Profile

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Aakash Mukhopadhyay

    • About Me:

      I’m a postdoctoral scientist based in London. I am Indian and I moved to the UK in 2018. I am a big foodie and love exploring different restaurants in London. I also enjoy going to the cinema and horror movies are my favourite.

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      I have been interested in science, especially biology and life sciences since my childhood. I used to be hooked on the telly watching Animal Planet and National Geographic! In school I was exposed to the fascinating world of biological molecules and microbes that set my future career. For my higher studies I completed a postgraduate degree in Biotechnology and then a PhD in Biological Sciences specialising in how microscopic microbes move.

    • My pronouns are:

      He/Him

    • My Work:

      I work on cells that are the building blocks of our body such as brain, heart, eye. I mutate components called proteins in the cells and use microscopes to study the the mutations. This gives me an idea of the mechanism of human diseases.

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      Cilia are hair-like organs present on almost every cell of the human body (See image below). They are important for proper development of our bodies, vision, smell and fertility. I am interested in how these cilia are built. An exciting thing is that cilia have arrays of proteins moving in and out of them in the form of “trains” that are driven by motor proteins (similar to the motor of cars/trains). I use a DNA editing technology called CRISPR-Cas9 to create mutants and measure the different aspects of these trains under the microscope.

    • My Typical Day:

      I wake up and get ready for work. I walk around 6km for 1 hour to work! This helps me with some early morning exercise and to mentally prepare for the experiments of the day. I get to the lab around 9.30am where I perform all the planned experiments for the day. On the days I do not have many experiments, I look at my results, write them up and sometimes make figures for my research paper. I generally finish work around 6pm. This time I take the bus back home!

    • What question are you currently trying to answer?:

      I am currently trying to answer how the “trains” of proteins within cilia transport different cargoes (many different kinds of proteins).

      To solve this, I am mutating/disrupting important parts of the trains and observing the impacts of this under a microscope. I have been able to identify a critical part of the train, makes it unable to transport its cargo within cilia! You can imaging something like removing the walls of the train carriages that results in all its contents falling out of it.

    • How do you form a new question?:

      There is so much unexplored in nature; biology still remains the most unexplored branch of science.

      The WHW (What, How and Why) method always helped me form questions in my research. What happens when a cilia are not functioning properly? How does this happen? Why is this important?

    • When you were at school, what is a question that you asked?:

      When I was in primary school, I knew I was going to study biology. What fascinated me was genetics and heredity. Why do some of us look a lot like our parents while some do not?

    • How will you know when you have answered your question?:

      The questions asked are always broad, and our answers are always a small puzzle piece to the BIG Question. I think my question is answered, when my answers lead to more new exciting questions! This is how science moves forward.

    My CV

    • Education:

      Birla High School, Kolkata, India.

      In 12th grade (same as A levels) I scored 92.2%, equvalent to five A*s.

    • Qualifications:

      MSc in Biotechnology from St. Xavier’s College, Kolkata, India.

      PhD in Biological Sciences from IIT Delhi, New Delhi, India. I received the Distinction in Doctoral Research award for my PhD.

    • Work History:

      I moved to the UK in 2018, as a Postdoctoral Research Assistant at Birkbeck College & University College London.

    • Current Job:

      Postdoctoral Researcher

    • Employer:

      Birkbeck College & UCL

    • My Interview

      • What did you want to be after you left school?

        I studied Biotechnology in uni

        Were you ever in trouble at school?

        Never. I was very shy and quiet in school!

        If you weren't doing this job, what would you choose instead?

        Medicine or maybe a dancer

        Who is your favourite singer or band?

        The Weeknd, Adele, Ed Sheeran

        What's your favourite food?

        Indian, Chinese, Malaysian, Spanish

        If you had 3 wishes for yourself what would they be? - be honest!

        World peace; No poverty; To win the Nobel prize!

        Tell us a joke.

        I am Bad at jokes but I swear I am funny!

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