As part of my job duties, I specialize in synthesizing large quantities of recombinant wild-type and mutant FICD proteins using bacterial expression systems.Moreover, I perform protein purification using affinity-based and gel filtration chromatographic methods.I developed a High-Throughput Screen (HTS) using Fluorescence Polarization to identify small molecule modulators of FICD from small molecule libraries.Also, I evaluate the effects of potential hits on the function of the endogenous enzyme in lung carcinoma A549 cells and the doxycycline-induced FICD function in mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs) by creating cell-basedfunctional assays.Furthermore, I assess the toxicity profiles of compounds across various cancer types and a primary cell line. All tests are conducted independently and analyzed using Good Laboratory Practices (GLP) standards.• Published a comprehensive review on metazoan AMPylases, detailing the functions and physiological roles of FICD enzymes in cellular systems. https://doi.org/10.1098/rsob.210009• Identified three clusters of small molecule hits, laying groundwork for Structure Activity Relationship (SAR) profiling and library generation.• Established the mechanism of action for one cluster through various cellular and in-vitro biochemical functional assays.• Received the Pandemic Research Recovery (PRR) award for postdoctoral research efforts.• Contributed towards upskilling undergraduates and graduate rotation students in acquiring essential skills in conducting experiments.• Partnered with peers from computational and modelling backgrounds to decipher the Mechanism of Action (MoA) of potential hits.

As a Ph.D. student, I utilized various chromatographic systems, including affinity-based, ion-exchange, and gel filtration, to prepare large quantities of recombinant HSP90 for purification.Additionally, I have conducted toxicity evaluations of compounds in HeLa cells and optimized a dual luciferase assay-based protein refolding assay in HeLa cells to assess the effect of compounds on HSP90 chaperone function.I have fostered collaboration with the Chemistry department at IITD to acquire isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC) data, which has facilitated our understanding of the allosteric effects of compound binding.Further, I have identified key residues responsible for mediating global conformational changes post compound binding, collaborating closely with the Bioinformatics Department at IITD.Throughout my research, I have adhered to Good Laboratory Practices (GLP) standards and conducted rigorous data analysis to ensure accuracy and reliability.Successfully published research findings in a peer-reviewed journal: Bhaskar K. Chatterjee, Abhilash Jayaraj, Vinay Kumar, Brian S.J. Blagg, Shashank Deep, B.Jayaram and Tapan K. Chaudhuri (2019). Stimulation of Hsp90 chaperone function through binding of a Novobiocin analogue, KU-32. TheJournal of Biological Chemistry 294 (16).• Co-authored a book chapter, enhancing collective understanding of the field: Chatterjee, B., Puri, S., Sharma, A. & Pastor, A., and Chaudhuri, T.K. (2018) Regulation of Heat Shock Protein Responses (Asea, A. & Kaur, P.ed.) Springer Nature. doi: 10.1007/978-3-319- 74715-6_8.• Secured travel grants for presenting research at esteemed conferences:• Department of Biotechnology, Government of India, for Cold Spring Harbor symposium “Protein Homeostasis in Health and Disease” at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratories, Long Island, NY, USA (17th - 21st April 2018).•IIT Delhi for "8th Hsp90 Conference on the Hsp90 Chaperone Machine" at Seeon Abbey, Munich, Germany (2nd – 6th November 2016).