KOSHISH, and More…

The hesitant birth of a gravid idea, that is how I would describe KOSHISH (name suggested by Anupam Talwar of 2004 batch). KOSHISH is an enterprise in community and grassroots participation. It is comprised of similar minded individuals from our alumni as well as current students. So far we have only been able to get this idea across to the first and second year batches (all others were involved in professional examinations); we have a small group of excited, eager and energetic individuals. On the home front Varinder Pal Sandhu (’93 batch, currently Senior Resident in orthopedics at GMC Chandigarh) is working hard on this cause as well.

The mission of KOSHISH is three fold: firstly to serve as a channel for us to contribute back into our community through the provision of our services and expertise, medications, medical equipment, money and other means; secondly to foster among current students, a sense of social responsibility, community leadership and involvement and lastly, but certainly not the least, a way for us, alumni, to be able to connect back with our alma mater, our colleagues and our community.

Though the genotype has been “conceived” by ex-students, the phenotype will be entirely a product of current students. In other words, what form and figure KOSHISH finally evolves into will be determined mostly by the vision and efforts of the current students. They will be responsible for making all decisions, deciding budgets and resource allocation and prioritization. It would be up to them to decide about the structure and day-to-day running of KOSHISH. That does not imply in any sense that we would be passive observers. There are several ways that we could contribute. Most vital would to be able to generate and provide funds. We are of course there to provide advice whenever required, as well as to lend our services, either in person or by other means of communication, where feasible and required.

Through KOSHISH we could provide medicines, money to those who can’t afford basic drugs, organize camps in slums or blood donation drives, buy medically necessary equipment, conduct educational seminars and talks, link with local health related organizations such as the Red Cross and the Mother Teresa foundation, work in tandem with the media…there are many ways that this can work. Ideas and suggestion, are as always, welcome.

What we need for now are several more alumni to get excited and involved in this cause. We need all current batches of our college to be aware about KOSHISH as well. KOSHISH may have just begun, and it will require a lot of persistence and nursing, but in the end, it will be worth the effort.

At the same time that I was back home in India in October working on KOSHISH, I was able to have a ‘chai and samosa’ session with about 40 odd students regarding the USMLE and visa issues. Veeraish Chauhan (’99 batch) was a big help as he got the message across to other students and helped organize this meeting. We had students from all the current batches including some interns as well. The session went on for about 2 hours; despite visa clamp-downs it was quite evident that the interest to come to the USA for residency is unabated; questions ranged from the structure and timing to the USMLE to the interview process, visa issues and the GRE. It was a very enjoyable session and personally to me very gratifying and stimulating to be able to get together with current students. Of course a little bit of gossip is always in order, and we exchanged some vignettes about our more non-academic moments! Hopefully many more alumni will volunteer for such meetings with students; it certainly does not have to be about the USMLE; it could range from the Indian PG exams to the IAS etc. I realized through this session just how helpful some current students perceive such interactions, and for us this is a win-win deal anyway.

Sandeep Kochar

(Class of ’93)

Spotlight

Maneesh Gupta (‘94) is currently a Research Assistant Professor in Molecular and Medical Genetics at the Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, Oregon, USA. He shares some of his experiences with us, which we hope will be helpful to alumni/students aspiring to go into basic research.

ª Editors (Eds): Maneesh, which batch are you from and what are you doing currently?

§ Maneesh (MG): I am from the 1994 batch of GMC. I came to the USA shortly after completing my MBBS and have been at Portland, Oregon since then. I am currently working as a Research Assistant Professor in Molecular and Medical Genetics at the Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) in Portland.

ª Eds: What is your area of current research?

