Sundar did his undergraduate in Industrial Biotechnology at Anna University Chennai and following a brief stint as a JRF in NCBS, he went on to do a PhD under Prof. Stephan Grill (MPI-CBG Dresden), where he studied left-right symmetry breaking in C. elegans embryos. He then went for a postdoc with Prof. Andrew Oates (UCL, London and EPFL, Lausanne), where he investigated left-right symmetry in somite formation in a developing zebrafish embryo. Outside the lab, he loves playing ultimate frisbee, cricket, chess and watching crime thrillers and sports.
Swetha completed her dual degree B.Tech/M.Tech in Bioengineering and Medical Nanotechnology from SASTRA University, after which she joined TIFR to pursue basic science. She is studying how signalling and metabolic cues converge to regulate somite formation. When she’s not working, you would find her at the seaface listening to music or discussing science and philosophy. She loves singing, playing her Veena and reading books. She also watches a lot of movies and series, with her favourite genre being true crime documentaries.
Siddhartha completed his BSc (Hons) and MSc in Zoology from the University of Calcutta, following which he joined TIFR to pursue basic science. In the Symmetry Lab, he is interested in studying the left-right flows of cells during gastrulation using the zebrafish model system. Outside the lab, he likes to engage himself in movies, music and watching cat videos.
Neha received her Bachelor’s in Microbiology from Amity University (Noida), and her Masters in Molecular Medicine (JNU, New Delhi). With this diverse background, she joined the Symmetry lab as a PhD student. Fascinated by how looking at faces is always illuminating, she is now studying how left-right craniofacial symmetry emerges during the development of an embryo. Outside the lab, she loves singing, reading, and buying new gadgets. Lately, she has started trying her hands on drums and she loves to engage in philosophical discussions.
Nandini completed her undergrad at Regional Institute of Education Bhopal. She is interested in understanding the emergence of left-right symmetry in palate development. Besides work, she is interested in reading books and listening to some good music.
Subhanjan, fondly called SUV in the lab, completed his BSc in Microbiology from St Joseph's University, Bengaluru. As he was interested in basic research, he joined TIFR. He is interested in understanding the cross-talk between the left-right symmetry breaking pathway and somitogenesis in developing zebrafish embryo. Besides regular research, he loves to spend time playing the mridangam, delve into Indian history, listening to podcasts, watching movies and reading Sanskrit books.
Swarali has always been fascinated by the interdisciplinary developmental sciences. Her research interests at the Symmetry lab include convergent extension flows during zebrafish gastrulation, and analyzing whether and how, these flows follow, disregard or perhaps even break--the left right symmetry of embryonic body plan. Outside of her workplace, Swarali enjoys sprinting, birdwatching, nature trails, photography, writing, collecting interesting stuff--and coffee!
Alumni from lab
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Jeetnet Baar (Junior Research Fellow, July 2023 - Feb 2024)
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Tamanna Balachandran (Summer intern, 2023)
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Amrita Kumari (Summer intern, 2023)