6 Indian-origin biologists in the US: Where they studied and their scientific impact

Indian-origin scientists have made remarkable strides in the field of biology, with several establishing prominent careers in the US. Their academic journeys span prestigious institutions worldwide, and their research has influenced multiple disciplines including genetics, immunology, biochemistry, and plant biology.
From pioneering genetic code deciphering to advancing stem cell research, these biologists have contributed groundbreaking discoveries. Here, we explore six Indian-origin biologists, outlining their educational backgrounds and key accomplishments.

Venkatraman RamakrishnanBorn in 1952 in Chidambaram, Tamil Nadu, Venkatraman Ramakrishnan grew up in a family of scientists—his father headed a biochemistry department in India, and his mother earned a PhD in psychology from McGill University. Ramakrishnan completed his early education in India before moving to the US, where he undertook postdoctoral research at Yale University. Despite applying to around 50 universities, he initially struggled to secure a faculty position. He worked for over a decade at Brookhaven National Laboratory and later became a professor at the University of Utah. Since 1999, Ramakrishnan has been a group leader at the Medical Research Council Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Cambridge, UK. His groundbreaking work on the structure and function of ribosomes earned him a share of the 2009 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, highlighting his crucial role in understanding protein synthesis.

Har Gobind KhoranaHar Gobind Khorana was born on January 9, 1922, in Raipur, a village in Punjab, British India. Raised in a modest family where education was highly valued despite limited resources, he completed his bachelor's and master's degrees at Punjab University, Lahore. He then earned a PhD from the University of Liverpool and completed postdoctoral studies at ETH Zurich. Unable to find immediate employment in India, Khorana moved abroad, eventually settling in North America. He held positions at the University of British Columbia and later the University of Wisconsin–Madison, where he helped decode how nucleotides in nucleic acids determine the genetic code. This monumental work earned him the 1968 Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine. Khorana later joined MIT, where he continued his research until retirement. He passed away in 2011, leaving behind a lasting legacy in biochemistry and genetics.

Inder Verma
Inder Mohan Verma, born on November 28, 1947, in Sangrur, Punjab, India, earned his PhD from the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel. He conducted postdoctoral research at MIT under Nobel laureate David Baltimore before joining the Salk Institute in California in 1974. Rising through the ranks to become a professor and later an editor-in-chief of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), Verma made critical discoveries in cancer biology, immunology, and gene therapy. His research identified several oncogenes, such as c-fos, and developed viral vectors for gene transfer that underpin modern gene therapy approaches. Despite his scientific contributions, Verma’s career faced controversy due to allegations of gender discrimination, which led to his resignation from key positions.
Utpal Banerjee
Born in 1957, Utpal Banerjee began his education in India, earning a Bachelor of Science degree in chemistry from St. Stephen’s College, Delhi University, followed by a Master of Science in physical chemistry from the Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur. He completed his PhD at the California Institute of Technology, where he also conducted postdoctoral research. Joining UCLA in 1988, Banerjee climbed the academic ladder to become a full professor and department chair. His research focuses on genetics, developmental biology, and stem cell biology. Banerjee holds a joint appointment at the David Geffen School of Medicine and co-directs the UCLA Broad Stem Cell Research Center. He has been honoured with numerous awards, including election to the US National Academy of Sciences and the prestigious NIH Director’s Pioneer Award.

Shruti Naik
Shruti Naik, who was born in India and moved to the US at age twelve, completed her undergraduate studies in cell and molecular biology at the University of Maryland, College Park. She earned a PhD from the University of Pennsylvania, followed by a postdoctoral fellowship at Rockefeller University. Now an Associate Professor at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, Naik’s interdisciplinary research focuses on how the immune system maintains tissue health and responds to inflammation. Her lab integrates immunology, microbiology, and stem cell biology to understand and treat inflammatory diseases such as psoriasis and inflammatory bowel disease. She has received numerous awards, including the Regeneron Prize for Creative Innovation and the NIH Director’s New Innovator Award.

Venkatesan Sundaresan
Born in 1952, Venkatesan Sundaresan completed his early education in physics, obtaining degrees from the University of Poona and the Indian Institute of Technology. He then pursued graduate studies in the US, earning a master’s degree from Carnegie Mellon University and a PhD in biophysics from Harvard University. At the University of California, Davis, Sundaresan’s research focuses on plant reproduction and crop improvement, specifically through synthetic apomixis, which aims to clone hybrid strains of commercial crops like rice and maize. His contributions earned him induction into the US National Academy of Sciences in 2023 and the prestigious Wolf Prize in Agriculture in 2024.