§ MG: I am working on a knock out mouse model for SSADH (Succinate Semi-aldehyde Dehydrogenase) deficiency. I am using this mouse model to investigate the use of either pharmacological measures or gene therapy to treat this deficiency. Interestingly this model also has huge amounts of gamma-hydroxy butyrate (GHB), which is a drug of abuse. So the disease is also called gamma-hydroxy butyric aciduria. I have used recombinant adenovirus as gene therapy for the mouse. Currently, I am trying to clone this gene into a transposone vector which I can subsequently use for gene therapy. I am also doing hepatocyte transplant in these mice since this is a metabolic disease and can be potentially cured by liver cell transfer.

ª Eds: There is hardly any impetus on basic research during MBBS, how did you get interested in genetics?

§ MG: I have always been exposed to an academic atmosphere, both at home and at school. My father retired as Professor of Microbiology and the Dean of Punjab University and my sister is a PhD in Biochemistry. During MBBS, I would often talk to ABC (for those who don't know, Amit Bir Chawla of ’92 batch) about genetics and how it is going to be the future of medicine and I have always wanted to pursue a career in it.

ª Eds: How did you get a position in the current lab that you are working in?

§ MG: I initially volunteered to work in a genetics lab at the OHSU here at Portland. There was no formal interview or exam. I had to do a lot of work to begin with – had to learn many new things and experimental techniques (on my own). As I progressed, I was able to show that I could work independently and be productive. After I had spent some time in the lab, a position for a post-doctoral fellow opened up. I applied and was accepted for the position. That's how I started working here.

ª Eds: Were you expected to have a PhD or other prior research lab training?

§ MG: No. We don't really need a PhD since our MBBS is equivalent to MD here in USA, and for basic research this is sufficient. The only disadvantage with our medical school training is that we don’t get much education and exposure to basic research and most Principal Investigators (faculty in charge of the lab) like to hire someone who already knows the nuts and bolts of lab functioning. You can of course pursue graduate course work towards a PhD and that is a good option if you want to spend major part of your time and effort in basic research.

ª Eds: You did not have any basic research experience, what steps did you have to go through before you started as a post-doctoral fellow?

§ MG: Like I said earlier, I worked as volunteer for sometime. So I had some basic research experience at the time I applied for the post-doc position. I had learned most of the techniques you would need in a lab. Basically, after this, all you need are ideas and follow them up with experiments. My training as a doctor has been very helpful as I can also look at things from a clinical perspective, some thing a lot of PhD researcher’s lack. After all, the whole idea of gene therapy is to develop treatments that can be eventually used in patients. Overall, I think most of the time, people want to hire someone who is reliable, hard working and well grounded so that their project can move forward. Lot of experience is not expected, especially when starting as a post-doctoral fellow.

ª Eds: What visa are you on currently?

§ MG: I was on a tourist visa when I started here as a volunteer, currently I am on H1B visa. 

ª Eds: What are your long term plans?

§ MG: I do intend to do pursue a residency because I think just doing basic research without clinical training here is not going to take me far. Almost half or more of the faculty here are physicians who see patients and also pursue bench research and I think this is the best combination. I intend doing a fellowship in Medical Genetics after finishing basic residency training which will train me to become a clinical geneticist. 

ª Eds: Any tips for people wanting to pursue careers in basic research in the USA?

§ MG: It is not easy for someone applying directly from India to get a basic research position here in the US. I was able to get it because I worked as volunteer for sometime. No one will pay to get someone here from India who has no experience at all. So if you have no experience, the best way is to work in a lab here as a volunteer and prove your mettle. A better option would be to take the GRE and then join a graduate program for PhD in an area of interest. For someone who has a green card, it is easier because they can work without having to be on a visa. I would like to emphasize again that hard work is the key to success.

ª Eds: Tell us a little more about yourself.

§ MG: I am still a bachelor. I sing ... (just kidding). You know honestly, I have been so busy over the last few years that I did not get time for anything, especially with all the USMLE exams and work. Now I am looking for fun things to do, but don't have anything particular in mind.

ª Eds: Thanks for your time and all the best for the future.

ESHAN (11^th August 2004), Connie & Amarender (’91)

SOUMYA (5^th August 2004), Sonia & Amit (’91) (pictured below)