Dr. GPCR Ecosystem - Member - Chahat Soni
I am Chahat Soni, a graduate student at the Indian Institute of Technology-Kanpur, India. I am a native of Jalandhar, Punjab. I did my Bachelors in Science (Biotechnology) from DAV College, Jalandhar. This was the first time I was introduced to the intricacies of cell signaling in one of my courses. Right from the beginning, signal transduction captured my interest and it was propelled further during my M.Sc (Biotechnology) when I got to learn about the dynamic and multifarious roles of G-protein coupled receptors (GPCRs) as the master regulators of cell signaling. I was always fascinated and intrigued by the inner workings of neural signaling with a drive to find a cure for associated mental disorders. I would one day love to investigate the role of GPCRs like the Neurotensin and Dopamine receptors in Schizophrenia, understand their biology with an aim to target them for the development of antipsychotic drugs. In 2019, I brought myself one step closer to realizing my goal when I got the opportunity to work as a Ph.D. student under the able guidance of Dr. Arun Kumar Shukla. Here I am involved in understanding the structural aspects of signaling for a number of different GPCRs with a specific focus on the GPCR- arrestin axis and the concept of biased signaling. The conducive lab environment and my wonderful colleagues make this journey a very fun and fulfilling one spurring my passion for science each day.
GPCR and its adapter proteins- G protein and arrestin - have an intimate relationship with each other. GPCR being the head of the signaling pathway, guide its adapter proteins to signal as and when required according to the ligand bound to it. G protein being the first love of GPCR (as discovered before arrestin) misses GPCR when arrestin interacts more with it in case of bias signaling. The motivation was to convey the message to the people outside of the GPCR community in an easy-to-understand and non-scientific format since not everybody is familiar with this concept.
Chahat Soni
Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur
I am Chahat Soni, a graduate student at the Indian Institute of Technology-Kanpur, India. I am a native of Jalandhar, Punjab. I did my Bachelors in Science (Biotechnology) from DAV College, Jalandhar. This was the first time I was introduced to the intricacies of cell signaling in one of my courses. Right from the beginning, signal transduction captured my interest and it was propelled further during my M.Sc (Biotechnology) when I got to learn about the dynamic and multifarious roles of G-protein coupled receptors (GPCRs) as the master regulators of cell signaling. I was always fascinated and intrigued by the inner workings of neural signaling with a drive to find a cure for associated mental disorders. I would one day love to investigate the role of GPCRs like the Neurotensin and Dopamine receptors in Schizophrenia, understand their biology with an aim to target them for the development of antipsychotic drugs. In 2019, I brought myself one step closer to realizing my goal when I got the opportunity to work as a Ph.D. student under the able guidance of Dr. Arun Kumar Shukla. Here I am involved in understanding the structural aspects of signaling for a number of different GPCRs with a specific focus on the GPCR- arrestin axis and the concept of biased signaling. The conducive lab environment and my wonderful colleagues make this journey a very fun and fulfilling one spurring my passion for science each day.
GPCR and its adapter proteins- G protein and arrestin - have an intimate relationship with each other. GPCR being the head of the signaling pathway, guide its adapter proteins to signal as and when required according to the ligand bound to it. G protein being the first love of GPCR (as discovered before arrestin) misses GPCR when arrestin interacts more with it in case of bias signaling. The motivation was to convey the message to the people outside of the GPCR community in an easy-to-understand and non-scientific format since not everybody is familiar with this concept.
