Additional Responsibility
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Dean, Student Affairs
Publications All
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Evolution of a novel female reproductive strategy in Drosophila melanogaster populations subjected to long-term protein restriction
Dasgupta, P., Halder, S., Dari, D., Nabeel, P., Vajja, S.S., Nandy, B.
Evolution of reduced mate harming tendency of males in Drosophila melanogaster populations selected for faster life history
Verma, T., Mohapatra, A., Senapati, H.K., Muni, R.K., Dasgupta, P., Nandy, B.
Shorter effective lifespan in laboratory populations of D. melanogaster might reduce sexual selection
Mital, A., Sarangi, M., Nandy, B., Pandey, N., Joshi, A.
Absence of reproduction-immunity trade-off in male Drosophila melanogaster evolving under differential sexual selection
Syed, Z.A., Gupta, V., Arun, M.G., Dhiman, A., Nandy, B., Prasad, N.G.
Intergenerational paternal effect of adult density in Drosophila melanogaster
Dasgupta, P., Sarkar, S., Das, A.A., Verma, T., Nandy, B.
Complex effects of Ayurvedic formulation: Guduchi and Madhuyashti on different components of life history may elude the elixir effect
Singh, S., Nandy, B., Tapadia, M.G.
Adaptive Significance of Long Mating With Repeated Intromissions in Zygogramma bicolorata
Pal, R., Bhowmick, A., Naik, K., Nandy, B.
Academic Background
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B.Sc.: University of Calcutta (Vivekananda College, Thakurpukur, Kolkata), 2005
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M.Sc. Zoology: University of Calcutta, 2007
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Ph.D.: IISER Mohali, 2013
Professional Experience
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Research Associate, JNCASR, Bangalore
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INSPIRE Faculty, Dept of Zoology, BHU (2014-2016)
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Visiting Assistant Professor, IISER Berhampur (2016-2017)
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Assistant Professor, IISER Berhampur (2017-2024)
Awards and Memberships
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DST-INSPIRE Faculty award by INSA, 2014
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Young Scientist medal, INSA, 2017-18
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Fulbright-Nehru Academic and Professional Excellence Fellowship, 2019
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Member, Indian Society for Evolutionary Biologists
Research Interests
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Experimental Evolution
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Sexual selection and conflict
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Life history evolution
Research Group
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Rabi Sankar Pal, PhD student (SRF)
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Smita Adhikary, PhD student (JRF)
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Mousumi Das, PhD student (JRF)
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Sriamritansu Das, MS Dissertation
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Sakshi Shikha Xalxo, MS Dissertation
About me
I am an Evolutionary Biologist working on life history and reproductive adaptations, largely using experimental evolution on fruit flies. I am the founding member of the Department of Biological Sciences at IISER Berhampur. My lab, Behaviour and Evolution laboratory (BEL), works on various issues in sexual selection and life history theories. Largely an experimental evolutionary ecologist, I have deep interest in Genetics and Behavioural Ecology. We use Drosophila melanogaster (a type of fruit flies) laboratory adapted population to understand adaptive evolution, including its constraints.
Biography
Ancestrally from Kolkata, West Bengal. I graduated from the University of Calcutta with B.Sc. and M.Sc. degrees in Zoology. Then I moved to Mohali, Punjab to complete my PhD in Evolutionary Biology under the mentorship of Prof. N. G. Prasad, IISER Mohali. After a brief postdoc stint with Prof. Amitabh Joshi at JNCASR, Bangalore, I moved to Department of Zoology, Banaras Hindu University and took up my first faculty position (DST-INSPIRE Faculty). Since 2016 October, I am a faculty member at the IISER Berhampur. Apart from being the founding member of the Department of Biological Sciences, I am currently heading the department. I am also serving the role of Dean, Student Affairs.
Extremely passionate about Evolution and Ecology, I am more conventional and classical Evolutionist - mostly find interest in organismal level work. Love teaching. Love playing - cricket, football etc.
Research Projects
The lab is primarily interested in the evolution of sexually selected and life-history traits. We use laboratory adapted populations of fruit flies (Drosophila melanogaster) as model system to investigate various questions.
There are a number of lines of investigation currently being pursued by the group. In a long-term investigation, we are investigating how sexually selected traits – such as male fertility and competitive ability, sexually antagonistic male and female traits, etc. evolve in relation to the evolution of aging and lifespan. To this effect, a set of ten experimental populations, which were experimentally evolved in the lab for over 1200 generations, are being investigated. The group is investigating nutrient dependent adaptation by using fruit flies as a model system. We are studying causes, constraints, and consequences of adaptation to nutritional deprivation taking an experimental evolution approach. In another project, we are investigating the potential of non-genetically inherited intergenerational parental effects on offspring traits and fitness components. Overall, all these investigations aim at understanding the evolutionary correlations between life history and sexual traits. Since most natural populations have spatial structures, eco-evolutionary dynamics emerging as a consequence of such structuring has emerged as an important problem in the field. The group is currently investigating the effect of spatial structure and habitat fragmentation on sexually selected traits - at both evolutionary as well as ecological timescales. Most of these investigations are based on solid theoretical foundations and are more inclined towards tests of principles that can be widely applied.
Recently, the group has started natural Ecology, including Behavioural Ecology of Parthenium beetle, Zygogramma bicolorata, a biocontrol species introduced to control the invasive weed species Parthenium hysterophorus. These beetles show unique mating behaviour, which is an interesting problem on its own. Moreover, the group is also investigating the cause behind the inefficacy of the beetles as a biocontrol.
More details can be found here.