DasGupta Lab

Principal Investigator

Biplab Dasgupta, PhD, did doctoral research in molecular biology and immunology from the Indian Institute of Chemical Biology, Calcutta, and postdoctoral research at Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis. Dasgupta joined Cincinnati Children’s in 2009 as a tenure track assistant professor of pediatrics within the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine. He rose through the ranks and is now a tenured associate professor of pediatrics.

Broadly, he is interested in understanding the mechanisms of cancer development and progression. Using various state-of-the-art techniques and brain tumor as a model, his lab examines cancer stem cell metabolism, bioenergetics, signal transduction and the potential link between and cell-intrinsic and cell-extrinsic factors that influence cancer incidence and penetrance. 

biplab.dasgupta@cchmc.org

Laboratory Aide

I am a Natural Science undergraduate at Xavier University. I am learning several methods in the Dasgupta lab. I have the very important responsibility of running genotyping PCR reactions from tail DNA of several genetically engineered mouse strains and preparing reagents for experiments. I also help kids with physical and/or mental disabilities learn and represent my college soccer team.

toni.bizzarro@cchmc.org

Research Fellow

I did my graduate studies in signaling and molecular biology of cancer at National Centre for Cell Science (Pune, India) and my first postdoctoral training at The Roswell Park Cancer Institute (Buffalo, NY, USA), In the Dasgupta Lab, I am interested in deciphering the role of metabolic regulator kinase AMPK in the development and treatment of brain cancers, particularly the role played by the different AMPK subunits in glioblastoma. Using knockout mouse models of human brain cancer and primary cancer cells derived from patients, we are assembling pieces of puzzle to reveal the functions of AMPK subunits in brain cancer pathophysiology and metabolism. Our ultimate goal is to develop novel AMPK complex specific modulators that have the potential to inhibit tumor growth.

rishi.chhipa@cchmc.org

Research Assistant III

I am a Research Assistant in the Dasgupta laboratory. I have done my Masters in Pharmacology from the Institute of Chemical Technology, Mumbai, India and previously worked as a research assistant at the Medical University of Vienna, Austria. I have gained expertise in handling and maintaining different animal models like zebra fish used for neurological studies and genetically modified mouse models. I am also experienced in in-vivo techniques like mouse embryo and oocyte injections with stem cells. My current research is focused on understanding the mechanisms of biguanide sensitivity and resistance of patient derived glioblastoma lines. I also assist other lab members in various ways including genotyping transgenic mice, maintaining mouse colonies, cell culture and molecular techniques. I am also involved in ordering lab supplies, reagents and lab organization.

mruniya.gawali@cchmc.org

Research Fellow

I obtained my PhD in stem cell biology and cancer genetics in 2014 from the University of Nottingham, UK. My current research is focused on understanding the role of AMPK in Brain development. Considering the high metabolic demand of the developing brain, our understanding of AMPK function is limited. To assess the role of AMPK during Brain development, we are using various transgenic mouse models to conditionally inactivate AMPK in neural cells. I am also interested in understanding the metabolic changes in a highly aggressive pediatric brain tumors. We are examining brain region-specific metabolic uniqueness of stem/progenitor cells, developing mouse models of pediatric brain tumors to understand bio-energetic and metabolic pathways essential for reprogramming of normal brainstem cells into tumor cells.

ranjithmenon.muraleedharan@cchmc.org

Graduate Student

I obtained my Bachelor of Science in Molecular and Cellular Biology and Bachelor of Arts in German Studies from the University of Arizona. Currently I’m working toward a PhD in the Cancer and Cell Biology Graduate Program at University of Cincinnati. My research interests include examining passenger deletions that engender therapeutic vulnerabilities in adult high grade gliomas, and examining the role of metabolic regulators including the cellular energy sensor AMPK in mouse models of pediatric high grade glioma.

nicole.oatman@cchmc.org

Research Fellow

I am Abitha Sukumaran, a biomedical researcher in the Department of Oncology at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center. My doctoral and postdoctoral studies at Christian Medical College and Hospital, India and Yale University School of Medicine, USA, respectively, involved studying disorders of iron metabolism using cells in culture, mouse models and human subjects. In the DasGupta laboratory, my research work involves deciphering the role of AMPK-mTOR signaling axis in normal cells and gliomas, in an attempt to better understand the pathogenesis of brain tumors. We envisage that this would lead to the development of better treatment strategies. In another project I am beginning to examine the interactions between extrinsic factors and mutations during cancer initiation and progression.

abitha.sukumaran@cchmc.org