Draft:Subhash Rajpurohit
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|  |
Subhash Rajpurohit | |
|---|---|
 Subhash Rajpurohit | |
| Born | 1977 India |
| Nationality | Indian |
| Alma mater | Maharshi Dayanand University |
| Known for | Research on insect responses to climate stress |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Ecological and evolutionary physiology |
| Institutions | Ahmedabad University, University of Haifa, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, University of Pennsylvania |
Subhash Rajpurohit (born 1977) is an Indian ecological and evolutionary physiologist. He is known for his research on how insects respond to environmental stressors such as heat and drought, and for studying the evolutionary implications of climate variability.[1]
Rajpurohit is currently a professor at Ahmedabad University, where he leads the Thermal Biology Lab. His work integrates concepts from ecology, evolution, physiology, and molecular biology to explore how species adapt to rapid environmental changes, especially in the context of climate warming. He has contributed to understanding the physiological mechanisms underlying insect tolerance to temperature and desiccation stress.
He has held research positions at several international institutions, including the Institute of Evolution at the University of Haifa, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, and the University of Pennsylvania.[2]
Rajpurohit is also active in science communication and outreach, promoting awareness about climate change and organismal adaptation in the Indian context.[3]
Background & Academic Career
Currently an Associate Professor in the Biological & Life Sciences division at the School of Arts and Sciences, Ahmedabad University, and a Ramanujan Fellow (~2018–2023) awarded by India's DSTSERB.
He earned his M.Sc. in Zoology from Mohan Lal Sukhadia University (Udaipur), completed his Ph.D. in Bioscience at Maharshi Dayanand University (Rohtak), and pursued postdoctoral research in the U.S. at the University of Nevada–Las Vegas, USA and the University of Pennsylvania-Philadelphia, USA.
Research Focus & Lab
He is the founder of the Thermal Biology Lab at Ahmedabad University, which focuses on insect stress physiology using an integrative approach that spans ecological, physiological, and molecular scales. His research addresses key themes such as rapid adaptation, metabolic ecology, responses to thermal and desiccation stress, insect pigmentation, and the role of cuticular hydrocarbons (CHCs) in climate adaptation. Much of his work involves both natural and experimentally evolved populations of Drosophila, providing insights into how insects respond to changing environmental conditions.
Professional Recognition & Collaborations
Rajpurohit joined the editorial board of Current Opinion in Insect Science, an Elsevier CO+RE journal, in 2022. He has been a member of the editorial board of the Journal of Evolutionary Biology since 2017, and also serves on the editorial boards of several other journals, including Scientific Data, BMC Ecology and Evolution, PLOS Climate, and the Journal of Thermal Biology.[4]
In 2023, he was appointed to the Equal Opportunities Initiative Committee of the European Society for Evolutionary Biology (ESEB), where he contributes to efforts aimed at improving representation and inclusivity in the field of evolutionary biology.[5]
Rajpurohit was awarded a research fellowship by the European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO) in 2022, which initiated a collaborative project between India and Europe. As part of this fellowship, he began working with Professor David Hosken’s group at the University of Exeter, focusing on the role of lipid molecules in stress adaptation mechanisms.[6]
Selected Contributions & Publications
He has published extensively on topics such as desiccation tolerance, pigmentation trade-offs, and adaptive dynamics in insect physiology, including major works in Science, Molecular Ecology, PLOS One, and Ecology & Evolution.
Teaching & Outreach
1. He teaches Evolutionary Biology at Ahmedabad University. 2. Frequently invited to deliver talks at national and international venues, addressing topics from insect pigmentation and thermal plasticity to climate adaptation in Dipteran species.
Major scientific contributions Melanization and Desiccation Resistance in Drosophila In a pivotal 2008 study, Rajpurohit demonstrated that darker-pigmented Drosophila melanogaster populations show enhanced desiccation tolerance, due to reduced water loss—linking body melanization mechanistically with stress resistance in natural and lab populations across altitudinal clines in India. Genomic and Seasonal Dynamics of Desiccation Tolerance In a 2018 Molecular Ecology paper, his team studied genome-wide associations and mesocosm experiments to track how desiccation tolerance evolves over space and season in D. melanogaster, showing that tolerance varies predictably with latitude and responds rapidly to seasonal changes in natural populations.
Plasticity in Cuticular Hydrocarbon Profiles A 2020 study in Ecology & Evolution revealed that post-eclosion temperature exposure profoundly alters the cuticular hydrocarbon (CHC) profiles of adult flies—shifts that correlate with desiccation resistance and vary by population and sex.
