Dr. Arpita Tawani
Scientific Expert - Structural Biology, Kolabtree, London, United Kingdom
Protein Biochemist and Structural Biologist with over 14 years of wet-lab research experience,
IMPARC ID: IMP-MP-SBIO-LDN-UK-2025-2115
Profile Summary
Dr. Arpita Tawani is an accomplished Protein Biochemist and Structural Biologist with over 14 years of wet-lab research experience, including 6.5 years of specialized training in solid-state NMR spectroscopy. Her work spans recombinant protein expression, purification, isotope labeling, and the application of advanced biophysical techniques such as UV-Vis spectroscopy, fluorescence spectroscopy, circular dichroism, ITC, TEM, SAXS, SANS, mass spectrometry, and FT-IR. She has engineered protein constructs, prepared isotopically labeled proteins, and extensively utilized software tools including TopSpin, CCPN, NMRPipe, and Adobe Illustrator CC.
Her research career includes significant contributions as a Doctoral Researcher at IIT Indore, a Postdoctoral Researcher at CBMN–CNRS (France), a Visiting Researcher at Rockefeller University (USA), and a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at Albert Einstein College of Medicine, New York. She has experience in molecular biology techniques such as PCR, primer design, molecular cloning, site-directed mutagenesis, and RNA interference. Additionally, she has contributed to molecular diagnostics projects involving Nipah virus (NiV), gaining hands-on experience in BSL-3/4 environments.
Dr. Tawani has authored 13 publications (5 first-authored) with an H-index of 12 and over 768 citations. She has delivered invited talks internationally, mentored Master’s and high-school interns, and served as Guest Associate Editor for Computational Genomics (Frontiers). Her expertise spans structural biology, membrane protein biophysics, chemical biology, and nucleic acid interactions.
Subject Matter Expertise
STEM → Biology →
– Biochemistry
– Protein Biochemistry
– Biophysics
– Structural Biophysics
– Molecular Biology
– Genetic Engineering
Chemistry →
– Analytical Chemistry
– Spectroscopy (UV-Vis, Fluorescence, CD, NMR)
– Materials Science & Engineering
– Nanomaterials (SAXS/SANS, TEM)
– Biochemistry
– Protein Biochemistry
– Biophysics
– Structural Biophysics
– Molecular Biology
– Genetic Engineering
Chemistry →
– Analytical Chemistry
– Spectroscopy (UV-Vis, Fluorescence, CD, NMR)
– Materials Science & Engineering
– Nanomaterials (SAXS/SANS, TEM)
Mentorship Offered
Research →
– Scientific and Technical Research
– Systematic Literature Review
– Technology Scouting
Writing →
– Technical Writing
– General Proofreading & Editing
– Scientific and Technical Research
– Systematic Literature Review
– Technology Scouting
Writing →
– Technical Writing
– General Proofreading & Editing
Work Experience Summary
Dr. Tawani has extensive international research experience across India, France, and the United States. She has worked in top-tier research institutions, contributing to structural biology, membrane protein biochemistry, and viral diagnostics. Her roles include Senior Research Fellow, Junior Research Fellow, Doctoral Researcher, Postdoctoral Researcher, Visiting Researcher, and Postdoctoral Research Fellow. Her responsibilities included performing high-level biophysical experiments, protein engineering, molecular cloning, spectroscopic analysis, and work in high-containment laboratories.
Institute Name: Kolabtree
Job Title: Scientific Expert (Freelance)
Description: Provides expert-level scientific consulting, technical writing, and biochemical analysis for global clients.
Duration: Nov 2025 – Present
Institute Name: The Rockefeller University, New York, USA
Job Title: Visiting Fellow
Description: Conducted advanced research in biochemistry and protein purification; contributed to high-impact structural biology projects.
Duration: Sep 2022 – Feb 2025 (2 yrs 6 mos)
Institute Name: Albert Einstein College of Medicine, New York, USA
Job Title: Postdoctoral Researcher
Description: Designed and executed protein engineering strategies to create functional constructs of nucleoporins and transport receptors; optimized complexes for structural and dynamic studies.
Duration: Jul 2022 – Feb 2025 (2 yrs 8 mos)
Institute Name: Institut Européen de Chimie et Biologie (IECB), France
Job Title: Postdoctoral Researcher
Description: Investigated molecular events during bacterial division using solid-state NMR spectroscopy; contributed to structural studies of protein–lipid interactions.
