Dr. Kuljit Singh

Dr. Kuljit Singh

Senior Scientist

Infectious Diseases Division

CSIR – Indian Institute of Integrative Medicine,Canal Road, Jammu – 180001
Email: singhkuljit[dot]iiim[at]csir[dot]res[dot]in
Phone/ext.: 333

Profile

Bio Sketch

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) has become a serious threat to human health and well-being worldwide. Our group explores comprehensive research on drug-resistant ESKAPE pathogens which cause nosocomial infections and are associated with increased morbidity, mortality, and healthcare costs.

Our prime focus is to investigate novel strategies to give an impetus to the drug discovery pipeline against these deadly infections. Our group aims to identify potent scaffolds and validate novel therapeutic targets to bolster and diversify the chemical space accessible for drug discovery. Our lab is very interested in understanding the phenomena of anti-microbial resistance and discovering the mechanism of pathogen survival in stressful and healthcare environments. We have developed various assays to decipher the mechanism of action of bioactive molecules using molecular biology and biochemical approaches.

Also, we explore the possibility of developing NCEs against Visceral Leishmaniasis (VL) or Kala-azar, a neglected tropical disease that affects millions of poor people worldwide. VL has a high fatality rate and is ranked next to malaria as the deadliest protozoan disease. We study the systemic biology of leishmanial parasites and the development of therapeutic implications with a phytopharmaceutical/synthetic approach.

Education

Degree Subjects University Qualifying Year
Ph.D. Biotechnology NIPER-Hajipur 2018
M.S. (PHARM.) Biotechnology NIPER-S.A.S. Nagar 2012
B. PHARMACY Pharmacy PTU-Jalandhar 2010

Position Held

Position Held

Position Held Period Organization
Senior Scientist 2024 – Present CSIR-IIIM, JAMMU
Scientist 2020 – 2024 CSIR-IIIM, JAMMU
Research Associate-I 2019 – 2020 CSIR-IMTECH, Chandigarh
Research Officer 2018 – 2019 THSTI-Faridabad

 

 

Area of Expertise

Area of Expertise

  • Bioactive Screening, Antimicrobial Resistance and Drug Discovery
  • Biology of Healthcare-associated ESKAPE pathogens
  • Therapeutic targets approach through Molecular Biology and Clinical Microbiology
  • Protein biochemistry, structure, and functional elucidation

 

 

 

 

 

Project Involved / Ongoing Projects

Projects

    • CSPS24/IHP24/03: Development of tertiary amides of beddomeilactone as novel Anti-staphylococcal agents: A multi-disciplinary approach
    • GAP-3114: Evaluation and mechanistic studies of N-glycosylated 3,3′-Diindolylmethane derivatives against Leishmania donovani
    • MLP-21005: Assay establishment and screening of anti-infective compounds
    • MLP-110014: Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCov) testing in human clinical samples at CSIR-IIIM

 

 

 

 

