After working on non-canonical nucleic acid secondary structures, I moved into the protein folding field, where I primarily worked on ribosome-nascent chain complexes to understand how the polypeptide emerging from the ribosome tunnel undergoes co-translational folding. The post-doc lab was a department within itself and my colleagues were from different geographical locations. It was scientifically and culturally, an extremely enriching environment. One of the trade-offs in big groups is that any conversation with the (post-doc) boss is like “an elevator pitch”, if you are able to articulate the results during the walk in the corridor, you may get an appointment for further discussions. In big groups, the stress of “publish or perish ” is usually of the highest magnitude. When I used to visit India during vacations, friends and peers would ask me when my “Cell/Nature/Science” paper was coming. I didn’t know what to say, as our findings were not sufficient and some of our experiments had not yielded consistent results. After many years of post-doc with experiments not moving ahead, I started losing confidence and questioned whether I am even competent for a research career. I wanted to relocate back to India, but with no published paper from post-doc work, I was not sure about the avenues to be explored. I was lucky to have my PhD mentor and friends who boosted my morale and helped me to start things from scratch. I applied to a position advertised for project management for a drug discovery program. In parallel, I wrote independent grants and fellowships which gave me the flexibility for doing research. Well, relocating back and starting a lab is a hard journey for everyone. Uncomfortable circumstances force you to flutter your wings to fly and explore into new areas. I took nervous and hesitant steps towards parasitology, which was a new research area for me. I am enjoying and learning more with each passing day. Many friends, colleagues, and acquaintances helped me in this journey and helped me see the light at the end of this long tunnel.
There are some lessons that I learnt from the highs & the lows of research life that I want to always remember
- The 3Ps, patience, perseverance and passion, are essential ingredients.
- Be aware of the limitations and the shortfalls in your research and approach, always have feasible alternative plans.
- Acquire new skills and don’t be afraid of failure. If you need help, don’t hesitate to ask. If your efforts are genuine, people will connect to support you.
- Interact and help your colleagues in trouble-shooting experiments and mentor your colleagues/peers and students.
- Love the city you live in, love your institute, and accept your colleagues/co-workers.
Cover picture Credit: Sangeetha K
Niti Kumar's research group at CSIR-CDRI is probing into the genome and proteome maintenance pathways in the human malaria parasite.