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{{Short description|Indian cancer biologist( Born: 1962)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2018}}
{{Use Indian English|date=December 2018}}
{{Infobox scientist
| name = Kumaravel Somasundaram
| image =
| alt =
| caption =
| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|df=yes|1962|10|8}}
| birth_place = [[Tamil Nadu]], India
| death_date =
| death_place =
| fields = {{ublist | [[Cancer]] [[biology]] }}
| workplaces = {{ublist | [[Indian Institute of Science]] }}
| alma_mater = {{ublist | [[Madras Veterinary College]] | [[University of Madras]] | [[Madurai Kamaraj University]] | [[Northwestern University]] Medical School | [[Howard Hughes Medical Institute]] | [[University of Pennsylvania]] School of Medicine }}
| doctoral_advisor = {{ublist | [[Kuppamuthu Dharmalingam]] | Bayar Thimmapaya | [[Wafik El-Deiry]] }}
| doctoral_students =
| known_for = Studies on [[Glioblastoma]]
| awards = {{ublist| 2006 [[National Bioscience Award for Career Development|N-BIOS Prize]] }}
}}
'''Kumaravel Somasundaram''' (born 8 October 1962) is an Indian cancer biologist and a professor at the Department of Microbiology and Cell Biology of the [[Indian Institute of Science]]. Known for his studies on the therapeutics of [[Glioblastoma]], Somasunderam is an elected fellow of all the three major Indian science academies namely, the [[National Academy of Sciences, India]], the [[Indian Academy of Sciences]] and the [[Indian National Science Academy]]. The [[Department of Biotechnology]] of the Government of India awarded him the [[National Bioscience Award for Career Development]], one of the highest Indian science awards, for his contributions to biosciences in 2006.

== Biography ==
[[File:Madhurai kamaraj university front view.JPG|thumb|left|[[Madurai Kamaraj University]]-front view]]
Kumaravel Somasundaram, born on 8 October 1962<ref name="Fellow profile">{{Cite web |url=http://www.ias.ac.in/describe/fellow/Somasundaram,_Prof._Kumaravel |title=Fellow profile |date=2017-12-21 |publisher=Indian Academy of Sciences |access-date=2017-12-21}}</ref> in the south Indian state of [[Tamil Nadu]], graduated in veterinary medicine from the [[Madras Veterinary College]] and did his post-graduate studies at the [[Madurai Kamaraj University]] to earn an MSc in biotechnology.<ref name="Indian fellow - K. Somasundaram">{{Cite web |url=http://insaindia.res.in/detail/P09-1497 |title=Indian fellow - K. Somasundaram |date=2017-12-21 |publisher=Indian National Science Academy |access-date=2017-12-21 |archive-date=23 December 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171223220241/http://insaindia.res.in/detail/P09-1497 }}</ref> He continued at the university for his doctoral studies under the guidance of [[Kuppamuthu Dharmalingam]] and after securing a PhD, he moved to the US for his post-doctoral work which he did, first under Bayar Thimmapaya at the [[Northwestern University]] Medical School during 1993–95 and later, at the [[Howard Hughes Medical Institute]] of the [[University of Pennsylvania]], working on ''[[DNA tumor viruses]] and [[tumor suppressor genes]]'', supervised by [[Wafik El-Deiry]] from 1995 to 1999. On his return to India, he joined the [[Indian Institute of Science]] (IISc) as a member of faculty at the division of biological sciences, subsequently became an associate professor at the Department of Microbiology and Cell Biology<ref name="Kumaravel Somasundaram, Ph.D. profile in India Cancer Research Database">{{Cite web |url=http://www.incredb.org/investigator.php?incredb_id=67 |title=Kumaravel Somasundaram, Ph.D. profile in India Cancer Research Database |date=2017-12-23 |website=www.incredb.org |access-date=2017-12-23}}</ref> and continues his association with IISc, serving as a professor.<ref name="K. Somasundaram - Division of Biological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science">{{Cite web |url=http://bio.iisc.ac.in/?q=faculty/k-somasundaram |title=K. Somasundaram - Division of Biological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science |date=2017-12-23 |website=bio.iisc.ac.in |access-date=2017-12-23 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181231093000/http://bio.iisc.ac.in/?q=faculty%2Fk-somasundaram |archive-date=31 December 2018 }}</ref><ref name="Department of Microbiology and Cell Biology Profile">{{Cite web |url=http://www.dtu.dk/english/~/media/dtu-endk/research/india/iisc_profile_2012.ashx |title=Department of Microbiology and Cell Biology Profile |date=2012}}</ref> He also heads the research group, popularly known as ''Prof. Kumar Somasundaram's Lab''.<ref name="Prof. Kumar Somasundaram's Labe">{{Cite web |url=http://mcbl.iisc.ac.in/KumarS/ |title=Prof. Kumar Somasundaram's Labe |date=2017-12-23 |website=mcbl.iisc.ac.in |access-date=2017-12-23 |archive-date=14 February 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200214211041/http://mcbl.iisc.ac.in/KumarS/ }}</ref>

