SJRI - IAEA Collaborating Centre

IAEA: In May 2010, IAEA formalises its relationship with the St. John´s Research Institute (SJRI) in Bangalore, India, designating it one of the IAEA´s select collaborating centres worldwide.The SJRI has been working with the IAEA´s Nutrition and Health-Related Environmental Studies Section since 1988, and is well networked in India as well as internationally."The SJRI is not only special because of its excellent track record, but because it´s the first Institution we have chosen to be a collaborating centre in Nutrition," says Lena Davidsson, Head of the IAEA´s Nutritional and Health-related Environmental Studies Section.The Institute´s research focuses on nutrition, cancer, as well as infectious and lifestyle-related diseases."This is an exceptionally good example of a centre where stable isotope technique is being used for nutrition-related research in a developing country," says Davidson.The longstanding relationship between the IAEA and the SJRI has provided a number of benefits to both parties. For example, the SJRI analyses samples for Asian and African Member States, provides lecturers for the Agency´s courses on stable isotope technique, and trains research fellows from Member States worldwide.BackgroundThe IAEA has introduced the concept of collaborating centres to assist in implementing specific areas of its programme of research, development and training in nuclear technologies, while capitalizing upon and helping to expand the capabilities of Member States´ scientific and technical institutions.Designation as a centre does not imply preeminence in the specific scientific field; rather it is a public recognition of the collaboration with the IAEA in a specific field of work.See Story Resources for more information. http://www.iaea.org/newscenter/news/2010/buildingrelations.htmlRecognition RenewedInternational Atomic Energy Agency of the United Nations has renewed and re-designated St. John’s Research Institute as their First and Only Nutrition Collaborating Centre in the World.  The Institute was first recognised in the year 2010 which has since been renewed from 2015 to 2019.Dr. Anura Kurpad, who heads the Division of Nutrition, was responsible for this recognition for St. John’s.More information is available at: http://www-naweb.iaea.org/na/news-na/na-st-johns-research-institute.html

St. John's Research Institute leads India-Australia Collaboration on Immunotherapy

St. John’s Research Institute (SJRI) in collaboration with QIMR Berghofer in Brisbane, Australia, has secured funding under the Australia-India Strategic Research Fund (AISRF). The Department of Biotechnology (DBT), Government of India, will be funding SJRI in India, for this collaboration aimed to pioneer virus-specific T-cell (VST) therapy research. The Indian arm of this research will be led by Professor Alok Srivastava, Head of the Haematology Research Unit, St. John’s Research Institute (SJRI) with Professor Annapurna Vyakarnam, Adjunct Professor, Scientific Lead of the Human Immunology Laboratory, Division of Infectious Diseases, SJRI, along with their transplant colleagues from the St. John’s Medical College Hospital. Professor Srivastava is a Distinguished clinician scientist and global expert in translational haematology and cell and gene therapies. He has successfully led the world’s first lentiviral vector gene therapy for haemophilia clinical trial in India. Professor Annapurna Vyakarnam is a Professor of Microbial Immunology, Kings College London and a Distinguished Scientist in Human Immunology with an affiliation as Adjunct Professor at SJRI. She has set up a state of the art human immunology laboratory at SJRI focussed on training next generation immunologists working to understand T-cell immunity and biology across disease spectrums. Professor Srivastava and Professor Vyakarnam will work together to adapt virus-specific T-cell (VST) therapy protocols specifically for the Indian patient population. The SJRI team will work in close coordination with Professor Rajiv Khanna, a Distinguished Scientist at QIMR Berghofer and Head of the Tumour Immunology Laboratory. Professor Khanna’s internationally recognized work in human immune regulation provides the foundation for the translation of complex science into effective clinical therapies. This partnership will drive clinical advancement by expanding cellular immunotherapy applications for Indian patients and enhancing treatment access for Australians of South Asian descent. Furthermore, the collaboration aims to stimulate economic growth by accelerating industry investment in India’s biotechnology and immunotherapy sectors.This research represents a powerful synergy between Australian biotechnology innovation and Indian clinical and basic science expertise, aiming to improve outcomes for transplant recipients. Learn more about St. John’s Research Institute: https://sjri.res.in/home

Dr. Anura Kurpad honoured as the Distinguished Fellow of the American Society for Nutrition (DFASN).

Congratulations Dr. Anura Kurpad on being honoured as the 2026 Distinguished Fellow of the American Society for Nutrition (DFASN) for your commendable contribution to Nutrition Research and Public Health. St. John’s is proud of your achievement. 

ICMR

The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) designates the St John's Medical College Hospital, Bangalore led by Prof Suman Rao (Dept of Neonatology) and Dr Prem K. Mony (Division of Epidemiology & Population Health) as an ICMR Collaborating Centre of Excellence [ICMR-CCoE] in recognition of the commendable achievements in biomedical research. 

The Indian Cardiovascular Research and Advocacy Group-2 (ICRAG-2). ICMR-Centers for Advanced Research (CAR).

Division of Clinical Research and Training, St. John’s Research Institute has been recognised by The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) as Centre for Advanced Research (CAR) for the period 2024 to 2029 under the leadership of Dr. Denis Xavier as Principal Investigator. The study title is “Impact, cost-effectiveness, and sustainability of a synergistic, multipronged, customized, low-cost intervention package (IP) to reduce cardiovascular disease (CVD) among diverse populations across India.St John’s leads a consortium of 7 leading Institutions across India in this project. The group is called the Indian Cardiovascular  Research and Advocacy group (ICRAG-2).We will undertake multiple projects (Systematic review, cross-sectional study, qualitative study and a cluster randomized trial) across India over 5 years at about 25 sites.

Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR)

The divisions of Nutrition, Department of Physiology, Paediatric Surgery, Biostatistics, and Molecular Energy and Genetics at St. John's Research Institute and Medical College earned recognition from the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) for their invaluable contribution to Maternal and Child Health Studies for the period 2025-2030. 

Collaborating Centre of Excellence (CCoE).

The Division of Clinical Research and Training (DCRT) and the Department of Pharmacology earned recognition as a key Collaborating Centre of Excellence (CCoE).

ICMR Collaborating Centre of Excellence

The Department of Neonatology and the Division of Epidemiology earned recognition as a key ICMR Collaborating Centre of Excellence for the timeline 2023-2028.