Dr. Rajalakshmi Srinivasan

Research Focus Keywords:

Microbial Genomics, Amino acid signalling, Transcriptional Regulation, Genomics of aging, Mitochondrial biogenesis and ribosomal biogenesis

Intro

Dr. Rajalakshmi Srinivasan, graduated with a master degree in biotechnology from SASTRA University,Tanjavur. As a DST-INSPIRE Fellow, she joined Dr. Aswin Seshasayee’s group at National Centre for Biological Sciences for her Ph.D. She completed her Ph.D in bacterial genomics and received her degree from Manipal University. Later, she moved to the Institute for Stem Cell Science and Regenerative Medicine for her post-doctoral research with Dr. Sunil Laxman, where she studied the coupling between metabolism, transcription and translation in yeast. She identified a function of a conserved transcription factor in coupling metabolic outputs with the transcriptional and translational outputs. She has received several fellowships from various leading agencies, DST-INSPIRE Faculty Fellowship, M. K. Bhan Young Researcher Fellowship, SERB-National postdoctoral fellowship, DBT-RA, to name a few. She joined IBAB in October 2021 as DST-INSPIRE Faculty Fellow. Here, her lab aims to understand the impact of transcriptional response induced by amino acid signaling on cellular aging using budding yeast as a model system.

Education:

• Postdoc: Institute for Stem Cell Science and Regenerative Medicine, India (2017-2021)
• Ph.D: National Centre for Biological Sciences, India (2011-17)
• M.Sc (Biotech): School of Chemical and Biotechnology, SASTRA University, Tanjavur, India (2008-10)
• B.Sc. (Biotech): Sri Paramakalyani College, Manonmaniam Sundaranar University, Tamil Nadu (2005-08)

Research Focus

One of our research focuses is to understand amino acid dependent gene regulatory mechanisms on several hallmark processes of aging. While amino acid restriction or the excessive supply has been shown to affect aging, several pathways underlying this regulation is not known.​ Using budding yeast as a model system and by employing a wide range of approaches such as genomics, molecular, microscopic and system level approaches​, her group will explore following research areas.

1. Elucidating the regulatory mechanisms behind amino acid dependent regulation of ribosomal biogenesis ​and mitochondrial biogenesis.

​2.  Role of amino acid dependent transcriptional regulation on  the cellular and organismal lifespan.​

In addition to this, her group will also work on uncovering the evolutionary importance of transcription factors binding  on the specific macrodomains of the chromosome and its role in deciding septum formation site during bacterial cell division.

Applicants with fellowships from any national agencies will be considered for a JRF position. Interested candidate please send your CV and a one page write up on your scientific goal to rajalakshmi@ibab.res.in

List of Publications

1. Z. Rashida, R. Srinivasan, M. Cyanam, S. Laxman., Kog1/Raptor mediates metabolic   rewiring during nutrient limitation by controlling SNF1/AMPK activity. Science Advances 2021. DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abe5544
2. Srinivasan R, Walvekar AS, Rashida Z, Seshasayee A, Laxman S. Genome-scale reconstruction of Gcn4/ATF4 networks driving a growth program. PLOS Genet. 2020. doi:10.1371/journal.pgen.1009252
3. Walvekar AS, Kadamur G, Sreedharan S, Gupta R, Srinivasan R, Laxman S. Methylated PP2A stabilizes Gcn4 to enable a methionine-induced anabolic program. J Biol Chem. 2020. doi:10.1074/jbc.ra120.014248
4. Walvekar AS, Srinivasan R, Gupta R, Laxman S. Methionine coordinates a hierarchically organized anabolic program enabling proliferation. Mol Biol Cell. 2018. doi:10.1091/mbc.e18-08-0515
5. Srinivasan R, Scolari VF, Lagomarsino MC, Seshasayee ASN. The genome-scale interplay amongst xenogene silencing, stress response and chromosome architecture in Escherichia coli. Nucleic Acids Res. 2015. doi:10.1093/nar/gku1229
6. Srinivasan R, Chandraprakash D, Krishnamurthi R, Singh P, Scolari VF, Krishna S, et al. Genomic analysis reveals epistatic silencing of ‘expensive’ genes in Escherichia coli K-12. Mol Biosyst. 2013;9: 2021–33. doi:10.1039/c3mb70035f
7. Prabhakara S, Khedkar S, Shambat SM, Srinivasan R, Basu A, Norrby-Teglund A, et al. Genome Sequencing Unveils a Novel Sea Enterotoxin-Carrying PVL Phage in Staphylococcus aureus ST772 from India. PLoS One. 2013. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0060013

Awards and Fellowships

Presentations  (Posters* and Talks**)

