MENTEE Sanjana Prasad

Sanjana studied Biotechnology for her undergraduate degree in Engineering, during which she worked on using Bio-nanoparticles from a plant source to treat acrylamide induced neurotoxicity. Her interest in pursuing research led her to apply for Masters by research programs in Australian universities. She started her Masters in Applied chemistry at RMIT University in 2018 under the supervision of Prof Vipul Bansal and Dr Rajesh Ramanathan at the Nanobiotechnology Research Laboratory in the School of Science. She worked on nanoscience in applied chemistry with a focus on sensor technology. Her thesis focused on the development of a simple, non-invasive, urine glucose detection system using free-standing, enzyme-mimicking copper nanoparticles.

Having enjoyed carrying out a research project and the team she works with, she applied for a PhD and secured the Vice-Chancellor’s PhD Scholarship. She is currently in her second year of PhD and has been working on developing an aptamer-based nanozyme system for trace analysis of pesticide residues in environmental samples.

Besides her PhD, she has been teaching part-time as a laboratory demonstrator for Chemistry and Biology foundation studies and undergraduate Biochemistry since 2018. She has supervised 3rd year science projects of two students since 2018 and she is currently supervising an Honour’s project.

Other than research, Sanjana likes to read books, mostly science fiction and the work of women writers. She also likes to do crossword and jigsaw puzzles.