Dandruff is one of the most common problems cutting across all age groups. Yet there is no universal solution to this problem. But soon an Indian scientist-cum-entrepreneur will have the answer. For scientist-cum-entrepreneur Rajesh Gokhale,director of the Institute of Genomics & Integrative Biology (IGIB),New Delhi,a premier Institute of Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) and co-founder of Vyome Biosciences,New Delhi,is working towards a cure for the age-old problem. The scientific team of the company has been researching for over a year now to come up with a research-based product which will be able to cure dandruff combining genetic and proteomic analysis of pathogens to elucidate the causal pathways that underlie the progression of dandruff. Very few people are aware that dandruff is caused by fungus which survives on the fatty acids taken from the scalp. Ideally to get rid of dandruff,one has to keep the shampoo on for about 20 minutes. But there is nobody who does that and nobody has the time. So we are in the process of bringing out a product which would completely cure dandruff without having to keep it for that long. The idea is to reduce the time for the resident particles by breaking them into nano particles that will treat the fungus causing dandruff, Gokhale Chandigarh Newsline on the sidelines of the CSIR Directors Meet which started on Friday. In fact,we are almost through with the R and D part of the product and we are soon going to test it on small animals before launching it commercially, he added. He said that the company,which came about after the CSIR last year launched a unique scheme Scientist Entrepreneur Scheme,Spinoff Companies,is working specifically in the field of dermatology. In our country,almost 70 per cent cases are fungal infected and the drugs available for it are very old. So there is a dire need for research in this area, he added. The scientist-cum-entrepreneur is one of the two scientists in the country who have availed the schemes offered by the CSIR. The idea is to develop scientists who can commercialise their own projects instead of depending upon the private sector. When a scientist turns entrepreneur,it will give rise to knowledge-based economy in the country, said senior scientist Sudeep Kumar. As part of the vision document,CSIR 2022,50 such spinoff companies will be opened in the next 10 years.