Somasundaram resides in IISc housing colony in [[Bengaluru]], [[Karnataka]].<ref name="NASI fellows">{{Cite web |url=http://www.nasi.org.in/fellows.asp?RsFilter=S |title=NASI fellows |date=2017-12-21 |publisher=National Academy of Sciences, India |access-date=2017-12-21 |archive-date=16 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160316043224/http://nasi.org.in/fellows.asp?RsFilter=S }}</ref>

== Legacy ==
[[File:Glioblastoma - MR coronal with contrast.jpg|thumb|[[Glioblastoma]] - MR coronal with contrast]]
Somasundaram's work is centered around the studies of [[oncovirus]]es, [[tumor suppressor genes]], [[gliomas]] and [[microRNAs]] and he has done advanced research on [[glioblastoma]], an aggressive form of cancer affecting the brain.<ref name="Scientists discover gene responsible for aggressiveness of brain cancer">{{Cite news |url=http://iisc.researchmedia.center/article/scientists-discover-gene-responsible-aggressiveness-brain-cancer |title=Scientists discover gene responsible for aggressiveness of brain cancer |date=27 June 2016 |access-date=2017-12-23 |language=en |archive-date=28 February 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180228025948/http://iisc.researchmedia.center/article/scientists-discover-gene-responsible-aggressiveness-brain-cancer }}</ref><ref name="Research summary">{{Cite web |url=http://mcbl.iisc.ac.in/KumarS/Research%20Interest.html |title=Research summary |date=2017-12-23 |website=Indian Institute of Science |access-date=2017-12-23 |archive-date=18 February 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200218123059/http://mcbl.iisc.ac.in/KumarS/Research%20Interest.html }}</ref> The group led by him is engaged in work concerning the determination of the role of [[cellular tumor antigen p53]] in glioma, regulating the protein, [[p73]] in [[cervical cancer]] patients, using [[Adenovirus early region 1A]], a [[tumor suppressor gene]], the analytical study of [[BRCA1]] gene in [[breast cancer]] and the analysis and regulation of [[SV2A]], a [[synaptic vesicle]] protein.<ref name="Kumaravel Somasundaram, Ph.D. profile in India Cancer Research Database" /> He demonstrated that [[glioblastoma]] spreads rapidly by producing [[macrophage colony-stimulating factor]] (MCSF) in large quantities which in turn stimulate the growth of blood vessels in the tumor.<ref name="IISc finds way to bust brain cancer">{{Cite news |url=http://bangaloremirror.indiatimes.com/bangalore/others//articleshow/48749771.cms? |title=IISc finds way to bust brain cancer |date=1 September 2015 |work=Bangalore Mirror |access-date=2017-12-23}}</ref> He proposed that the MCSF interacted with the anti-tumor [[microglial cells]] of the human body and induced them to produce [[Insulin-like growth factor-binding protein]] 1 ([[IGFBP1]]), thereby impairing the capacity of microglial cells to fight the tumor cells, a process he called ''befriending''. The discovery of this new molecule, IGFBP1 and its role in glioma [[angiogenesis]], led to a collaborative investigation which involved four research institutions namely [[National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences]], [[Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Medical Sciences, Puttaparthi|Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Medical Sciences]] and Institute for Functional Genomics (INSERM) of the [[University of Montpellier]], apart from the IISc.<ref name="IISc scientists demystify lethal form of brain cancer">{{Cite news |url=http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/iisc-scientists-demystify-lethal-form-of-brain-cancer/article14405173.ece1 |title=IISc scientists demystify lethal form of brain cancer |author=Staff Reporter |date=2016-06-28 |work=The Hindu |access-date=2017-12-23 |language=en-IN |issn=0971-751X}}</ref> The research team led by Somasundaram and Phillipe Marin of INSERM validated the earlier findings and proposed a new therapeutic protocol for glioblastoma which targeted IGFBP1, rather than [[Vascular endothelial growth factor]] (VEGF) which earlier treatment methods attacked.<ref name="IISc scientists identify potential new drug target for brain cancer">{{Cite news |url=http://iisc.researchmedia.center/article/iisc-scientists-identify-potential-new-drug-target-brain-cancer |title=IISc scientists identify potential new drug target for brain cancer |date=31 August 2015 |access-date=2017-12-23 |language=en |archive-date=24 December 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171224160914/http://iisc.researchmedia.center/article/iisc-scientists-identify-potential-new-drug-target-brain-cancer }}</ref> The researchers, later, released their findings through a paper, ''Glioblastoma-derived Macrophage Colony Stimulating Factor (MCSF) Induces Microglial Release of Insulin-like Growth Factor-Binding Protein 1 (IGFBP1) to Promote Angiogenesis'', published in the [[Journal of Biological Chemistry]].