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NORTH AMERICAN Newsline MAY 10, 2024 | The Indian Eye 41

dents and the visa process during separate interviews with PTI and ANI. “Dr. Kunjapur’s outstanding re-
Garcetti assured the parents of students that “their children are our children” search demonstrates the potential to
when they are in the US. engineer live bacterial cells to pro-
While asserting that the US is a “safe country”, Garcetti said students duce and incorporate nitrated amino
studying abroad should familiarize themselves with local conditions, have a acids into antigenic proteins, thus
network of trusted friends, and know what to do in a dangerous situation or shining a spotlight on these proteins
in the event of mental health issues. for the human immune system,” said
A pre-departure orientation program was held at the American Center Michael Funk, senior editor at Sci-
in New Delhi for a batch of students who have been admitted to different US ence. “This work provides a platform
universities. Garcetti briefly interacted with the students and asked them to for antigen engineering that is adapt-
make the best use of their time in the US. able, specific, and amenable to safety
controls.”
Vaccines against bacterial infec-
DR ADITYA KUNJAPUR tions would likely decrease the need
Scientist awarded 2024 for antibiotic medicines, which in
turn could stem the development of antibiotic resistance in some key drugs.
BioInnovation Institute & Kunjapur, an assistant professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering
at the University of Delaware, said bacterial vaccines will have an estimated
Science Prize for Innovation global market size of $39.6 billion by 2030.
In his winning essay published in Science Magazine, Kunjapur writes that
“our primary hypothesis is that engineering cells to access a broader chemical
or building a better platform for possible future bacterial vaccines, Kun- repertoire of building blocks can improve live bacterial vaccine efficacy.”
japur was awarded the winner of the 2024 BioInnovation Institute & Kunjapur’s research team used E. coli as a proof-of-concept for their bio-
FScience Prize for Innovation. The prize seeks to reward scientists who engineering strategy, but he said the strategy could work with other bacteria
deliver research at the intersection of the life sciences and entrepreneurship. as well, including those that might be better at targeting certain pathogens or
even tumor tissue.
Kunjapur completed his graduation from University of Texas and did his
Biomolecular engineer Aditya Kunjapur and coworkers now have doctorate from Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
a strategy to create bacteria that build and incorporate a key

amino acid into their own proteins, which makes the proteins To read more about Indian diaspora and Global Indians, log on to and follow
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