Padma L. Channavajhala, Ph.D

C Current Address: 857-***-**** (M)

**** ********* *** 408-***-**** (H)

San Jose, CA 95129 e6by8w@r.postjobfree.com

OBJECTIVE

Obtain a Research and Development position in Oncology, Inflammation, Angiogenesis and Immunology therapeutic areas.

SUMMARY

Scientific Experience:

• Core Strengths: Advanced Molecular/Cell biology, Cell culture (Mammalian), Cell-based assays, Biochemical/Immunological assays and Cell signaling.

• Extensive experience in the research areas of Oncology, Immunology, and Inflammation.

• Initiated and completed Target identification, Isolation and Structure-Function Characterization of putative novel kinases and biomarker analysis.

• Animal work: Transgenic mouse models and Zebra Fish (Danio Rario) embryo injections to characterize gene functions.

• Product development: Real time cell migration assay kit in a physiologically relevant environment.

• Initiated and completed experiments involving protein expression (retro viral vector generation), RNA isolation and assessed RIN (Agilent), ascertained the phenotype and biochemical characteristics by gene knock downs by SiRNA and RNAi, utilizing various techniques not limited to but including FACS, RT-PCR and characterization of monoclonal antibodies.

• Bioinformatics: Extensive experience using Vector NTI, Seqweb and Sequencher softwares for sequence analysis including alignments and cloning. Curated scientific information and created protein data bases, biologic sequence alignment using public data bases such as BLAST (nucleotide and protein) and literature search using, PubMed, Entrez, and OMIM.

• Motivated and supervised undergraduate, MD, PhD and MD/PhD students in research studies.

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

Genentech, South San Francisco, CA 2008 – Current

Senior Research Associate (Consultant):

Project: Pathology (Basic biology/Angiogenesis)

1. Conducted basic research to understand gene function using Danio Rerio (ZebraFish) model. The work involved injecting Zebra Fish embryos with translational and splicing blocking morpholinos. Observing and recording phenotype in regards to CVS, CNS and others.

2. Utilized confocal microscopy to understand the cellular localization of the in-vitro expressed protein.

3. Utilized molecular biology techniques including cloning, RT-PCR, ISH, in-vitro capped RNA synthesis etc.

Project: Immunology (Inflammation)

1. Developed homogenous cell populations and derived clones using “limiting dilution” technique from a single cell. These single-cell clones were utilized in cell-based assays to validate the role of an important kinase underlying Th.2 dependant inflammation.

2. Utilized above said single cell clones to establish a validation protocol to screen small molecule inhibitors and derived dose response curves.

3. Concentrated efforts to help the group in identifying and executing protocols to dissect Tyk-2 dependent pathway. Towards which developed PHA derived polyclonal T-cell blasts, isolated memory T-cells from whole blood using autoMACS Pro Separator and expanded them to become IL-23-responsive Th17 population. The phenotype was confirmed by Flow Cytometry using BD LSRII and BD FACSDiva Software.

Project: Pathology (Angiogenesis)

1. Designed and developed cell based assays to identify soluble factors from fibroblasts, which are important in endothelial angiogenesis. Characterized antibodies for their functionality.

2. Evaluated functions of growth factor isoforms and their neutralizing antibodies in angiogenesis utilizing “Co-culture” system utilizing advanced molecular biology and fluorescence imaging methods.

DiscoveRx, Fremont, CA 2007 – 2008

Research Scientist

Project: Custom assay development:

1. Engineered cell lines and established stable cell lines from single cell clones.

2. Validated and optimized single cell clonal population for cell based assays in high-throughput and also for protein-protein interactions.

General Electric (Amersham Biosciences), Niskayuna, NY 2005 –2007

Cell Biologist

Project: Cell migration:

*Product development for high-throughput cell migration assay.

1. Developed a high content image-based assay using IN Cell 1000TM to monitor Transendothelial cell migration in vitro.

2. Calculated the Z-distance of cell migration using “Optical intensity” software program.

*Cell differentiation:

1. Optimized protocol to differentiate neuronally committed NTERA2-Cl.D1 (NT2/D1, Embryonic carcinoma cell line) into an intermediate neuronal precursors and mesencephalic dopaminergic phenotype.

2. Established a reproducible protocol by eliminating a tedious hanging drop method with cell aggregation method to differentiate NT2 to neuron like NT2.

3. Confirmed the differentiation into neuron like phenotype by immunofluorescence of definitive ectoderm markers.

Wyeth Research, Cambridge, MA 2001-2005

Post-doctoral Scientist in Inflammation:

Project: Target Identification:

1. Target identification, Isolation and Structure-Function Characterization of putative novel kinases.

2. Screened c-DNA libraries and cloned full length novel genes which are important in rheumatoid arthritis. Utilized RNAi approach to knockdown hKSR2 and its importance in TNF- pathway.

3. Independently developed project plan to assess the biochemical and cellular function of novel genes.

4. Evaluated the functional role of novel hKSR.2 in inflammatory pathway by mapping its family to the MAP kinase pathway.

