Haffkine Institute spreading wings to soar higher

"No bird soars too high, if he soars with his own wings"

Before an eagle can fly, it needs to spread its wings. The last one year for Haffkine Institute, a premier biomedical research institute in Mumbai, has been about spreading its wings, ready to take on its flight to soar to the skies. Haffkine Institute has always been in the forefront of bio-medical research, from vaccine research to toxicological testing and from molecular biology to translational research in ayurveda.

In the last one year, many competent scientists with expertise in biotechnology, stem cell research and bioinformatics were recruited by the institute. This recruitment has provided momentum to the research, training and testing activities of the institute. The expertise and initiatives of these scientists will help to develop the scope of the laboratory services and research in the institute in the near future.

The last year was also witness to the modernization of four laboratories involved in providing testing services. These four laboratories in the Departments of Clinical Pathology, Biochemistry, Bacteriology and Chemical Testing were constructed as per the Good Laboratory Practices (GLP) norms and were inaugurated by the Chief Minister of Maharashtra, Prithviraj Chavan on June 16, 2013.

In keeping with the efforts of modernization of infrastructure, a dedicated ‘Proteomics Laboratory’ was constructed. This laboratory will be able to carry out research on proteomics and protein chemistry, using sophisticated techniques such as 2D Gel Electrophoresis using DIGE technology.

The modernization of an institute does not start and end with laboratories; hence, the Haffkine Institute Library, which has been home to several decades’ worth of knowledge in the form of text books, scientific research journals, reports, theses and magazines was also digitized. This will enable students and researchers to not only find information more easily and quickly, but also serve to expand its reach by making it accessible over the internet eventually.

While uplifting science, the institute has also kept the environment in mind: Solar Cells capable of generating 12 kWp of electricity were installed at the Haffkine Institute. There are plans of extending this capacity and installing more solar cells in other areas of the institute as well, including the students’ hostel and Haffkine Institute guest house.

For reaching out to newer horizons, Haffkine institute has been a firm believer in collaborations. Prof. Abhay Chowdhary, Director, Haffkine Institute, says, “Collaboration with institutes engaged in similar research not only helps Haffkine Institute, but is mutually beneficial for all involved, both in terms of monetary support and more importantly, intellectual property which can be shared…”

With this in mind, the ‘Transpire’ group was formed in collaboration with the Kasturba Health Society. This group consisting of researchers from various fields of ayurveda, modern medicine, pathology, immunology, parasitology and phytochemistry focuses on infections and diseases such as HIV/AIDS, malaria, diabetes and others of importance.

In collaboration with National Institute for Mental Health and Neuro Sciences (NIMHANS) and Institute of Bioinformatics (IOB), both based in Bengaluru, the Department of Biotechnology (DBT) has sponsored a research project “Studies on Neuronal Proteomics, Virus-Host Interaction and Immune-Pathological Alterations in Rabies Encephalitis in Murine Model”, which will be carried out partly at Haffkine Institute and partly at the other two centres.

This research project hopes to throw some light on the patho-physiology of rabies virus infection and will use cutting-edge techniques in the field of proteomics. The project will also enable the institute with a state-of-the-art animal house equipped with individually-ventilated-cages for mice. With this plan in action, Dr. Anjanikumar, Chairperson of Committee for the Purpose of Control and Supervision of Experiments on Animals (CPCSEA), Delhi visited the Experimental Animal House facility on February 4, 2013 for audit and renewal of the license for storing and using experimental animals.

Another important collaboration undertaken this year is with the National Institute of Immuno Haematology (NIIH), Mumbai. With the NIIH, Haffkine Institute plays the role of host to a new laboratory that will be established for the purpose of carrying out research on HIV/AIDS. This collaboration will help scientists and doctoral fellows at Haffkine and NIIH to foster research already going on in the two institutes independently.

“We believe that modern science and traditional knowledge such as ayurveda can not only co-exist but amalgamate for the enrichment and benefit of modern medicine” says Prof. Chowdhary. Based on this philosophy, Haffkine Institute has undertaken several steps towards blending modern science with ayurveda.

The first of these, the Department of Science and Technology (DST) sponsored research project ‘Mechanism based Screening & validation of Important Ayurvedic Drugs using Radiotracer Techniques’ has been initiated. This collaborative project, initiated in September 2012, with inputs from stalwarts such as Padmabhushan Prof. R. D. Lele and the Board of Radiation and Isotope Technology (BRIT), aims to understand ayurveda from a modern science perspective.

In another effort at combining modern science with traditional medicine, the institute organised a conference encompassing research in ayurveda and its implications in modern medicine: ‘Tadvidya Sambhasha’ on September 16, 2012 in collaboration with Dr. Palep’s Research Centre. Dr. D. Y. Patil, His Excellency, the Governor of Tripura was the Chief Guest for the event. The Institute also organised a meeting on ‘Ayurveda and Reverse Pharmacology - Emerging Discipline for Drug Discovery’ on February 5, 2013. Both were attended by the scientists of national and international repute.

As one of its mandates, promoting science and knowledge has always been part of Haffkine Institute’s agenda. This year too, the institute has not fallen short on that front. The institute organised a two-day symposium on the occasion of “Maharashtra Biotechnology Day” on December 15 and 16, 2012 on behalf of the Department of Industries, Government of Maharashtra. This was mainly attended by school and college students. The institute also participated in the 6th Science Expo, organised by Nehru Science Centre. Various technical aspects were elucidated for school students thereby trying to generate enthusiasm for science in the students.

While keeping students interested in science is important, it is equally important to ensure that their teachers have adequate and up-to-date knowledge. A workshop for science teachers were organised in collaboration with the Bombay Association of Science Education as a part of Continuing Science Education on January 18 and 19, 2013. This was the first of many such workshops that will be held over time. The 472nd meeting of ‘Teaching Pathologists & Microbiologists Association’ was also organised by the institute on January 19, 2013.

Other important lectures organised by the institute include a guest lecture on “Recent Advances in Parasitology” by Dr. Harshwardhan Sheorey, Consultant Microbiologist, St. Vincent’s Pathology Centre, Australia and Dr. Bhupesh Samant, Lecturer, Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Rhodes University, South Africa, delivered a talk on “Sleeping Sickness”.

The three broad mandates of Haffkine Institute, training, research and testing have been the guiding force for the institute to excel in all aspects of biomedical sciences. With its wings spread out, not only in terms of collaboration with other institutes and centres of excellence, but also in terms of participation in various avenues that expand the realm of biomedical science, Haffkine Institute is now ready to take on its flight for scaling higher peaks.