Purva Gupta Email and Phone Number

To develop novel therapeutic strategies for combating cancer, we study host immune-suppressing mechanisms generated by experimental lung carcinomas, with a focus on glycan targeting to boost anti-tumor immune response by model tumor antigens.Studying the genetic alteration of heparan sulfate in dendritic cells facilitates novel regulatory roles in innate and adaptive immunity during a viral infection. This may also have a therapeutic potential for generating glycan engineering platforms in Influenza other respiratory viral infections. Elucidating the mitochondrial dysfunction in acute kidney injury, as a novel mechanism of distant organ injury particularly acute respiratory distress syndrome.Skills: Mouse primary and cultured cell lines; cell based assays like flow cytometry to study cell growth, signaling, maturation/differentiation, cytolysis assays for cytotoxicity; Western blotting; q-PCR; ELISA.Softwares: GraphPad Prism, FloJo, IGV, Microsoft Excel

Genome based drug discovery. My work focuses primarily on employing in vitro evolution and whole genome sequencing to identify drug targets and resistance mechanisms using small molecules with antiplasmodial activity to find new human malaria treatments.I am a part of a global consortium that aims to advance antimalarial drug discovery.Skills: CRISPR Cas9; In vitro culture of Plasmodium; Drug selection assays like IC50; DNA library prep using Illumina Nextera XT for WGS; Radioactive metabolite incorporation assay; DNA/ RNA protocols.Softwares: GraphPad Prism, IGV, ChemDraw, SnapGene, Microsoft Excel

I studied the expression levels of vir genes in clinically severe and non-severe Plasmodium vivax malaria and demonstrated the role of this multigene superfamily in vivax severity and disease pathogenesis.Elucidated the linkage of chloroquine resistance and P. vivax severity by studying the gene expression of CQ resistance transporters pvcrt-o and pvmdr1 in clinically severe vivax malaria cases.Different population genetic approaches were used to determine the genetic diversity and population genetic structure of vir genes in P. vivax across the Indian subcontinent.Skills- In vitro culture of Plasmodium, DNA/ RNA extraction, qRT-PCR, ELISA, DNA sequencing (Sanger method) and analysis, primer designing, Manuscript and grant writingSoftwares- GraphPad Prism, MEGA, ClustalW, DnaSP, GenAlEx, Microsoft Excel, PowerpointManaged multiple projects at the same time | mentored numerous graduate students, research fellows and trainees | published 12 research papers with 7 first-authorships | was awarded funds for International and National conferences