less than 10 TB bacilli online within 20 minutes and holds promise for early and rapid detection of TB infection directly in clinical samples. Nextec Lifesciences  has been recognized as a Startup by the Department of Industrial

Promotion and Policy and won UP Brand Leadership award, 2019 by ABP News.

Awards, Patents and Honours

Dr Srivastava has more than 70 publications, International and National patents along with ICMR and CSIR awards to her credit. She is the recepient of BIRAC-TiE WInER award for women entrepreneur 2019, All India Women Entrepreneur Award 2019 by Delhi Management Association (DMA), 2019 and UP Brand Leadership award  by ABP News, 2019

References

1.      Identification of a repetitive sequence belonging to a PPE gene of Mycobacterium tuberculosis and its use in diagnosis of tuberculosis '''. J. Med. Microbiol'''. 2006, 255, 1071.

2.     US Patent no. 6114514, 05. 09. 2000;  US Patent no. 6,242,585 B1, 5. 6. 2001

3. Green fluorescent protein as a reporter in rapid screening of antituberculosis compounds in vitro and in macrophages. '''Biochem. Biophys. Res. Comm.''' 1998, 253,  431.

4.Bioluminescent Mycobacterium aurum expressing firefly luciferase for  rapid and high throughput screening of antimycobacterial drugs in vitro  and in infected macrophages. '''Biochem. Biophys. Res. Comm'''. 2000, 279,  457.

5.Selective identification of new therapeutic targets of Mycobacterium tuberculosis by IVIAT approach. Tuberculosis 2002, 82,  175.

6.      Macrophage specific M. tuberculosis genes identified by green fluorescent protein and kanamycin resistance selection. Microbiology, 2007,153 (Pt 3) 659.

7.      Macrophage specific M. tuberculosis genes identified by green fluorescent protein and kanamycin resistance selection. Microbiology, 2007, 153 (Pt 3) 659.

8.      Biochemical and transcription analysis of acetohydroxyacid synthase isoforms in Mycobacterium tuberculosis identifies these enzymes as potential targets for drug development.Microbiology. 2011, 157(Pt 1):29-37.

9.      Novel, potent, orally bioavailable and selective mycobacterial ATP synthase inhibitors that demonstrated activity against both replicating and non-replicating M. tuberculosis. Bioorg Med Chem. 2015 : 23(4):742-52.

10.   Deoxysugars as anti- tuberculars and alpha-mannosidase inhibitors. Antimicrob Agents Chemother. 2014 : 58(6):3530-2

11.  Murine infection model for Mycobacterium fortuitum. Microbes and Infection.2005,  7, 349.

12.  . Comparative expression analysis of rpf-like genes of Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Rv under different physiological stress and growth conditions. Microbiology, 2010,  156, 2714.