Additional Information

Shikha earned her Ph.D. in Biotechnology from the University of Delhi, India in 2018 under the joint mentorship of Prof. Sonika Bhatnagar and Prof. Rakesh Bhatnagar. During that period, she investigated the biochemical attributes of the GTP-sensing protein CodY of Bacillus anthracis, which are linked to virulence, drug resistance, biofilm formation, cell division, and growth. This led to her discovery of the first evidence for the presence of GTP hydrolysis and autophosphorylation in CodY of Bacillus anthracis. In 2022, she was a Research Associate at the Microbial Pathology group led by Dr. Fouzia Siraj at the National Institute of Pathology, Indian Council for Medical Research, New Delhi, India. Here, she spearheaded the execution of a pre-clinical in vivo study to evaluate anti-biofilm FDA-approved drugs for reducing the treatment duration of tuberculosis. In 2023, she joined the Compton Lab as a Postdoctoral Fellow (Visiting). Shikha is currently exploring the effect of small molecules on host intrinsic immunity & viral infectivity.