| Sr. No. | Name of the staff | Designation |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dr. Nisha Mathew | HOD & Scientist-F |
| 2 | Mrs. R. Anilakumari | Technical Officer-C |
| 3 | Mrs. Smruthidhara Das | Technical Officer |
| 4 | Mr. M. Sundharesan | Technical Assistant |
| 5 | Mrs. D.Kavyasree | PhD Scholar |
Head of the Division: Dr. Nisha Mathew, Scientist-F
The thrust areas of research of this department include development of vector and parasite control agents, newer insecticide formulations and developing analytical methods for drugs and insecticides.
Two approaches have been made for the development of antifilarials - a search in the natural product combinatorial chemistry and the target structure based drug development. Isolated two macrofilaricidal lead molecules by bioassay guided fractionation from two medicinal plants Trachyspermumammi and Plumbago rosea.
Based on filarial GST as target structure for drug development, 11 macrofilaricidal napthoquinone analogues have been identified. Significant contributions have been made in the field of developing vector control agents such as mosquito repellents (DEPA, Essential oil combinations from plants), small molecules mosquito attractant blends, mosquito oviposition attractant (E-57), Insect growth regulator (DPE-28 and its controlled release formulation), Synthetic pyrethroid esters P-29 & P-38 for adulticidal and larvicidal activity.
Developed analytical methods for the analysis of Diethylcarbamazine (DEC) an antifilarial drug in medicated salt samples used in mass chemotherapy of filariasis using HPLC which is currently used as the gold standard and for cyclosporine A in fermentation samples.
To formulate and implement insecticides resistance management strategies in time, regular monitoring of vector susceptibility/ resistance to the insecticides under use is essential. For this standardised the methodology for making indigenous insecticide impregnated papers.
This department has produced four PhDs, one ICMR-PDF and 17 MSc dissertations.
Development of vector borne disease control agents/tools targeting the vector and the parasite
