IIT Bombay had signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) in 2008 with the Wadhwani Foundation to set up the centre. Romesh Wadhwani, IIT Bombay alumnus and chairman of Wadhwani Foundation, had then pledged $5 million in this regard.

“Since the MoU, we have had several discussions to identify key research areas. We have decided to focus on understanding cell motility and cancer invasion. Cells in the human body are normally fixed and whenever they become cancerous, they become tumours. There’s another kind where (cancerous) cells grow in one place and move to another and this is how cancer spreads. The phenomenon is called ‘metastasis’ and there’s not much understanding how it happens. It’s thus crucial to understand what structures are involved for the cells to move,” said Prof Narayan S Punekar, head of IIT Bombay’s Department of Biosciences & Bioengineering.

Faculty at this department will be affiliated to the centre to carry out their research. “From 13 faculty three years ago, we now have 22. Cancer invasion is a hot field and we have expertise in it. We intend to address a key question as to how cytoskeletal protein dynamics affect cell motility and migration. Our department has 120 research scholars and a substantial number will be involved in the centre,” he said.

He said protein structure, interaction and aggregation was also selected as it is another important issue which causes several diseases such as alzheimer’s, but there is no understanding on how and why it happens.

A virtual electronics lab will also be located at the centre and students from any engineering college in the country will be able to sit at their institute or home and configure experiments in the lab via a computer. The new centre building will be functional by June-July.

“ The idea of the centre is to enable IIT Bombay to do world-class research. We picked biosciences and bioengineering because we were trying to find an area where India can make a huge difference in the world,” said Wadhwani.

NYC campus plans on track

IIT Bombay has decided to go ahead with its plan of setting up a branch in New York. Negotiations are on with the New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC) for a building, said IIT Bombay director Devang Khakhar.

A consortium comprising IIT Bombay, New York University, University of Toronto, University of Warwick, City University of New York and Carnegie Mellon University had submitted a proposal to NYCEDC last year in this regard.

“The process of selecting a director for the proposed centre is under way,” said Khakhar.