The Annual Research Day Distinguished Retired Faculty Medal and Oration for the year 2015 were conferred on four experts in various fields at the Sixth Annual Research Day function held at the CMC campus here on Friday. It included two retired faculty members of the Christian Medical College and two former students of CMC. Jayaprakash Muliyil, former Head of the Community Health and Development (CHAD) Department of CMC was conferred the award for his outstanding contribution to research in the field of Epidemiology and Research.
The citation states that in the area of research, Dr. Jayaprakash has guided several postgraduate students and helped numerous students and faculty across the institution from various specialities. Even after his retirement, he continues to teach, guide and mentor others within the institution and elsewhere.
110 publications
As a researcher, he has over 110 publications and has been an investigator on Indian and internationally-funded grants in the areas of leprosy, rheumatic heart disease, vaccine-preventable illnesses and diarrheal disease.
Mammen Chandy, former Professor and Head of the Department of Hematology and Medicine of the CMC, and currently Director, Tata Medical Centre, Kolkata and Head of the Human Genome and Genetics Task Force in the Department of Biotechnology, Govt. of India was conferred the award for his outstanding contribution to research in the field of hematology and medicine.
The citation stated that the Thalassemia Transplant Programme in the CMC was started by him. “Every aspect of the programme such as infrastructure, personnel and standard operating systems were meticulously put in place by him and people trained by him. Many of the current transplant programmes in the country owe their training and establishment directly to his leadership”, the citation read.
Cellular and Molecular medicine
Ajit Varki, Distinguished Professor of Medicine and Cellular and Molecular Medicine, Glycobiology Research and Training Centre, University of California, San Diego and a former student of CMC was awarded the medal for his outstanding contribution to research in the field of Cellular and Molecular Medicine.
Nissi Varki (former student of CMC) who is on the School of Medicine Recruitment and Admissions Executive Committee and teaches histology and pathology at the UC San Diego School of Medicine was awarded the medal for her outstanding contribution to research in the fields of histo-chemical and immuno-histochemical assays and comparative biology between mice and humans.
Dr. Mammen Chandy who delivered the Annual Research Day Oration said that obtaining the grant from the Indian Council for Medical Research for stem cell transplantation was an important milestone in the history of the CMC, which today is a referral centre for thalassemia.
Jasmine Prasad, Head of the CHAD Department in CMC presented the award to Dr. Jayaprakash Muliyil.
Nihal Thomas, Additional Vice-Principal (Research), CMC said that the purpose of the Annual Research Day is to give faculty and students an opportunity to highlight their own work and to understand the breadth and depth of research being carried out in CMC through oral and poster presentations. About 250 abstracts were presented during the day.
