Chitnis completed his Master of Science in physics at Indian Institute of Technology Mumbai in 1983. Subsequently, he obtained a Master of Arts in physics from the Rice University in Houston, in 1985 and a doctor of philosophy (PhD) from the University of California-Berkeley in 1991[6] after which he worked at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland as a Fogarty International Fellow from 1991 to 1995. Returning to India, he joined the malaria research group in ICGEB in 1996 as the principal investigator and worked there until 2014 when he was appointed as the head of the Malaria Parasite Biology and Vaccines Unit at the Institut Pasteur in Paris.[1]
Chitnis has published over 100 international papers and has three patents pertaining to malaria vaccines.[7]
Research interest
Chitnis's work is predominantly in the areas of molecular parasitology and vaccine development for malaria by understanding the molecular and cellular biology aspects of host-parasite interactions. His work has assisted in the development of antibodies against Plasmodium spp. and widened the understanding of the parasite-binding proteins and their interactions with the Duffy blood group antigen of the host red blood cells. Furthermore, his research group is involved in the studies of molecular signaling during the blood stage of Plasmodium falciparum, especially the process of invasion and egress from erythrocytes.
At ICGEB, Chitnis has also established a protein production facility for the production of malaria vaccines based on novel concepts.
Other activities
Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal), Member of the External Advisory Committee[8]
Awards and honors
Chitnis, who received the University of California Regents' Fellowship, Henry Kaiser Fellowship and Abraham Rosenberg Research Fellowship during his doctoral research years, was a Fogarty International Fellow at the National Institutes of Health, Bethesda during 1991–96. The American Society for Microbiology awarded him the ICAAC Young Investigator Award in 1995[9] and he delivered the Dr. B.N. Singh Memorial Award Oration of the Indian Society for Parasitology in 1997.[10] In the same year, he also won the MOT Iyengar Award for Research on Malaria.[11]
↑"M.O.T.Iyengar Award (1997)". List of recipients of ICMR awards and prizes for 1997. Indian Council of Medical Research. Archived from the original on 23 June 2017. Retrieved 28 January 2012.
↑"Profile of Chetan E. Chitnis". HHMI Alumni International Scholars. Howard Hughes Medical Institute. Retrieved 28 January 2012.
↑"Past Fellows". Indian Senior Research Fellows. Wellcome Trust. Archived from the original on 17 June 2012. Retrieved 28 January 2012.
