Becoming a faculty member in a premium research institute is a dream for many graduate students. Recently such a dream became true for Dr. Sandip Kaledhonkar, an OSU Physics PhD in the field of biophysics.
Dr. Kaledhonkar did his postdoctoral research at Columbia University in the Laboratory of Professor Joachim Frank, a 2017 Nobel Laureate in Chemistry (for developing CryoEM Technology). After completing his PhD study in time-resolved infrared structural biology in the Biophysics Research Group of Professor Aihua Xie, Dr. Kaledhonkar was hired by Professor Frank to develop the cutting-edge technology of time-resolved Cryo-electron microscopy (CryoEM). This year (2019), Dr. Kaledhonkar published a first authored paper in Nature and a co-authored paper in Nature Communications, both using time-resolved CryoEM. Such outstanding accomplishments led him to receive an offer for a faculty position as an assistant professor at the Indian Institute of Technology (the renowned IIT) in Bombay, which is one of the best universities in India.
Dr. Sandip Kaledhonkar with his postdoctoral advisor Professor Joachim Frank at Columbia University.
Dr. Kaledhonkar with his lab-mates and PhD advisor Professor Aihua Xie at Oklahoma State University.
Dr. Kaledhonkar is preparing to establish a structural biology lab with the cryo-EM facility (for multiple research institutes around Mumbai). In addition, he will teach students pursuing undergraduate and graduate degrees in sciences and engineering.
While at OSU, Dr. Kaledhonkar was honored as an outstanding Teaching Assistant in 2011, and outstanding Research Assistant in 2012. His PhD research on “Structural Dynamics of Photoactive Yellow Protein” made significant contributions to the field of photoactive yellow protein for biological signaling, to the classic Hofmeister series, on protein structure and dynamics, and on the emerging technology of time-resolved infrared structural biology.