5. Collaborated with bioinformatics group to align and blast multiple sequences of novel kinases using various public and proprietary databases.

6. Formulated a project plan to complete analysis of candidate genes.

7. Presented results in Cold Spring Harbor (CSH) summer meeting titled “protein phosphorylation and cell biology” May 2003.

Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA 1994 – 2001

Post-doctoral Scientist in Hematology and Oncology:

Project: Synergy between two oncogenes (CK2 and c-Myc):

1. Established the molecular and functional interaction between a kinase and a transcription factor (CK2 and c-Myc) using transgenic mouse model system.

2. Carried out protein half-life studies and Ub-proteosomal pathway involvement in kinase mediated target protein regulation.

3. Constructed retroviral vectors for kinase (CK2) and analyzed infected cell lines for the expression and the effect of CK2 by Cell based bio-assays and FACS.

4. Engineered cell lines and established stable cell lines from single cell clones.

5. Validated and optimized single cell clonal population for cell based assays in high-throughput and also for protein-protein interactions

Doctoral student in Immunology:

Project: Transgenic mouse models to study dysregulated kinases in T-cell lymphomas:

1. Independently characterized lymphoma cell lines derived from the CK2 transgenic mice partially or completely deficient in p53 with respect to: growth behavior, clonality, and transcriptional factor aberrancies.

2. Developed protocols for ex vivo and in vitro T and B cell proliferation assays, cytokine production from treated and untreated cell lines, and peptide based kinase assays, biomarker analysis and retroviral infection of T-cell lymphoma cell-lines.

3. Evaluated several commercially available transfection reagents to modulate transgene in these cell lines, which are characteristically similar to primary T-cells.

4. Isolated mouse primary T cells from lymphnodes and thymus by negative selection and human T-cells from Buffy coat by ficoll gradient and Dynal magnetic bead separation.

EDUCATION

Ph.D. Immunology Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA

M.S. Microbiology University of Maryland at Baltimore, Baltimore, MD

B.S. Medical sciences Osmania University, Hyderabad, India

PUBLICATIONS

Patents

1. AM101078 (patent submitted): Channavajhala P. L, Wu L, Liu W, Lin LL and Zhang Y. Novel proteins homologous to RAS (Wyeth Pharmaceuticals, Inc.).

2. 200******** Classes: 435004000 (USPTO): Liming Yu, Lihong Zhao, Anton Beletskii, Channavajhala P. L (GE Healthcare Biosciences, Inc).

Research Articles

1. Liu L, Channavajhala P.L, Rao VR, Moutsatsos I, Wu L, Zhang Y, Lin LL and Qiu Y. Proteomic characterization of the dynamic KSR-2 interactome, a signaling scaffold complex in MAPK pathway . Biochimica Biophysica Acta. 2009 Jun 27 (Epub ahead of print)

2. Channavajhala P. L, Rao V, Lin LL and Zhang Y. (2005) hKSR-2 inhibits MEKK3-activated MAP kinase and NF-kappaB pathways in inflammation. Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 2005 Sep 9; 334(4):1214-8.

3. Luciano B, Hsu S, Channavajhala P. L, Lin LL, and Cuozzo J. (2004) Phosphorylation of a threonine residue in the activation loop of Tpl2/COT kinase is necessary for activation of the MEK/ERK pathway J Biol Chem. 279(50):52117-23.

4. Channavajhala P. L, Wu L, Cuozzo J, Hall P, Liu W, Lin LL, and Zhang Y. (2003) Identification of a Novel human kinase suppressor of Ras (hKSR-2) that functions as a negative regulator of Cot (Tpl2) signaling. J Biol. Chem 47(278): 47089-97.

5. Channavajhala P. L, and Seldin D. C. (2002) Functional interaction of Protein Kinase CK2 and c-Myc in Lymphomagenesis. Oncogene 21(34):5280-8.

6. Shen J, Channavajhala P. L, Seldin D. C, and Sonenshein G. E. (2001) Phosphorylation by the Protein Kinase CK2 Promotes Calpain-Mediated Degradation of I B J.Immunol 67 (9): 4919-25.

7. Bollag E. L, Channavajhala P. L, Cardiff R. D and Seldin D. C. (1998) P53 deficiency and mis-expression of Protein Kinase CK2 collaborates in the development of thymic lymphomas in mice. Oncogene. 16(23): 2965-74.

8. Xu X, Bollag E.L, Channavajhala P.L, and Seldin D, C. (1998) Murine Protein Kinase CK2: gene and oncogene. Mol. Cell Biochem. 191(1-2):65-74.

9. Rifkin I. R, Channavajhala P. L, Kiefer H. L, Carmack A. J, Bollag EL, Beaudette B. C, Jersky B, Salant D. J. Ju S. T. Marshak-Rothstein A. Seldin D. C. (1998) Acceleration of lpr -lymphoproliferative and autoimmune disease by transgenic protein kinase CK2 alpha. J.Immunol. 61(10):5164-70.

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