Publications and Patents

Publications

Authors Title Journal
Aliya Tabassum, Diksha Kumari, Harshad Bhore, Tashi Palmo, Initha Venkatesan, Jayanta Samanta, Anil Katare, Yogesh P Bharitkar*, Kuljit Singh* Synthesis of novel spiroisoxazolidino hybrids of alantolactone and isoalantolactone via 1, 3 dipolar nitrone cycloaddition and its antimicrobial Evaluation Bioorganic Chemistry, 154 (2025) 108087
Vimarishi Koul, Akshi Sharma, Diksha Kumari, Vishwani Jamwal, Tashi Palmo, Kuljit Singh* Breaking the resistance: integrative approaches with novel therapeutics against Klebsiella pneumoniae Archives of Microbiology, 207 (2025) 18
Diksha Kumari, Vishwani Jamwal, Tashi Palmo, Anuj Kumar, Kuljit Singh* High-throughput screening identifies novel chemical scaffolds targeting Leishmania donovani parasites World Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology, 41 (2025) 247
Diksha Kumari, Jaspreet Kour, Anuj Kumar, Monica Sangral, Shashank K Singh, Sanghapal D Sawant*, Kuljit Singh* Novel pyrazole derivatives as inhibitors of Leishmania donovani: an integrated approach combining in vitro analysis and mechanistic insights Bioorganic Chemistry, 164 (2025) 108804
Vishwani Jamwal, Tashi Palmo, Kuljit Singh* Understanding the mechanisms of antimicrobial resistance and potential therapeutic approaches against the Gram-negative pathogen Acinetobacter baumannii RSC Medicinal Chemistry, 15 (2024) 3925–3949
Diksha Kumari, Dixhya Rani, Anil Bhushan, Vishwani Jamwal, Bashir Lone, Gunjan Lakhanpal, Amit Nargotra, Prasoon Gupta and Kuljit Singh* Design, synthesis, and biological evaluation of eugenol-isoxazoline hybrid derivatives as potential anti-leishmanial agents Journal of Molecular Structure, 1308 (2024) 138105
Diksha Kumari, Parampreet Kour, Chetan Paul Singh, Rinku Choudhary, Syed Mudassir Ali, Sagar Bhayye, Yogesh P. Bharitkar, Kuljit Singh* Anhydroparthenin as a dual-target inhibitor against Sterol C-24 methyltransferase and Sterol 14-α demethylase of Leishmania donovani: A comprehensive in vitro and in silico study International Journal of Biological Macromolecules, 269 (2024) 132034
Diksha Kumari, Vishwani Jamwal, Ajeet Singh, Shashank K. Singh, Somdutt Mujwar, Md. Yousuf Ansari, Kuljit Singh* Repurposing FDA Approved Drugs against Sterol C-24 methyltransferase of Leishmania donovani: A Dual in silico and in vitro Approach Acta Tropica, 258 (2024) 107338
Diksha Kumari, Harjot Kaur, Tashi Palmo, Amit Nargotra, Kuljit Singh* Exploring natural product library as potential target against Sterol C-24 methyltransferase protein of Leishmania donovani

Natural Product Research, 18 (2024) 1-7
Parampreet Kour, Pallavi Saha, Deepak K. Sharma, Kuljit Singh* DNA topoisomerases as a drug target in Leishmaniasis: Structural and mechanistic insights International Journal of Biological Macromolecules, 256 (2024) 128401
Parampreet Kour, Pallavi Saha , Srija Bhattacharya , Diksha Kumari, Abhipsa Debnath, Amit Roy, Deepak Sharma, Debaraj Mukherjee and Kuljit Singh* Design, Synthesis, and biological evaluation of 3,3’-diindolylmethane N-linked glycoconjugate as Leishmanial Topoisomerase IB inhibitor with reduced cytotoxicity RSC Medicinal Chemistry, 14 (2023) 2100-2114
Boobalan Gopu, Parampreet Kour, Ramajayan Pandian, Kuljit Singh* Insights into the drug screening approaches in leishmaniasis

International Immunopharmacology, 114 (2023) 109591
Diksha Kumari, Shavi Mahajan, Parampreet Kour and Kuljit Singh* Virulence factors of Leishmania parasite: Their paramount importance in unraveling novel vaccine candidates and therapeutic targets Life Sciences, 306 (2022) 120829
Diksha Kumari, and Kuljit Singh* Exploring the paradox of defense between host and Leishmania parasite

International Immunopharmacology, 102 (2022) 108400
Diksha Kumari, Summaya Perveen, Rashmi Sharma, Kuljit Singh* Advancement in leishmaniasis diagnosis and therapeutics: An update European Journal of Pharmacology, 910 (2021) 174436
Kuljit Singh, Vahab Ali, Krishn Pratap Singh, Parool Gupta, Shashi S. Suman, Ayan K. Ghosh, Sanjiva Bimal, Krishna Pandey and Pradeep Das Deciphering the interplay between cysteine synthase and thiol cascade proteins in modulating Amphotericin B resistance and survival of Leishmania donovani under oxidative stress Redox Biology, 12 (2017) 350-366
Kuljit Singh, Krishn Pratap Singh, Asif Equbal, Shashi S. Suman, Amir Zaidi, Gaurav Garg, Krishna Pandey, Pradeep Das and Vahab Ali Interaction between cysteine synthase and serine O-acetyltransferase proteins and their stage specific expression in Leishmania donovani Biochimie, 131 (2016) 29-44

