The Department of Neurochemistry
The Department of Neurochemistry has five faculty members, two senior residents, one senior scientific officer, one junior scientific officer, five senior technicians and fourteen Medical Lab Technologists.
Activities of the department:
a) Biochemical diagnostic services
The department operates a medium-sized clinical laboratory performing around 250-350 samples a day. The state-of-the-art laboratory works round the clock catering to the needs of the hospital. The clinical laboratory is equipped with the latest automated instruments such as Beckman Coulter AU-680 and Roche Cobas 6000, ILlyte Electrolyte analyzer, Access 2, osmometer etc. The nature of investigations include (but not limited to) serum routine biochemistry, urine tests, CSF biochemistry, therapeutic drug monitoring, thyroid function tests, organ profiles, osmolality, vitamins such as folate and B12, manual enzyme assays and detailed work-up pertaining to metabolic disorders, Wilson’s disease, prothrombotic conditions. Highly sophisticated mass spectrometry-based diagnostic tests for Inborn Errors of Metabolism are also being conducted.
b) Research
Research activities of the department involve both applied and basic aspects of mental health and neurosciences. Some of the current areas of research are molecular and genetic basis of cerebrovascular disorders, biochemical basis of neurometabolic disorders, molecular mechanisms in brain aging, Alzheimer’s disease, traumatic brain injury, neuromuscular disorders and primary brain tumors and their therapeutic implications.
c) Manpower development
The faculty members of the department train PhD students and teach biochemistry, basic and applied neurochemistry to undergraduate and postgraduate students of the institute including B.Sc (Nursing), B.Sc (Neuroanaesthesia), M.Phil (Neurosciences), M.Phil (Clinical Psychology), MD (Psychiatry), DM (Neurology), MCh (Neurosurgery) and PhD of all disciplines etc. Short-term training in neurochemistry and clinical biochemistry is also provided for postgraduate students from other institutes.
The department introduced PG Diploma in Clinical Biochemistry in the year 2017-18. This full-time programme with one year duration is intended to provide postgraduates in Biochemistry with practical and analytical skills in Clinical Biochemistry,for employment opportunities in Diagnostic Biochemistry Laboratories.