Five days Global Program of Neurodegeneration Concludes at PU

Chandigarh, October 23, 2025: Panjab University (PU) hosted a five day course titled “Molecular Insights of Neurodegeneration Pathways and Its Drug Development Strategies” under the initiative Global Initiative of Academic Networks (GIAN). 

The program included 35 participants primarily Masters and Research scholars from across the country working on various aspects of neurological conditions. The course was organised in collaboration with PU-IIT Ropar Regional Accelerator for Holistic Innovations (PI-RAHI) Foundation, Northern Region S&T Cluster and Chandigarh Region Innovation & Knowledge Cluster (CRIKC).

GIAN is a flagship program of the Ministry of Education, Govt of India to enhance higher education by inviting distinguished foreign faculty to Indian institutions. The course explored the molecular and cellular mechanisms of neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson’s, and Huntington’s Disease that are major health concern.   

Prof. Allen Kaasik from University of Tartu, Estonia gave insights into molecular pathways in various neurodegenerative diseases such as Wolfram syndrome and other neurological disorders He engaged the participants on prospective drug development strategies and studies involving endoplasmic reticulum and mitochondria. He also focused on several biomedical imaging techniques and showcased several innovative and latest images of axonal transport. 

The key processes such as endoplasmic reticulum stress, mitochondrial dysfunctions and autophagy were covered along with drug development strategies targeting these pathways. The participants were exposed to advanced imaging techniques and proteomics will be introduced as tools for identifying therapeutic targets. 

Dr.Tanzeer Kaur from the Department of Biophysics and the course coordinator also gave insights in design and development of novel chemical chaperones, animal behavioural analysis and in silico drug designing. Prof. Rajat Sandhir from the Department of Biochemistry and the course coordinator discussed identifying therapeutic molecules for Parkinson’s disease and applications of flow cytometry in neurodegenerative diseases. Moreover, hands on tutorials provided the participants with essential skills for novel drug development. 

The other faculty members namely, Dr.Neelima Dhingra from University Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences (UIPS) and Dr. Ashutosh Rai from Biochemistry department shared their expertise related to drug design and applications of proteomics in neurodegenerative diseases respectively.

The inaugural ceremony of the course had distinguished guests; Dr.Neelima Mishra, Director, National Institute of Biologicals, Noida along with Prof. Yojana Rawat, Dean University Instructions and Prof. Meenakshi Goyal, Director, Research and Development Cell. Dr.Neelima Mishra encouraged the participants to gain maximum knowledge from the workshop and appreciated the university in promoting such collaborative research. She complimented Panjab University for being part of the imitative wherein there is an opportunity to learn from the world’s top scientists.

PU Vice Chancellor Prof. Renu Vig complimented the participants for organising a course in a niche area of science and expressed confidence that the deliberations from the course will help in preparing future neurobiologists to meet upcoming challenges in the field of neurodegenerative disorders.