Duration: Sep 2017 – Sep 2021 (4 yrs 1 mo)
Institute Name: Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Indore
Role: Research Associate
Description: Supported ongoing biochemical and molecular biology research projects; contributed to data collection and laboratory workflow optimization.
Duration: Jul 2017 – Sep 2017 (3 mos)
Institute Name: Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Indore
Role: PhD Researcher
Description: Completed doctoral work in structural biology and biophysics.
Duration: Jan 2013 – Jun 2017 (4 yrs 6 mos)
Institute Name: Anand Agricultural University, Gujarat
Job Title: Senior Research Fellow
Description: Conducted research on goat myostatin gene silencing using RNAi; performed RT-qPCR and Western blot analysis; supported molecular cloning and cell culture experiments.
Duration: May 2012 – Sep 2012 (5 mos)
Institute Name: National Institute of High Security Animal Diseases (NIHSAD), Bhopal
Job Title: Junior Research Fellow
Description: Worked on diagnostics and zoo-epidemiology of Nipah Virus (NiV); performed virus propagation, qPCR, hemagglutination assays, and molecular diagnostics.
Duration: Aug 2011 – Apr 2012 (9 mos)
Institute Name: Devi Ahilya Vishwavidyalaya (DAVV), Indore
Job Title: Project Trainee
Description: Investigated inflammation-driven progression of diabetes mellitus using animal models; conducted biological assays and data analysis.
Duration: Nov 2010 – May 2011 (7 mos)
Job Title: Scientific Expert (Freelance)
Description: Provides expert-level scientific consulting, technical writing, and biochemical analysis for global clients.
Duration: Nov 2025 – Present
Institute Name: The Rockefeller University, New York, USA
Job Title: Visiting Fellow
Description: Conducted advanced research in biochemistry and protein purification; contributed to high-impact structural biology projects.
Duration: Sep 2022 – Feb 2025 (2 yrs 6 mos)
Institute Name: Albert Einstein College of Medicine, New York, USA
Job Title: Postdoctoral Researcher
Description: Designed and executed protein engineering strategies to create functional constructs of nucleoporins and transport receptors; optimized complexes for structural and dynamic studies.
Duration: Jul 2022 – Feb 2025 (2 yrs 8 mos)
Institute Name: Institut Européen de Chimie et Biologie (IECB), France
Job Title: Postdoctoral Researcher
Description: Investigated molecular events during bacterial division using solid-state NMR spectroscopy; contributed to structural studies of protein–lipid interactions.
Duration: Sep 2017 – Sep 2021 (4 yrs 1 mo)
Institute Name: Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Indore
Role: Research Associate
Description: Supported ongoing biochemical and molecular biology research projects; contributed to data collection and laboratory workflow optimization.
Duration: Jul 2017 – Sep 2017 (3 mos)
Institute Name: Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Indore
Role: PhD Researcher
Description: Completed doctoral work in structural biology and biophysics.
Duration: Jan 2013 – Jun 2017 (4 yrs 6 mos)
Institute Name: Anand Agricultural University, Gujarat
Job Title: Senior Research Fellow
Description: Conducted research on goat myostatin gene silencing using RNAi; performed RT-qPCR and Western blot analysis; supported molecular cloning and cell culture experiments.
Duration: May 2012 – Sep 2012 (5 mos)
Institute Name: National Institute of High Security Animal Diseases (NIHSAD), Bhopal
Job Title: Junior Research Fellow
Description: Worked on diagnostics and zoo-epidemiology of Nipah Virus (NiV); performed virus propagation, qPCR, hemagglutination assays, and molecular diagnostics.
Duration: Aug 2011 – Apr 2012 (9 mos)
Institute Name: Devi Ahilya Vishwavidyalaya (DAVV), Indore
Job Title: Project Trainee
Description: Investigated inflammation-driven progression of diabetes mellitus using animal models; conducted biological assays and data analysis.
Duration: Nov 2010 – May 2011 (7 mos)
Educational Summary
Dr. Tawani holds a Ph.D. in Biosciences and Biomedical Engineering from IIT Indore with a thesis focused on small-molecule anticancer modulators targeting G-quadruplex DNA. She earned her M.Sc. in Biotechnology from DAVV Indore with Distinction and her B.Sc. in Biotechnology from Holkar Science College, topping both with First Division marks.
Institution Name: Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Indore
Degree Title: Ph.D.
Field/Description: Biosciences and Biomedical Engineering – Structural and molecular insight into small-molecule anticancer modulators targeting G-quadruplex DNA.
Duration: Jan 2013 – Jun 2017
Institution Name: School of Biotechnology, Devi Ahilya Vishwavidyalaya (DAVV), Indore
Degree Title: M.Sc. Biotechnology
Field/Description: Biotechnology (8.3 CGPA / 77.8%, First Division with Distinction)
Duration: Jul 2007 – May 2009
Institution Name: Govt. Holkar Science College, DAVV Indore
Degree Title: B.Sc. Biotechnology
Field/Description: Biotechnology (72%, First Division)
Duration: Jul 2004 – May 2007
Degree Title: Ph.D.
Field/Description: Biosciences and Biomedical Engineering – Structural and molecular insight into small-molecule anticancer modulators targeting G-quadruplex DNA.
Duration: Jan 2013 – Jun 2017
Institution Name: School of Biotechnology, Devi Ahilya Vishwavidyalaya (DAVV), Indore
Degree Title: M.Sc. Biotechnology
Field/Description: Biotechnology (8.3 CGPA / 77.8%, First Division with Distinction)
Duration: Jul 2007 – May 2009
Institution Name: Govt. Holkar Science College, DAVV Indore
Degree Title: B.Sc. Biotechnology
Field/Description: Biotechnology (72%, First Division)
Duration: Jul 2004 – May 2007
Certifications
Her qualifications include competitive national fellowship examinations such as NET-LS, IMBIBE-2011 (3rd Rank), and GATE Biotechnology (93.98 percentile), earning her an MHRD Ph.D. fellowship.
Title: CSIR/UGC NET – Lectureship (Rank 74/1065)
Issued By: CSIR/UGC
Issue Date: June 2010
Title: IMBIBE-2011 (3rd Rank)
Issued By: Madhya Pradesh Biotechnology Council
Issue Date: 2011
Title: GATE Biotechnology – 93.98 Percentile
Issued By: IITs / MHRD
Issue Date: 2012
Issued By: CSIR/UGC
Issue Date: June 2010
Title: IMBIBE-2011 (3rd Rank)
Issued By: Madhya Pradesh Biotechnology Council
Issue Date: 2011
Title: GATE Biotechnology – 93.98 Percentile
Issued By: IITs / MHRD
Issue Date: 2012
Publication Summary
Dr. Tawani has 13 publications, including five first-authored papers, with an H-index of 12 and 768 citations. Her work spans telomeric DNA targeting, RNA–protein interactions, membrane protein nanodomains, and nuclear pore complex structure. She has published in Scientific Reports, ACS Chemical Biology, Frontiers in Molecular Biosciences, and others.
Title: Molecular and Cellular Basis of Hypersialylation in Cancer
Journal / Book Series: Advances in Cancer Research (Book Series)
Authors: Arpita Tawani, Ashish K. Mukherjee
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/82_2019_192
URL: https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/82_2019_192
Published In (Year): 2020
Title: Nanodomain Clustering of Bacterial Membrane Protein ZipA by Cardiolipin Modulates Z-ring Formation
Journal: Frontiers in Molecular Biosciences
Authors: A. Legrand, Arpita Tawani, E. Duchesne, D. Divakaruni, J. Liu, J. H. Hwang, A. K. Mukherjee, J. M. R. Fraga, C. Charlier, S. Ravaud, A. Milon
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fmolb.2019.00107
URL: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmolb.2019.00107/full
Published In (Year): 2019
Title: Nanodomain Organization of Bacterial Membrane Protein ZipA Revealed by Solid-State NMR and Molecular Simulations
Journal: Biochimica et Biophysica Acta (BBA) – Biomembranes
Authors: A. Legrand, Arpita Tawani, S. Ravaud, A. Milon
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biochi.2019.05.001
URL: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0300908419301403
Published In (Year): 2019
Title: Myricetin reduces toxic RNA–foci formation and improves neuromuscular function in Myotonic Dystrophy Type 1 (DM1)
Journal: Scientific Reports (Nature Publishing Group)
Authors: Erum Khan, Arpita Tawani (Co-first Author), Annesha Das, Shrisha Rao, Rohit Kumar, Ashish K. Mukherjee
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-018-38400-x
URL: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-018-38400-x
Published In (Year): 2019
Title: Characterization of highly conserved G-quadruplex motifs as potential drug targets in Streptococcus pneumoniae
Journal: Scientific Reports (Nature Publishing Group), Volume 9, Article Number: 1791
Authors: Subodh Kumar Mishra, Neha Jain, Uma Shankar, Arpita Tawani, Tarun Kumar Sharma, Amit Kumar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-018-38400-x
URL: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-018-38400-x
Published In (Year): 2019
Title: Myricetin Prevents Toxic RNA-Protein Aggregation in Myotonic Dystrophy Type 1 by Inhibiting MBNL1 Sequestration
Journal: Biochemistry (ACS Publications)
Authors: Erum Khan, Arpita Tawani, Ashish K. Mukherjee
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.biochem.8b00880
URL: https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acs.biochem.8b00880
Published In (Year): 2019
Title: QuadBase2: web server for multiplexed guanine quadruplex mining and visualization
Journal: Database: The Journal of Biological Databases and Curation (Oxford University Press)
Authors: Arpita Tawani, Ashish K. Sharma
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/database/bay082
URL: https://academic.oup.com/database/article/doi/10.1093/database/bay082/5096728
Published In (Year): 2018
Title: Investigating the Interaction of Quercetin with G-Quadruplex DNA Using Biophysical and Computational Approaches
Journal: ACS Chemical Biology (American Chemical Society)
Authors: Arpita Tawani, Ashish Kumar Sharma
DOI: 10.1021/acschembio.7b00699
URL: https://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/acschembio.7b00699
Published In (Year): 2018
Title: G-Quadruplex Recognition by Quercetin: A Biophysical and Molecular Docking Study
Journal: Scientific Reports (Nature Publishing Group)
Authors: Arpita Tawani, Ashish K. Sharma
DOI: 10.1038/s41598-017-03906-3
URL: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-017-03906-3
Published In (Year): 2017
Title: Flavonoid Interactions with Telomeric DNA: Insights into Their Binding Mechanism
Journal: Scientific Reports (Nature Publishing Group)
Authors: Arpita Tawani, Ashish Kumar Sharma, Amit Kumar
DOI: 10.1038/srep42062
URL: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27995955/
Published In (Year): 2017
Title: G4IPDB: A Database for G-Quadruplex Structure-Forming Nucleic Acid–Interacting Proteins
Journal: Scientific Reports (Nature Publishing Group)
Authors: Subodh Kumar Mishra, Arpita Tawani, Ashish Mishra, Amit Kumar
DOI: 10.1038/srep38144
URL: https://www.nature.com/articles/srep38144
Published In (Year): 2016
Title: Flavonoid Interactions with Telomeric DNA–Protein Complex: Insights into Molecular Recognition of G-Quadruplex Structure
Journal: Scientific Reports (Nature Publishing Group)
Authors: Arpita Tawani, Ashish Kumar Sharma, Amit Kumar
DOI: 10.1038/srep17574
URL: https://www.nature.com/articles/srep17574
Published In (Year): 2015
Title: Interaction of Epigallocatechin Gallate with G-Quadruplex DNA: Structure–Function Insights into Potential Anticancer Activity
Journal: PLOS ONE
Authors: Arpita Tawani, Ashish Kumar Sharma, Amit Kumar
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0131788
URL: https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0131788
Published In (Year): 2015
Title: Serum 8-hydroxy-2′-deoxyguanosine levels are increased in type 2 diabetes mellitus patients
Journal: Diabetes Research and Clinical Practice (Elsevier)
Authors: Arpita Tawani, Rahul Kumar, Ashish Kumar Sharma, Amit Kumar
DOI: 10.1016/j.diabres.2012.03.003
URL: https://www.diabetesresearchclinicalpractice.com/article/S0168-8227(12)00079-4/abstract
Indexed In: PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, CrossRef, Google Scholar, Elsevier ScienceDirect
Published In (Year): 2012
Journal / Book Series: Advances in Cancer Research (Book Series)
Authors: Arpita Tawani, Ashish K. Mukherjee
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/82_2019_192
URL: https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/82_2019_192
Published In (Year): 2020
Title: Nanodomain Clustering of Bacterial Membrane Protein ZipA by Cardiolipin Modulates Z-ring Formation
Journal: Frontiers in Molecular Biosciences
Authors: A. Legrand, Arpita Tawani, E. Duchesne, D. Divakaruni, J. Liu, J. H. Hwang, A. K. Mukherjee, J. M. R. Fraga, C. Charlier, S. Ravaud, A. Milon
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fmolb.2019.00107
URL: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmolb.2019.00107/full
Published In (Year): 2019
Title: Nanodomain Organization of Bacterial Membrane Protein ZipA Revealed by Solid-State NMR and Molecular Simulations
Journal: Biochimica et Biophysica Acta (BBA) – Biomembranes
Authors: A. Legrand, Arpita Tawani, S. Ravaud, A. Milon
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biochi.2019.05.001
URL: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0300908419301403
Published In (Year): 2019
Title: Myricetin reduces toxic RNA–foci formation and improves neuromuscular function in Myotonic Dystrophy Type 1 (DM1)
Journal: Scientific Reports (Nature Publishing Group)
Authors: Erum Khan, Arpita Tawani (Co-first Author), Annesha Das, Shrisha Rao, Rohit Kumar, Ashish K. Mukherjee
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-018-38400-x
URL: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-018-38400-x
Published In (Year): 2019
Title: Characterization of highly conserved G-quadruplex motifs as potential drug targets in Streptococcus pneumoniae
Journal: Scientific Reports (Nature Publishing Group), Volume 9, Article Number: 1791
Authors: Subodh Kumar Mishra, Neha Jain, Uma Shankar, Arpita Tawani, Tarun Kumar Sharma, Amit Kumar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-018-38400-x
URL: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-018-38400-x
Published In (Year): 2019
Title: Myricetin Prevents Toxic RNA-Protein Aggregation in Myotonic Dystrophy Type 1 by Inhibiting MBNL1 Sequestration
Journal: Biochemistry (ACS Publications)
Authors: Erum Khan, Arpita Tawani, Ashish K. Mukherjee
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.biochem.8b00880
URL: https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acs.biochem.8b00880
Published In (Year): 2019
Title: QuadBase2: web server for multiplexed guanine quadruplex mining and visualization
Journal: Database: The Journal of Biological Databases and Curation (Oxford University Press)
Authors: Arpita Tawani, Ashish K. Sharma
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/database/bay082
URL: https://academic.oup.com/database/article/doi/10.1093/database/bay082/5096728
Published In (Year): 2018
Title: Investigating the Interaction of Quercetin with G-Quadruplex DNA Using Biophysical and Computational Approaches
Journal: ACS Chemical Biology (American Chemical Society)
Authors: Arpita Tawani, Ashish Kumar Sharma
DOI: 10.1021/acschembio.7b00699
URL: https://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/acschembio.7b00699
Published In (Year): 2018
Title: G-Quadruplex Recognition by Quercetin: A Biophysical and Molecular Docking Study
Journal: Scientific Reports (Nature Publishing Group)
Authors: Arpita Tawani, Ashish K. Sharma
DOI: 10.1038/s41598-017-03906-3
URL: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-017-03906-3
Published In (Year): 2017
Title: Flavonoid Interactions with Telomeric DNA: Insights into Their Binding Mechanism
Journal: Scientific Reports (Nature Publishing Group)
Authors: Arpita Tawani, Ashish Kumar Sharma, Amit Kumar
DOI: 10.1038/srep42062
URL: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27995955/
Published In (Year): 2017
Title: G4IPDB: A Database for G-Quadruplex Structure-Forming Nucleic Acid–Interacting Proteins
Journal: Scientific Reports (Nature Publishing Group)
Authors: Subodh Kumar Mishra, Arpita Tawani, Ashish Mishra, Amit Kumar
DOI: 10.1038/srep38144
URL: https://www.nature.com/articles/srep38144
Published In (Year): 2016
Title: Flavonoid Interactions with Telomeric DNA–Protein Complex: Insights into Molecular Recognition of G-Quadruplex Structure
Journal: Scientific Reports (Nature Publishing Group)
Authors: Arpita Tawani, Ashish Kumar Sharma, Amit Kumar
DOI: 10.1038/srep17574
URL: https://www.nature.com/articles/srep17574
Published In (Year): 2015
Title: Interaction of Epigallocatechin Gallate with G-Quadruplex DNA: Structure–Function Insights into Potential Anticancer Activity
Journal: PLOS ONE
Authors: Arpita Tawani, Ashish Kumar Sharma, Amit Kumar
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0131788
URL: https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0131788
Published In (Year): 2015
Title: Serum 8-hydroxy-2′-deoxyguanosine levels are increased in type 2 diabetes mellitus patients
Journal: Diabetes Research and Clinical Practice (Elsevier)
Authors: Arpita Tawani, Rahul Kumar, Ashish Kumar Sharma, Amit Kumar
DOI: 10.1016/j.diabres.2012.03.003
URL: https://www.diabetesresearchclinicalpractice.com/article/S0168-8227(12)00079-4/abstract
Indexed In: PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, CrossRef, Google Scholar, Elsevier ScienceDirect
Published In (Year): 2012