<ref name="Glioblastoma-derived Macrophage Colony-stimulating Factor (MCSF) Induces Microglial Release of Insulin-like Growth Factor-binding Protein 1 (IGFBP1) to Promote Angiogenesis">{{Cite journal |last1=Nijaguna |first1=Mamatha Bangalore |last2=Patil |first2=Vikas |last3=Urbach |first3=Serge |last4=Shwetha |first4=Shivayogi D. |last5=Sravani |first5=Kotha |last6=Hegde |first6=Alangar S. |last7=Chandramouli |first7=Bangalore A. |last8=Arivazhagan |first8=Arimappamagan |last9=Marin |first9=Philippe |date=2015-09-18 |title=Glioblastoma-derived Macrophage Colony-stimulating Factor (MCSF) Induces Microglial Release of Insulin-like Growth Factor-binding Protein 1 (IGFBP1) to Promote Angiogenesis |journal=Journal of Biological Chemistry |language=en |volume=290 |issue=38 |pages=23401–23415 |doi=10.1074/jbc.m115.664037 |issn=0021-9258 |pmid=26245897|pmc=4645610 |doi-access=free }}</ref> Work is in progress at his laboratory for developing [[biomarkers]] (twenty genes of which is named gene X, have already been discovered)<ref name="IISc scientists find key brain cancer gene">{{Cite news |url=http://icast.org.in/news/2005/june05/jun14tb.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171223220205/http://icast.org.in/news/2005/june05/jun14tb.html |url-status=usurped |archive-date=23 December 2017 |title=IISc scientists find key brain cancer gene |last=Johnson T.A. |date=2005 |access-date=2017-12-23}}</ref> for which detailed study is being conducted on [[microRNA]], [[DNA methylation]], modifications of [[chromatin]] and [[gene fusion]]s.<ref name="K. Somasundaram - Division of Biological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science" /><ref name="New molecular tests for brain tumor">{{Cite journal |date=26 April 2011 |title=New molecular tests for brain tumor |journal=Nature India |doi=10.1038/nindia.2011.59}}</ref> His studies have been documented by way of a number of articles<ref name="On Google Scholar">{{Cite web |url=https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=WFvdEFsAAAAJ&hl=en |title=On Google Scholar |date=2017-11-23 |publisher=Google Scholar |access-date=2017-11-23}}</ref><ref name="Browse by Fellow">{{Cite web |url=http://repository.ias.ac.in/view/fellows/Somasundaram=3AKumaravel=3A=3A.html |title=Browse by Fellow |date=2017-12-23 |publisher=Indian Academy of Sciences |access-date=2017-12-23}}</ref>{{Refn|group=note|Please see ''Selected bibliography'' section}} and [[ResearchGate]], an online repository of scientific articles has listed 178 of them.<ref name="On ResearchGate">{{Cite web |url=https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Kumar_Somasundaram |title=On ResearchGate |date=2017-12-21 |access-date=2017-12-21}}</ref> He has also conducted workshops<ref name="Science Academies' Lecture Workshop on Recent Trends">{{Cite web |url=https://mangaloreuniversity.ac.in/sites/default/files/recent16.pdf |title=Science Academies' Lecture Workshop on Recent Trends |date=2017-12-23 |website=Mangalore University |access-date=2017-12-23}}</ref><ref name="B4 Genomics Workshop Schedule">{{Cite web |url=http://southasiainstitute.harvard.edu/b4-genomics-workshop-schedule/ |title=B4 Genomics Workshop Schedule |date=2017-12-23 |website=Lakshmi Mittal South Asia Institute |language=en |access-date=2017-12-23}}</ref><ref name="Ganga Symposium">{{Cite web |url=http://www.gangahospital.com/pdf/BASIC-GENETICS-AND-PROTEOMICS-IN-MEDICAL-RESEARCH.pdf |title=Ganga Symposium |date=2016 |website=Ganga Hospital |access-date=23 December 2017 |archive-date=23 December 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171223220347/http://www.gangahospital.com/pdf/BASIC-GENETICS-AND-PROTEOMICS-IN-MEDICAL-RESEARCH.pdf }}</ref> including the ''Workshop on Next Generation Sequencing'' organized by the [[Council of Scientific and Industrial Research]] in November 2013<ref name="Workshop on Next Generation Sequencing">{{Cite web |url=http://www.ccmb.res.in/workshop/resourcepersons.html |title=Workshop on Next Generation Sequencing |date=2013 |website=www.ccmb.res.in |access-date=2017-12-23}}</ref> and has delivered invited or plenary speeches at various conferences and seminars<ref name="Regulation Of VEGF Gene Expression By PDGF, p73 And Butyric Acid: Role In Tumor Angiogenesis">{{Cite web |url=http://www.jncasr.ac.in/assembly-vii/programme.html |title=Regulation Of VEGF Gene Expression By PDGF, p73 And Butyric Acid: Role In Tumor Angiogenesis |date=2017-12-23 |website=JNCASR |access-date=2017-12-23}}</ref> and the 5th annual meeting of the Proteomics Society, India held in September 2013 was one among them.<ref name="PROTEOMICS 2013">{{Cite web |url=http://www.proteomicsindia.in/speakers.php |title=5th Annual Meeting of the Proteomics Society-India |date=2013 |website=www.proteomicsindia.in |access-date=2017-12-23 |archive-date=21 February 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150221011509/http://proteomicsindia.in/speakers.php }}</ref>

