Page 8 - Annual report 2021-22

Annual Report 2021-22 |

From The Director’s Desk

It is my pleasure to share the research progress and achievements of CSIR-Institute of
Genomics and Integrative Biology during the year 2021-22. The Institute was led by my able
predecessor Anurag Agrawal during this period. This year was one of the toughest years for 8
all of us. In Delhi, the year started with the COVID19 Delta wave - the most severe so far. The
rest of the year was a period of recovery when we built up our resistance through the
humongous task of vaccinating millions of people.

Under the leadership of Anurag Agrawal, who is a physician by training, a researcher in
practice and a data-scientist by calling, IGIB stepped up and fulfilled many needs that arose
during these challenging times. Early on, we developed COVID19 detection technology using
the uniquely accurate FnCas9 protein for which we have now filed a patent application. As
new variants emerged, we showed that this technology gives us the flexibility to change the
components in a modular way rapidly adapting to the mutating virus. IGIB also implemented
a sero-survey covering thousands of participants across the country which allowed us to
monitor the build-up of immunity against the virus. The COVID warriors of our institute, a small
team of selfless students and scientists dedicated their time and expertise to keep us all safe
by routinely testing for COVID19 infections as per the requirements of government agencies.
Thinking globally and acting locally, our scientists contributed to the global understanding of
COVID19 virus as part of international consortia and advised several state governments on
how to manage the pandemic and rising above the call of duty, disseminated the information
through social media, online seminars, training and workshops.
As we learned to live with the virus, other groups worked hard to catch up on lost time,
restarting stalled projects and compensating for the temporary setbacks in the careers of
budding scientists. I am amazed to see the resilience of our youngsters, the Ph.D students and
project staff who make up 90% of our workforce who made sure that by the end of the year
we were back on our feet.

In these pages you will see recent results from genomics studies on rare diseases and
pharmacogenomics, looking for causative genes. The next generation are readying tools for
gene editing and correcting these genomic errors. At a more fundamental level several groups
have advanced understanding of molecular and cellular pathways in development and disease
touching upon almost every organ. Outstanding publications have emerged from consistent
efforts in pursuing leads in unusual DNA structures, non-coding RNAs and misfolding of
proteins. We continue to apply our knowledge of chemistry to develop tools that not only pave
the way for deeper insights into biology but also provide solutions for challenging problems of
the strategic sector.

Souvik Maiti

30.12.22