Current Programs

Fundamental research: Developing a Fly model for early life malnutrition. Using this to understand how early live nutritional deprivation presents as phenotypes in adulthood. Focus on gut biology such as peptides, digestive enzymes, and behaviours relating to food intake.

Translational research: Study the ability of dietary interventions to mitigate adult phenotypes resulting from early life malnutrition. Focus on traditional foods and herbs mentioned in Ayurveda. Documentation of traditional foods and their nutritional importance to local diets.  Utilise fly model system to test functional foods; a low-cost and quick animal model for testing foods and ingredients.

Teaching: Biochemistry, Animal Physiology, Ayurveda Dietetics, Nutrition Science and Science Communication.

Outreach: Working with communities to improve public health nutrition using their traditional food knowledge. Adolescent nutrition program for schools.

Policy: Policy issues on capacity building in science education, integrative healthcare and AYUSH-related topics.

Education

2001 MSc Biotechnology, IIT-Bombay

2006 PhD Biochemistry and Structural Biology, Stony Brook University, New York

2021 ePGD in Public Health Nutrition, PHFI, New Delhi

Work experience

2008 Senior Fellow, University of Washington, Seattle

2012 Grants and Programme Manager, The Wellcome Trust/ DBT India Alliance, Hyderabad

2019 India Alliance Early Career Fellow, NCBS-TIFR, Bangalore

2020 Program Co-ordinator, Ayurveda Dietetics

2021 Program Co-ordinator, MSc Life Sciences (Ayurveda Biology)

We welcome undergraduate and postgraduate students (from BAMS and Biological sciences background) to intern with us for research experience or dissertation projects.

A minimum 3 month duration is essential.

Please email Megha with your CV and 200 word paragraph on why you want to work with us. Any generic email will not receive a response.

We are open for accepting PhD studentships. Please email Megha with your CV and 200 word paragraph on why you want to work with us.

Follow @meghaphd

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Ongoing Projects / Research

2023 - 2025 CCRAS-TDU Collaborative Project. "Traditional foods of Karnataka - An Ayurvedic and nutritional perspetive."

2021 – 2023 Start-up Research Grant (DST-SERB), Does exposure to early life malnutrition alter the adaptation of digestive enzymes to later-life dietary excesses? An animal model investigation.

2019-2021 Sentinel Award (Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, administered by BIRAC, India)

Development of a fly model for Environmental Enteric Dysfunction

Teaching Activities

MSc Life Sciences (Ayurveda Biology)

Ayurveda Dietetics Program

Outreach Activities

Nutrition Module for Schools targeting young adolescents.

2024_Megha_School_ Outreach_Report

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Selected Publications

Impact of late larval nutritional stress on adult metabolic, gut and locomotor phenotypes in Drosophila melanogaster
Shri Gouri Patil, Sushmitha Sekhar, Aman Agarwal, TS Oviya, Debashis Rout, Megha
2022, bioarxiv, https://doi.org/10.1101/2022.06.30.498321

Breaking silos: can the emerging field of Ayurvedic biology contribute to the advancement of Indian health science
Bhavya Vijay, Gurmeet Singh, Chethala N. Vishnuprasad, Ashwini Godbole, Subrahmanya Kumar
Kukkupuni, Megha, Prasan Shankar, Poornima Devkumar and Darshan Shankar. Current Science 2022 122:3; 251-257

Surviving nutritional deprivation during development: neuronal intracellular calcium signaling is critical
Megha, Gaiti Hasan. Int. J. Dev. Biol. 2020 64: 239 - 246

Neuropeptides required for Drosophila development under nutritional stress are regulated by the ER-Ca2+ sensor STIM
Megha*, Christian Wegener and Gaiti Hasan. PLoS One. 2019 Jul 11;14(7):e0219719. *Corresponding author.

Control of protein translation by IP3R-mediated Ca2+ release in Drosophila neuroendocrine cells.
Megha and Gaiti Hasan, Fly, 2017, 11:4;290-296

IP3R mediated Ca2+ release regulates protein metabolism in Drosophila neuroendocrine cells: implications for development under nutrient stress
Megha and Gaiti Hasan, Development 2017 Apr 15;144(8):1484-1489
(Media coverage in The Hindu and //thewire.in)

Metabolic labelling to quantify Drosophila neuropeptides and peptide hormones.
Kunz T, Chen J, Megha, Wegener C.

Book Chapter in Peptidomics: Methods and Protocol 2018;1719:175-185.
Activation of a bacterial virulence protein by the GTPase RhoA.
Christen M, Coye LH, Hontz JS, LaRock DL, Pfuetzner RA, Megha, Miller SI. Sci Signal. 2009;2(95):ra71 (Selected by Faculty 1000)

Preparation and properties of asymmetric vesicles that mimic cell membranes: effect upon lipid raft formation and transmembrane helix orientation.
Cheng HT, Megha, London E. J Biol Chem. 2009;284(10):6079-92.

Effect of ceramide N-acyl chain and polar headgroup structure on the properties of ordered lipid domains (lipid rafts).
Megha, Sawatzki P, Kolter T, Bittman R, London E. Biochim Biophys Acta. 2007;176 8(9):2205-12.

Cholesterol precursors stabilize ordinary and ceramide-rich ordered lipid domains (lipid rafts) to different degrees. Implications for the Bloch hypothesis and sterol biosynthesis disorders.
Megha, Bakht O, London E. J Biol Chem. 2006 4;281(31):21903-13.

Ceramide selectively displaces cholesterol from ordered lipid domains (rafts): implications for lipid raft structure and function.
Megha, London E. J Biol Chem. 2004 Mar 12;279(11):9997-10004. (Selected by Faculty 1000)

Awards / Memberships

2013 India Alliance Early Career Fellowship
2019 Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation Sentinel Award