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A two-day national lecture workshop on "Recent Advances in Biomedical Sciences for Accelerating Drug Discovery and Therapeutics" was hosted at the Central University of Tamil Nadu (CUTN) on 20 and 21 July 2026.
Organised by the Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, the academic event was jointly sponsored by India’s premier science bodies, the Indian National Science Academy (INSA), New Delhi; the Indian Academy of Sciences (IASc), Bengaluru; and The National Academy of Sciences, India (NASI), Allahabad.
The primary objective of the workshop is to provide a vibrant platform for academic interaction, featuring expert lectures and technical deliberations on the rapidly evolving paradigms of biomedical research and drug development.
Delivering the keynote address at the inaugural session, Prof. M. Krishnan, former Vice-Chancellor of CUTN, highlighted the critical role of interdisciplinary research in bridging the gap between fundamental biological sciences and clinical drug translation.
Earlier, Dr S.B. Anand, Associate Professor of Epidemiology and Public Health and coordinator of the event, welcomed the gathering. Outlining the scope and learning objectives of the two-day deliberations, workshop convenor Prof. K. Dharmalingam, Bhatnagar awardee and Director-Research at the Aravind Medical Research Foundation, Madurai, urged participants to focus on translational outcomes.
Offering felicitations, Sr. Prof. Sulochana Shekhar, Vice-Chancellor (in-charge), and Prof. R. Thirumurugan, Registrar, CUTN, encouraged students to leverage national-level academic forums to build robust research foundations.
Around 158 participants—comprising faculty members, research scholars, and undergraduate and postgraduate students from various universities and colleges across Tamil Nadu—are attending the sessions.
The resource persons for the workshop include distinguished scientists such as Prof. K. Kaliraj, former Vice-Chancellor of Bharathiar University and ICMR Emeritus Scientist at Anna University; Prof. Kumaravel Somasundaram from the Department of Microbiology and Cell Biology, IISc Bengaluru; and Prof. K. Balamurugan, Head of the Department of Biotechnology, Alagappa University.
Dr. V. Rajendiran, Associate Professor in the Department of Chemistry and deputy coordinator of the event, proposed the vote of thanks during the inaugural ceremony