Book Chapters

  • Therapeutic Applications of Probiotics and its Regulatory Framework. Kuljit Singh, Tejinder Kaur and Alka Rao. Publisher: Elsevier (2022).
  • Safety of Nanoparticles: Emphasis on Antimicrobial Properties. Kuljit Singh*, Shimona Ahlawat, Diksha Kumari, Uma Matlani and Alka Rao*. Publisher: Springer Nature (2023).
  • Biomarker Studies of Glycoproteins and Mass Spectrometry. Muhammad Aquib, Tarnnum Quadri, Kuljit Singh*, and Alka Rao*. Publisher: Springer Nature (2025).
  • Applications of various nanocomposites used for anti-microbial activity, tissue engineering, biosensors and dental. Diksha Kumari, Parampreet Kour, Vishwani Jamwal, Boobalan Gopu, Kuljit Singh*. Publisher: Taylor & Francis (2025).

Awards / Honours

Awards and Honours

    • Gold Medalist in B. Pharmacy (Batch 2006-2010)
    • Registered Pharmacist at Punjab State Pharmacy Council, India
    • Qualified for GPAT-2010 exam, conducted by M.S. University of Baroda (May 2010).
    • Award of a research fellowship from the Ministry of Chemical and Fertilizers, Govt. of India, for a Ph.D. and M.S. (Pharm.) degree at NIPER
    • The travel grant award for young investigators from India and South East Asia by Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation at the 17th International Congress on Infectious Diseases (ICID-2016)
    • Scholarship and travel award from SciGenome Research Foundation (SGRF) at NextGen Genomics, Biology, Bioinformatics and Technologies conference (NGBT-2016)
    • Awarded with third Best Poster Presentation Prize at 2nd National Seminar on Current Trends in Life Science (CTLS-2017)
    • Awarded with Start-up Research Grant (SRG), DST, Govt. of India (2022)

Group

Students

Photo Name Area of Interest Position Education
Vishwani Jamwal Identification of novel scaffolds against drug- resistant Staphylococcus aureus pathogen Ph.D. Scholar- (UGC-SRF)

M.Sc. Zoology

(Chandigarh University- Punjab), Qualified CSIR UGC-NET 2022 and GATE 2022
Tashi Palmo Exploring natural product molecules as potential anti-bacterial agents Ph.D. Scholar- (UGC-SRF)

M.Sc. Zoology

(University of Delhi), Qualified CSIR UGC-NET 2023
Anuj Kumar Preclinical development of the identified potent antibacterial hits Ph.D. Scholar- (UGC-JRF)

M.Sc. Zoology

(GNDU, Amritsar- Punjab), Qualified CSIR UGC-NET 2023
Meenakshi  Sharma Characterization of natural product-based molecules against ESKAPE pathogens Ph.D. Scholar- (UGC-JRF)

M.Sc. Biotechnology

(SMVDU, Katra- J&K), Qualified CSIR UGC-NET 2024

Alumni

Dr. Diksha Kumari

Ph.D. completed in September 2025

 

Thesis Title: Identification of small molecules as potential inhibitors against leishmaniasis
  • Aman Kumar (Post-Graduate Trainee)
  • Milee (Graduate Trainee)
  • Sachin (Post-Graduate Trainee)
  • Wajhida Sayeed (Graduate Trainee)
  • Yawer Rehman (Post-Graduate Trainee)
  • Priyanka Thakur (Post-Graduate Trainee)
  • Akshi Sharma (Graduate Trainee)
  • Vimarishi Koul (Post-Graduate Trainee)
  • Fiza Khursheed (Graduate Trainee)
  • Anil Saini (Post-Graduate Trainee)
  • Mahiya Koul (Post-Graduate Trainee)
  • Praney Mahajan (Graduate Trainee)
  • Kritika Jaggi (Post-Graduate Trainee)