Leading scientists chosen for India collaboration

Five senior scientists based in the UK have been awarded the Royal Society Yusuf Hamied Visiting Professorships to India, thanks to Dr Yusuf Hamied FRS, a scientist and business leader in the Indian pharmaceutical industry.

The Visiting Professorships are part of a Royal Society Yusuf Hamied Programme for India that has been running since 2017. It is funded by the Yusuf and Farida Hamied Foundation, which Dr Hamied set up with his wife to promote education and healthcare. The programme enables outstanding Fellows and Foreign Members of the Royal Society from around the world to exchange knowledge and expertise with Indian scientists on topics of shared importance.

The scientists who have been chosen to visit and collaborate with research institutions across India in 2021 are:

• Sir Tom Blundell FMedSci FRS from the University of Cambridge who has conducted research on structures and functions of proteins, including hormones and growth factors, enzymes, and their regulatory systems. He will be visiting multiple Indian universities and institutions in Bangalore, Vellore, Delhi, Hyderabad, and Chandigarh.
   
• Professor Philip Candelas FRS from the University of Oxford, a leading physicist and mathematician who is renowned for his work on string theory, black holes, and other areas of theoretical physics. He will be visiting the International Centre for Theoretical Sciences in Bengaluru and Harish Chandra Research Institute in Allahabad.
   
• Professor Matthew Freeman FMedSci FRS from the University of Oxford who investigates how cells communicate with one another, with an emphasis on how this process controls biological functions such as development. He will be visiting Ashoka University in Sonipat.
   
• Sir Michael Pepper FREng FRS from Department of Electronic and Electrical Engineering (EEE), University College London who is at the forefront of condensed matter physics. His discoveries have been important in the development of semiconductor-based nanoelectronics. He will be visiting the Indian Institute of Technology in Mumbai, the Indian Institute of Science in Bangalore, the Central University of Kerala in Kasaragod and Saha Institute in Kolkata.
   
• Professor David Rubinsztein FMedSci FRS from the Cambridge Institute for Medical Research at the University of Cambridge who is a leader in the field of autophagy, particularly in the context of neurodegenerative diseases like Huntington’s disease, Parkinson’s disease and various dementias. He will be visiting multiple Indian universities and institutions in Bangalore, Bhubaneswar, Mysuru, Kanpur, and New Delhi.

Dr Yusuf Hamied, who was elected as an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Society in 2019, said:

“My foundation is thrilled to partner with the Royal Society for the third year of this special project that is continuing to build connections between the Fellows and Foreign Members of the Royal Society and India’s science communities. We believe that learning for its own sake is not enough and needs to be put into action for the good of society. Bringing leading scientists together for the benefit of humanity is central to solving the challenges that face the world today.

Sir Richard Catlow FRS, Foreign Secretary and Vice-President of the Royal Society, said: 

“Science is a global endeavour and the challenges that we face today remind us that the solutions we seek require international cooperation. The Royal Society has supported the free exchange of ideas and expertise across borders since its foundation in 1660. I am delighted that with Dr and Mrs Hamied’s support, the Society continues to provide opportunities for leading scientists to collaborate with their peers in India.

Details of the Royal Society Yusuf Hamied Programme for India can be found at https://royalsociety.org/grants-schemes-awards/grants/yusuf-hamied-visiting-professorships/

For further information, please contact the Royal Society Press Office at Lucia.Hadjiconstanti@royalsociety.org; or call on +44 20 7451 2508 (office hours) or 07931 423 323 (out-of-hours).

Abbreviations:

• FRS: Fellow of the Royal Society
• FMedSci: Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences
• FREng: Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering