Vidita Vaidya
Vidita Vaidya | |
---|---|
Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize , 2015
National Bioscience Award for Career Development, 2012 Fellow, Indian National Science Academy Infosys Prize in Life Sciences, 2022 | |
Scientific career | |
Fields | Neuroscience with a focus on studying the neurocircuitry of emotion |
Institutions | Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Mumbai |
Doctoral advisor | Professor Ronald Duman at Yale University |
Vidita Vaidya is an Indian neuroscientist and professor at the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Mumbai. Her primary areas of research are neuroscience and molecular psychiatry.[1]
Early life
Vidita's parents, Dr. Rama Vaidya and Dr. Ashok Vaidya are clinician scientists, and her uncle Dr. Akhil Vaidya (a
Education
Vidita received her undergraduate degree from
Career
She joined the Department of Biological Sciences,
Vidita's research has also been centered around the role of serotonin in shaping neurocircuits of emotion during critical periods of postnatal development and on the mechanism of action of fast acting antidepressant treatments.[7] Her lab work is conducted on lab rats and mice. Vidita's particular field of interest lies in understanding how individuals develop vulnerability or resilience to stress-associated psychopathology.[4]
Features in Books and Videos
Vidita has been featured in Lilavathi's Daughters,[8] a compilation of biographical essays on Indian women scientists, and on "The Life in Science" blog.[9] In 2015, she gave a TEDx talk at St. Xavier's College, Mumbai in which she spoke about how stress can change our neurological makeup.[TEDx 1] She has also been featured in TIFRs "Chai and Why".[10]
Achievements
Her work has garnered the 2015 Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize for Science and Technology for Medical Sciences. She is also a recipient of the National Bioscience Award for Career Development in 2012.[11] She received the Nature Award for Mentorship in Science, 2019, in the mid-career category.[12] She received the Infosys Prize in Life-Sciences in 2022 for her fundamental contributions to understanding brain mechanisms that underlie mood disorders such as anxiety and depression, including signals engaged by the neurotransmitter serotonin in causing persistent changes in behavior induced by early life stress and the role of serotonin in energy regulation in brain cells.
Publications
Her site at
Personal life
Vidita's research career was supported by her late husband, Ajit Mahadevan, who worked in the area of impact investing. They have a daughter, Alina Vaidya Mahadevan. In her spare time, Vidita likes to travel, read, and dance.[2]
See also
- TIFR
References
- ^ a b "TIFR - Principal Investigator". Retrieved 20 March 2014.
- ^ a b Vaidya, Vidita (29 August 2016). "Interview with AsianScientist". Asian Scientist.
- ^ "Vidita A Vaidya - Info". www.researchgate.net. Retrieved 4 February 2017.
- ^ a b TLoS (30 May 2016). "Vidita Vaidya Gets Into Your Head". The Life of Science. Retrieved 4 February 2017.
- ^ "Former Associates". Indian Academy of Sciences. Retrieved 16 July 2016.
- ^ "List of recipients" (PDF). Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize (SSB) for Science and Technology 2015. Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize. Retrieved 30 October 2015.
- ^ junoontheatre (26 April 2015). "The Social Brain: Discoveries and Shared Delights with Prof. Vidita Vaidya". Retrieved 4 February 2017.
- ^ "Women in Science IAS - Vidita" (PDF). Retrieved 20 March 2014.
- ^ "Vidita Vaidya gets into your head". The Life of Science. 29 May 2016. Retrieved 17 July 2016.
- ^ Vaidya, Vidita. "Molecules that modulate your mood". YouTube.
- ^ "Awardees of N-BIOS for the year 2012" (PDF). AWARDEES OF NATIONAL BIOSCIENCE AWARDS FOR CAREER DEVELOPMENT. Department of Biotechnology, India. Retrieved 30 October 2015.
- S2CID 214423534.
- ^ "Publications". Tifr.res.in. Retrieved 24 March 2014.
- Reference group
- ^ Vaidya, Vidita. "TEDx Talk". YouTube.