Masters’ Union University has launched the Kalam School of Bioscience, a school focused on bringing together biology, technology, engineering, healthcare and entrepreneurship as advances in genomics, gene editing, longevity, computational biology and precision medicine reshape the life sciences.
The school was launched at The Next Gene Bioscience Summit in Gurugram, which brought together scientists, healthcare leaders, biotechnology founders, investors, researchers and academicians, including Dr. Sangita Reddy, Joint Managing Director, Apollo Hospitals Enterprise Limited; Dr. David A. Sinclair, A.O., Ph.D, Professor, Department of Genetics, Harvard Medical School; Dr. Kumaraswamy Thangaraj, Padma Shri Awardee and Senior Geneticist, Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology; Dr. Shiram Madhav Nene, MD, Cardiovascular Surgeon, Healthtech Innovator, and Investor; Dr Jitendra Kumar, Former MD, BIRAC, Dept. of Biotech, Government of India; and Anuradha Acharya, CEO, Mapmygenome, among others.
The summit examined how India can build capabilities across bioscience research, genomic data, clinical translation and company creation.
The Kalam School of Bioscience will focus on areas including genetics, cell biology, computational biology, biotechnology and applications of engineering and artificial intelligence in the life sciences. The model is being built around exposure to research laboratories, healthcare institutions and bioscience companies, with an emphasis on helping students understand how scientific research can move from the laboratory into diagnostics, therapies, technologies and ventures.
Pratham Mittal, Founder, Masters’ Union University, said, “India already has exceptional scientists, doctors and engineers. The larger opportunity is to get these worlds to work together much more closely. We want a student studying genetics to be able to work with a clinician, a computer scientist and an entrepreneur on the same problem. The ambition for the Kalam School is not only to teach bioscience, but to create an environment where research can turn into diagnostics, therapies, technologies and companies built in India.”
Speaking at the summit, Dr. Sangita Reddy, Joint Managing Director, Apollo Hospitals Enterprise Limited, said India cannot afford to remain dependent on scientific breakthroughs developed elsewhere, particularly as technologies such as gene editing, AI-led diagnostics, biomarkers and advanced therapies move closer to clinical use.
“The AI battle, the biosciences battle and the energy battle are three areas where we cannot afford to fall behind. We have to put our finest minds together, and we have to stop thinking small and individual. I think we have to collaborate differently,” Dr. Reddy said.
She said India would need collaboration between hospitals, universities, researchers, government and industry, with clinical problems helping shape research priorities and scientific discoveries moving into healthcare.
“Because somebody else is going to win that race, patent it, and then it will be very expensive to bring it to our country. Process and service copying we could do. Manufacturing copying we could do. But breakthroughs in biosciences will be patented and difficult to replicate,” Dr. Reddy said.
Dr. David A. Sinclair, A.O., Ph.D, Professor, Department of Genetics, Harvard Medical School, said advances in longevity science could create one of the world’s largest new industries, opening opportunities in therapies, diagnostics, biosensors, genomic testing, AI-assisted medicine and drug discovery.
“It’s going to be the biggest industry. It’s going to be bigger than AI. Because what do people want most in life? Once they have shelter, clothing and food, they want time. And time, as we just discussed, is invaluable. You cannot put a price on time and health,” Dr. Sinclair said.
Sinclair said the field remains at an early stage and said the next generation of bioscience professionals will need to work across disciplines rather than within conventional academic silos. He said opportunities would extend beyond therapies to diagnostics, biosensors, genomic testing, AI-led health monitoring, drug discovery platforms and models of preventive medicine.
Building a bioscience ecosystem, he added, requires more than laboratories. Drawing on the development of Kendall Square in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Sinclair pointed to the concentration of universities, hospitals, investors, scientific talent and company-building expertise as a part of its development.
“I think it’s all about bringing the critical mass together, and those components will ignite the rocket,” Dr. Sinclair said.
Dr. Kumaraswamy Thangaraj, Padma Shri Awardee and Senior Geneticist, Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology, said India cannot be treated as a genetically uniform population. The country has around 4,635 anthropological population groups, many of which have historically married within their own communities for long periods, resulting in population-specific genetic differences.
“So, ideally speaking, you should have the genome sequence of every single population,” Dr. Thangaraj said.
He said recent work supported by the Department of Biotechnology, which sequenced 10,000 individuals across 83 populations, was a beginning but not sufficient to capture the full complexity of Indian genetics.
Speaking about bioscience education, Thangaraj said students need exposure beyond conventional academic pathways.
“A curriculum should not be limited to the academic set-up. Students should also have opportunities in other sectors, such as opportunities to start their own companies, and opportunities to become independent science communicators. There are many more opportunities available today, and the curriculum should look at all of these aspects, making it different from the existing curriculum,” Dr. Thangaraj said.
The Next Gene Bioscience Summit focused on six areas shaping bioscience research and industry: gene editing and CRISPR, drug and gene discovery, computational biology, longevity and precision medicine, biomanufacturing, and space and agri-biology.
The summit included a BioHackathon, where students worked with mentors on problems across biology, bioinformatics and healthcare, and a startup pitch segment where emerging bioscience companies presented their work to investors and industry leaders. Organisations including MapmyGenome and PREDICT.FIT participated in the experience zone.
The Next Gene Awards recognised individuals and institutions contributing to bioscience research and innovation through the Kalam Medal for Individual Excellence and the Kalam Medal for Institutional Excellence.