2024: Organised workshop on ‘Machine Learning in Genomics’, IBAB, Bangalore
2024: Trainer at the EMBO practical course on “Metabolite and species dynamics in microbial communities”, NCBS, Bangalore
2023: Invited speaker at the ‘Yeast India 2023’ conference – IISER, Mohali
2023: Organised workshop on ‘Machine Learning in Genomics’, IBAB, Bangalore
2023: Invited speaker 5-day Hands on workshop on “Integrated OMICS”, NCBS, Bangalore
2023: Trainer at the EMBO practical course on “Metabolite and species dynamics in microbial communities”, NCBS, Bangalore
2021: Chromatin and epigenetics -2021- EMBL Conference, Virtual*
2020: International Conference on Autophagy and Lysosomes , IISc , Bangalore
2018: Aspects of Gene and Cellular Regulation , Institute of Mathematical Sciences, Chennai**
2017: Young Scientist Research Symposium, The Wellcome Trust/DBT India Alliance, IIT, Madras*
2013: Quantitative methods in Gene Regulation II, Institute of Physics, Cambridge, UK**
2013: Bacterial Gene Expression I, National Centre for Biological Sciences, Bangalore

A. Courses taught
 For MSc in Biotechnology and Bioinformatics and MSc in Big Data Biology Courses

Lab Members

	Sharvari Shet Position: PhD Student Background: M.Sc. Biotechnology   I completed my Master’s in Biotechnology from the University of Mysore in 2023. Following this, I joined IBAB as a Project Assistant in 2023, where I engaged in research that deepened my interest in the intricate mechanisms of genetic regulation. The stimulating research environment and collaborative lab culture at IBAB motivated me to further my studies, leading me to begin my Ph.D. in February 2024. My current research is centered on understanding viral genomic regulation and the transcriptional regulation in yeast chronological lifespan.
	Sampreeth Gowda Designation: DBT-JRF PhD Scholar Background: MSc Biochemistry   I obtained my MSc in Biochemistry from Padmashree Institute of Management and Sciences in Bengaluru in 2018. Following this, I worked as a Scientific Analyst at Molecular Connections Pvt. Ltd. in 2019 and subsequently as a Project Associate at the COVID facility at inStem-NCBS. In 2022, I joined the lab as a Project Assistant, focusing my research on the amino acid-dependent regulation of mitochondrial DNA maintenance and its implications in the aging process. I have progressed to a PhD scholar in the lab after successfully clearing the DBT-JRF examination in August 2023. I am committed to deepening my understanding of scientific research and contributing to advancements in the field.
	Abinaya E Designation: Project Assistant Background: MSc. Computational Biology (Specialisation in NGS Data Analytics) I completed B.Tech Bioinformatics from TamilNadu Agricultural University in 2022 and M.Sc in Computational Biology from University of Kerala in 2024. I joined IBAB as a Project Assistant in September, 2024 and my research work focuses on understanding the role of Ty elements in maintaining extra-chromosomal viral particles.
	Karnesh S Background: B. Tech Biotechnology Designation: Intern   I completed my B. Tech Biotechnology from Vellore Institute of Technology, Vellore. I joined the lab in January 2024 and my research focus is on studying the genomic variants accumulated during the chronological lifespan of yeast cells and their impact on gene regulation.

Lab Alumni

Ms Soujanya Nagendra,Project Assistant,  Currently a PhD student at TIGS, Bangalore

Ms. Ankana Banerjee, Project Intern, Msc10, IBAB , currently in Strands Lifesciences

Ms. Anshika Saxena, Intern M.Tech, Biotechnology , BITS-Pilani-Hyderabad Campus, currently in Biocon

Ms. Namia Ahmad, Intern, M.Sc-Biotechnology, St. Joseph’s college, Bangalore

List of students Mentored for the dissertation project

1. Anshika Saxena, BITS-Hyderabad
2. Ankana Banerjee, IBAB , Bangalore
3. Anjitha –  Berchmann College, Kerala
4. Namia Ahmad, St, Johns College, Bangalore
5. Jeevitha P , Bangalore University
6. Praneeth V , PSG Tech Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu
7. Rajdeep Jha – IBAB, Bangalore
8. Debarpita Choudhury- IBAB, Bangalore
9. Subhiksha Sundaram , Kalasalingam University, Coimbatore
10. Devesh Kumar, Vellore Institute of Technology, Chennai
11. Nishanth Saravanan , Bangalore University
12. Sharvari Shet, Mysore University
13. Varsha Kulkarni, Mysore University
14. Karnesh , Vellore Institute of Technology, Chennai
15. Prakruthi Mishra , IBAB, Bangalore
16. Vinod Yeggoni, IBAB, Bangalore
17. Abinaya  E, Kerala University