Investigator Profile

Dr. Bhupendra Kumar Verma,
Associate Professor,
Department of Biotechnology,
All India Institute of Medical Sciences,
Ansari Nagar,
New Delhi-110029

Email ID: bverma@gmail.com, bverma@aiims.edu

Phone(O): +91-11-26593617

Research:
15 years of research experience in the field of Molecular Biology, Virology, Post-transcriptional Gene regulation, RNA splicing etc.

Research Focus:
Dengue Virus-host interaction, non-coding RNAs, Alternate Splicing

1. Characterization of the non-coding RNA interactome in DENV pathophysiology:
   The global burden of dengue infection poses significant challenges in terms of medical treatment options, as there is a lack of effective therapeutic regimens. This highlights the need to expand our knowledge and deepen our mechanistic understanding of dengue infection in order to develop better strategies for its management. Upon viral infection, multiple signaling cascades are activated, leading to the secretion of various molecules to combat the infection. RNases are among the molecules activated upon infection. Several studies have shown modulation of RNases upon DENV infection. RNases are primarily involved in maintaining RNA homeostasis inside a cell under stressed conditions. They also act upon different RNAs, such as mRNA, tRNA, and rRNA, to generate various non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs). We aim to characterize ncRNA generation during DENV pathogenesis.

2. Modulation of gene regulatory networks in DENV pathophysiology:
   Although a great deal has been learned about the DENV biology in last decade, there are many regulatory networks of viral-host interactions which are yet to be known. In our lab, we are focusing to map novel regulatory posttranscriptional gene regulation circuits perturbed during pathogenesis of DENV. This will help us to understand how virus manipulates host gene regulation during course of infection and can we target this interaction for therapeutic purpose or as biomarker for severity of disease.

Collaborations

1- Juvenile Nasopharyngeal Angiofibroma: Pathophysiology and Molecular Mechanisms (Department of Otorhinolaryngology, AIIMS, New Delhi):

Juvenile Nasopharyngeal Angiofibroma (JNA) is a benign yet rapidly expanding neoplasm within the posterior nasal cavity and nasopharynx, posing a potentially life-threatening risk due to severe hemorrhage. JNA primarily occurs sporadically and commonly manifests with symptoms such as nasal obstruction, epistaxis (nosebleeds), and related complications due to its location. The molecular and genetic understanding of JNA is still evolving, but research has shed light on certain molecular and genetic factors that may contribute to the development of this rare tumor. We aim to functionally characterize the mutational spectrum and roles of various non-coding RNAs involved in JNA pathogenesis.

2- Characterizing mutations in Indian AT patients (Division of Genetics, Department of Paediatrics, AIIMS, New Delhi):
Ataxia telangiectasia is an autosomal recessive, rare inherited childhood neurological disorder characterized by progressive neurological impairment and cerebellar ataxia. It is caused by mutations in the ATM gene (ataxia telangiectasia mutated). Here, we are characterizing Indian AT patients in terms of their effects on pre-mRNA splicing, NMD decay of mRNA, etc., and aiming to target these mutations with ASO therapy.