We are pleased to highlight Dr. Mohindar Murugesh Karunakaran, who is currently affiliated with the Institute for Virology and Immunobiology at Julius-Maximilians University of Würzburg and has also been an active member of FOR2799. He has been appointed to a tenured Assistant Professor position in the Department of Biology at IISER Pune on June 1, 2026.
His research focuses on understanding how human Vγ9Vδ2 T cells recognise and respond to stressed, infected, and cancerous cells, with particular emphasis on the immunomodulatory functions of butyrophilin (BTN) proteins in γδ T-cell activation and immune regulation. More Information about his lab here.
About IISER Pune
IISER Pune (Indian Institute of Science Education and Research, Pune) is one of India’s premier public institutions for research and higher education in the natural and basic sciences. Established in 2006 by the Ministry of Education (then Ministry of Human Resource Development), it was among the first of the IISERs created to integrate teaching with cutting-edge research, and it holds Institute of National Importance status, granted by an Act of Parliament in 2012. The campus is located in Pune, Maharashtra.
More information here