Somasundaram is credited with the establishment of the first laboratory for [[molecular oncology]] at the IISc and his contributions are also reported in the establishment of a facility for [[genomics]] at the institute.<ref name="Indian fellow - K. Somasundaram" /> He has undertaken many research programs in cancer biology which included the IISC initiative on Cancer Biology and Therapeutics. He serves as the principal investigator of the Genomics Programme of the IISc in collaboration with the New Millennium Indian Technology Leadership Initiative (NMITLI) of the [[Council of Scientific and Industrial Research]] (CSIR) and is the co-convener of the ''DBT - IISc Partnership Program for Advanced Research in Biological Sciences and Bio Engineering''.<ref name="DBT chips in Rs. 6 cr to NIMHANS & IISc for research in brain cancer in adults">{{Cite news |url=https://auroushealthcare.wordpress.com/2014/05/12/dbt-chips-in-rs-6-cr-to-nimhans-iisc-for-research-in-brain-cancer-in-adults/ |title=DBT chips in Rs. 6 cr to NIMHANS & IISc for research in brain cancer in adults |date=2014-05-12 |access-date=2017-12-23 |publisher=Auro Health Care |language=en-US}}</ref> He is a member of the ''DBT Neurobiology Task force'' of the [[Department of Biotechnology]],<ref name="Database of Experts - DBT Neurobiology Task force">{{Cite web |url=http://dbt-neuro.ncbs.res.in/database_experts/Bangalore?order=title&sort=desc |title=Database of Experts - DBT Neurobiology Task force |date=2017-12-23 |website=dbt-neuro.ncbs.res.in |language=en |access-date=2017-12-23 |archive-date=23 December 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171223230059/http://dbt-neuro.ncbs.res.in/database_experts/Bangalore?order=title&sort=desc }}</ref> sits in the editorial board of the ''{{ill|Cancer Biology and Therapy|de}}'' journal published by [[Taylor & Francis]]<ref name="Cancer Biology & Therapy">{{Cite web |url=http://www.tandfonline.com/action/journalInformation?show=editorialBoard&journalCode=kcbt20 |title=Cancer Biology & Therapy |website=www.tandfonline.com |language=en |access-date=2017-12-23}}</ref> and is a former member of the senate of the Indian Institute of Science.<ref name="Indian Institute of Science - Information per RTI">{{Cite web |url=http://www.iisc.ernet.in/rti/junk.shtml |title=Indian Institute of Science - Information per RTI |date=2005 |website=www.iisc.ernet.in |access-date=2017-12-23 |archive-date=6 July 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170706104104/http://www.iisc.ernet.in/rti/junk.shtml }}</ref>

