Govindarajan Padmanaban
Indian biochemist and biotechnologist
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Govindarajan Padmanaban (born 20 March 1938, in Madras) is an Indian biochemist and biotechnologist. He was the former director of the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) and currently serves as an honorary professor in the department of biochemistry at IISc and Chancellor of the Central University of Tamil Nadu.[1]
Padma Bhushan (2003)
Padma Shri (1991)
Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize (1983)
Govindarajan Padmanaban | |
|---|---|
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| Born | 20 March 1938 |
| Education | University of Madras Indian Institute of Science Indian Agricultural Research Institute |
| Known for | Molecular Parasitology |
| Awards | Vigyan Ratna Award (2024) Padma Bhushan (2003) Padma Shri (1991) Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize (1983) |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Biochemistry |
| Workplaces | Indian Institute of Science St Mary's Hospital Medical School University of Chicago |
| P. S. Sarma | |
Doctoral students | P. N. Rangarajan Sendurai Mani M. R. S. Rao |
Early life and education
Padmanaban was brought up in a family of engineers. He belongs to the Tanjore district of Tamil Nadu but had settled in Bangalore. He received his bachelor's degree in chemistry from the University of Madras and master's degree in Soil Chemistry at the Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi and Ph.D. in biochemistry at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bangalore in 1966.[2]
Research
In the early years of his research, he primarily worked in the transcriptional regulation of Eukaryotic genes in the liver. He was interested in elucidating the multifaceted role of heme in cellular processes. His group discovered the heme-biosynthetic pathway in the malarial parasite and showed it to be a drug target. He has also been interested in the area of vaccine development. His team was successful in showing the antimalarial property of Curcumin and its efficacy in combination therapy in 2004.[3]
Awards
- Asian Scientist 100 (2025)
- Vigyan Ratna Award (2024)[4][5]
- Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize for Science and Technology (1983)[citation needed]
- Padma Shri (1991)[6]
- Padma Bhushan (2003)[6]
- Elected Fellowship of the National Academy of Medical Sciences[7]
