THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Beena Pillai, an accomplished scientist from Kalady, has been named the new director of the Rajiv Gandhi Centre for Biotechnology (BRIC-RGCB), Thiruvananthapuram.
She currently serves as chief scientist at the CSIR-Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology (CSIR-IGIB), New Delhi, a leading institute in genomics, molecular medicine, and bioinformatics.
Her appointment, approved by the appointments committee of the Union cabinet, is for a period of five years.
Beena succeeds Chandrabhas Narayana, who completed his tenure in September last year. She is expected to head new initiatives at BRIC-RGCB, including a cGMP facility, a bio-manufacturing hub, and an oncology referral hospital.
A distinguished researcher in RNA biology and neuronal development, Beena’s laboratory at CSIR-IGIB investigates the role of RNAs in early development, neurogenesis, adult behavior, disease susceptibility, and miRNA markers for human diseases.