== Awards and honors ==
Somasundaram received the International Senior Research Fellowship of the [[Wellcome Trust]] in 2004.<ref name="Indian fellow - K. Somasundaram" /> The [[Department of Biotechnology]] of the Government of India awarded him the [[National Bioscience Award for Career Development]], one of the highest Indian science awards in 2006.<ref name="Awardees of National Bioscience Awards for Career Development">{{Cite web |url=http://dbtindia.nic.in/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/list_of_bioscience_awardees.pdf |title=Awardees of National Bioscience Awards for Career Development |date=2016 |publisher=Department of Biotechnology |access-date=2017-11-20 |archive-date=4 March 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180304191331/http://dbtindia.nic.in/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/list_of_bioscience_awardees.pdf }}</ref> The [[Indian Academy of Sciences]] elected him as a fellow in 2007<ref name="Fellowship - Indian Academy of Sciences">{{Cite web |url=http://www.ias.ac.in/listing/fellows/S |title=Fellowship - Indian Academy of Sciences |date=2017-12-21 |website=www.ias.ac.in |language=en |access-date=2017-12-21}}</ref> and he received the elected fellowship of the [[National Academy of Sciences, India]], the same year.<ref name="NASI Year Book 2015">{{Cite web |url=http://www.nasi.org.in/Year%20Book%202015.pdf |title=NASI Year Book 2015 |date=2017-12-17 |publisher=National Academy of Sciences, India |access-date=2017-12-17 |archive-date=6 August 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150806211716/http://www.nasi.org.in/Year%20Book%202015.pdf }}</ref> The other major Indian science academy, the [[Indian National Science Academy]] elected him to fellowship in 2009.<ref name="INSA Year Book 2016">{{Cite web |url=http://www.insaindia.res.in/pdf/YearBook_2016.pdf |title=INSA Year Book 2016 |date=2017-12-17 |publisher=Indian National Science Academy |access-date=2017-12-17 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161104001952/http://www.insaindia.res.in/pdf/YearBook_2016.pdf |archive-date=4 November 2016 }}</ref>

== Selected bibliography ==
* {{Cite journal |last1=Bhargava |first1=Shruti |last2=Visvanathan |first2=Abhirami |last3=Patil |first3=Vikas |last4=Kumar |first4=Anuj |last5=Kesari |first5=Santosh |last6=Das |first6=Saumitra |last7=Hegde |first7=Alangar S. |last8=Arivazhagan |first8=Arimappamagan |last9=Santosh |first9=Vani |last10=Somasundaram |first10=Kumaravel |date=2017-04-15 |title=''IGF2'' mRNA binding protein 3 (IMP3) promotes glioma cell migration by enhancing the translation of RELA/p65 |journal=Oncotarget |volume=8 |issue=25 |pages=40469–40485 |doi=10.18632/oncotarget.17118 |pmid=28465487 |pmc=5522290 |issn=1949-2553}}
* {{Cite journal |last1=Visvanathan |first1=Abhirami |last2=Somasundaram |first2=Kumaravel |date=January 2018 |title=mRNA Traffic Control Reviewed: N6-Methyladenosine (m6 A) Takes the Driver's Seat |journal=BioEssays |volume=40 |issue=1 |article-number=1700093 |doi=10.1002/bies.201700093 |issn=1521-1878 |pmid=29205437|s2cid=23562371 }}
* {{Cite journal |last1=Das |first1=Sanjeev |last2=Nama |first2=Srikanth |last3=Antony |first3=Sini |last4=Somasundaram |first4=Kumaravel |date=2005 |title=p73β-expressing recombinant adenovirus: a potential anticancer agent |journal=Cancer Gene Therapy |language=En |volume=12 |issue=4 |pages=417–426 |doi=10.1038/sj.cgt.7700803 |pmid=15678153 |s2cid=25325662 |issn=1476-5500|doi-access= }}

== See also ==
{{Div col}}
* [[Oncovirus]]
* [[Insulin-like growth factor receptor]]
{{div col end}}
{{portal|India|Biology|Medicine}}

== Notes ==
{{reflist|group=note|2}}

== References ==
{{reflist}}

== External links ==
* {{Cite web |url=http://www.inspire-dst.gov.in/list_of_mentors.pdf |title=Mentors/Resource persons for Summer/Winter Camps and other INSPIRE initiatives |date=2017-12-23 |website=Department of Biotechnology |access-date=2017-12-23}}

{{N-BIOS Laureates 1999–2009}}
{{authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Somasundaram, Kumaravel}}
[[Category:N-BIOS Prize recipients]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Fellows of the Indian Academy of Sciences]]
[[Category:1962 births]]
[[Category:Fellows of the National Academy of Sciences, India]]
[[Category:Fellows of the Indian National Science Academy]]
[[Category:Indian molecular biologists]]
[[Category:Indian medical researchers]]
[[Category:University of Madras alumni]]
[[Category:Madurai Kamaraj University alumni]]
[[Category:Northwestern University alumni]]
[[Category:Howard Hughes Medical Investigators]]
[[Category:Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania alumni]]
[[Category:Academic staff of the Indian Institute of Science]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian male actors]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian biologists]]

Kumaravel Somasundaram - Revision history

Thenaade at 03:37, 15 April 2026