Postdoctoral Fellow from Araç Lab earns Pathway to Independence Award from NIH
The CME interviewed Sumit Bandekar, University of Chicago of Chicago Postdoctoral Fellow who has recently received K99/R00 grant
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) Pathway to Independence Award, also known as K99/R00, is a grant that supports promising postdoctoral scientists who are looking to complete mentored research career development that will assist their transition to a faculty position.
Sumit Bandekar, from the Araç lab – one of the CME collaborators – has recently been one of the awardees. He completed his PhD in Medicinal Chemistry at the University of Michigan in 2019 and has been part of the Araç Lab since 2020. The CME interviewed Dr. Bandekar to learn more about his research. Read below.
Tell us about your research.
In Dr. Araç’s lab, I study a special group of cell-surface proteins called adhesion G protein-coupled receptors (aGPCRs). These receptors are essential for communication between cells in complex organisms. Our focus is on how these receptors use adhesion to help build and maintain the nervous system, which contains around 86 billion neurons. We are especially interested in how aGPCRs guide neurons to form the right connections, something that can go wrong in conditions like epilepsy, autism spectrum disorder, and schizophrenia. My research looks at aGPCRs that have large portions (extracellular regions) sticking out from the cell surface. These extracellular regions often interact with components on other cells to influence cellular adhesion. To understand how these extracellular parts work, I use structural biology, a technique that lets us see the arrangement of atoms in a protein. This helps us figure out how changes in the protein’s shape, often caused by genetic mutations, can affect its function. These insights can explain how certain mutations lead to disease and may even point the way toward new treatments.
What does it mean to receive this award?
It means a lot to me. Being a faculty member and influencing the next generation in a positive way has been my dream since I started college, and this award has brought me closer to that goal. I cannot thank the NIH enough for supporting me over the last 10 years and allowing me to grow as a scientist. This award will give me the freedom to develop some parts of my independent research program while in a secure, mentored position, thus putting me in a good position to start as a new faculty member. If I am lucky enough to get a position (I am becoming more aware of how tough it is), I truly hope to use my position to do some good in the world, however small an effect I may have.
What are some of your aspirations as you work towards a full-time faculty position and running a lab?
I have some exciting projects to finish up here in the Araç Lab. We are developing some pioneering antibody-like molecules that may be able to modulate aGPCR function! Other than that, I am starting to think more about my independent research, and I plan to develop some exciting new directions so that I can hit the ground running in my independent work.
Related work:
Bandekar, S.J., Garbett, K., Kordon, S.P., Dintzner, E.E., Li, J., Shearer, T., Sando, R.C., and Araç, D. Structural basis for regulation of CELSR1 by a compact module in its extracellular region. (2025) Nature Communications. 16(1): 3972. PMID: 40295529
Bui, D. L. H., Roach, A., Li, J., Bandekar, S.J., Orput, E., Raghavan, R., Araç, D., and Sando, R.C. The adhesion GPCRs CELSR1-3 and LPHN3 engage heterotrimeric G proteins via distinct activation mechanisms. (2023) Cell Reports. 42(6):112552. PMID: 37224017