The Division of Parasitology at NICED actively integrates research into the mechanisms of parasitic diarrheal diseases at the molecular and cellular levels with epidemiological studies. While ensuring an increasing understanding of human parasitic diseases, like amoebiasis, giardiasis, cryptosporoidis etc., this provides the foundation for further developments in screening, diagnosis and future therapeutics. To support these fundamental activities, the Department of Parasitology provides extensive research and training opportunities to graduate students and other trainees of India and abroad.

Research efforts are founded on understanding the mechanism of rRNA processing in Giardia, molecular analyses of rRNA biogenesis, snRNA and nuclear protein interaction, mechanism of its formation and its use as a drug target in Giardiasis. Study the effects of oxidative stress on microaerophilic Giardia at its cellular, genome, proteome and metabolomic level, molecular diagnosis of enteric parasites, molecular epidemiology of Coccisides and other enteric parasites in immunocompromized patients. Total genomic DNA library of Giardia has been prepared in this department for pursuing different types of molecular studies on this organism. Genomic DNA microarray chip of Giardia is also under construction. A regular surveillance of enteric parasites from stool samples collected from different hospitals are regularly done in this lab to get the current scenario of diarrhea in Kolkata as well as to establish the prime etiology with parasitic co-infections.

This division is the eastern node as well as the Central Unit of a parasitic network proposed under Indo-US joint collaboration for training and manpower generation and quality control of parasitic diagnosis across India.

This division has strong collaborations with NIID, Japan, Okayama University, Japan, CDC, USA, NIH, USA, City University of New York, USA, Childrens International, USA, Amsterdam Medical University, Netherlands etc.

This division offers PhD and Post Doctoral training program in different aspects of enteric Parasitology. Beside its PhD and Post Doctoral program, this department organizes workshops and training for scientists, students and technicians and also entertains short training to Post Graduate students of different universities for learning basic molecular biology, cell biology and immunology techniques.

Different prestigious grants and awards from National and International level have enriched this department time to time.

Head of the Division: Dr. Sandipan Ganguly