Indian Drosophila Clines Resource Rajpurohit led the creation of a comprehensive database and web resource detailing latitudinal and altitudinal phenotypic clines in Indian drosophilids—covering traits like pigmentation, desiccation tolerance, and thermal preference. Published in Scientific Data in 2017, this resource serves as a foundation for future ecological- genetic studies.
Demonstrating Rapid, Real-Time Evolution In a high profile Science study (2014 field mesocosm experiment), Rajpurohit and collaborators directly observed adaptive tracking and phenotypic/genomic evolution in fruit fly populations over a single season—challenging the traditional view that evolution is slow. The study showed evolutionary change within months in response to natural seasonal shifts.
Significance of contributions
Rajpurohit's research bridges ecological genetics, physiology, and evolutionary biology, offering insights into how organisms adapt to environmental stress:
Integration of phenotype, physiology, and molecular mechanisms: His studies link external traits such as pigmentation and cuticular hydrocarbons (CHCs) to underlying physiological functions and molecular pathways, enhancing understanding of adaptive traits in insects.
Modelling responses to climate change: By using Drosophila melanogaster as a model system, his work explores how insect populations respond to increased heat and desiccation, contributing to predictive models of species resilience under climate stress.
Connecting basic science with applied contexts: Through clinal datasets and experimental evolution, his research supports broader applications in evolutionary modeling, pest management, and conservation biology.
Summary Table
| Contribution Area | Key Insight |
|---|---|
| Melanization & water balance | Darker pigmentation enhances desiccation tolerance across clines |
| Temporal adaptation & genomics | Desiccation traits evolve fast with season; SNPs identified via GWAS |
| Adult plasticity in CHCs | Temperature experienced post-eclosion affects CHC profile and stress survival |
| Clinal resource development | Rich data tool on Indian Drosophila variation across environments |
| Real-time evolutionary tracking | Field evidence for adaptive change within a single seasonal cycle |
Media coverage
Rajpurohit’s research on insect evolution under climate stress has been featured in several mainstream Indian media outlets. His experimental work on rapid evolution in fruit flies has been highlighted by The Hindu, which reported on evidence showing that evolutionary changes can occur over shorter timescales in response to environmental pressures.[7] The Times of India also covered his work, emphasizing how heat and food scarcity can accelerate evolutionary processes.[8] Additionally, he has contributed to science education discussions through platforms like IndiaBioscience, where he shared insights on incorporating research-based learning into classrooms.[9]
Articles
- Nair, Abhishek; Mayekar, Harshad Vijay; Sharma, Manmohan D; Garg, Divita; Mitchell, Christopher; Hosken, David J; Rajpurohit, Subhash (2025). "High altitude favours long-chained cuticular hydrocarbons in Drosophila". Journal of Evolutionary Biology. 38 (5): 606–617. doi:10.1093/jeb/voaf029. PMID 40110846.
- Mayekar, Harshad; Rajpurohit, Subhash (2024). "No single rescue recipe: genome complexities modulate insect response to climate change". Current Opinion in Insect Science. 64 101220. Bibcode:2024COIS...6401220M. doi:10.1016/j.cois.2024.101220. PMID 38848812.
- Rudman, Sarah M; Greenblum, Sharon I; Rajpurohit, Subhash; Betancourt, Nathan J; Hanna, Jacob; Tilk, Shivani; Yokoyama, Taichi; Petrov, Dmitri A; Schmidt, Paul S (2022). "Direct observation of adaptive tracking on ecological timescales in Drosophila". Science. 375 (6586) eabj7484. doi:10.1126/science.abj7484. PMC 10684103. PMID 35298245.
- Arya, Hemant; Toltesi, Renato; Eng, Matthew; Garg, Divita; Merritt, T.J.S.; Rajpurohit, Subhash (2021). "No water, no mating: Connecting dots from behaviour to pathways". PLOS ONE. 16 (6): e0252920. Bibcode:2021PLoSO..1652920A. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0252920. PMID 34111165.
- Rajpurohit, Subhash; Vrkoslav, Vaclav; Hanus, Robert; Gibbs, A.G.; Cvacka, Jiri; Schmidt, P.S. (2021). "Post-eclosion temperature effects on insect cuticular hydrocarbon profiles". Ecology and Evolution. 11: 352–364. doi:10.1002/eee3.7050 (inactive 3 August 2025). PMID 33437434.
{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: DOI inactive as of August 2025 (link)
- Rajpurohit, S.; Gefen, S.; Bergland, A.O.; Petrov, D.; Gibbs, A.G.; Schmidt, P.S. (2018). "Spatiotemporal dynamics and genome-wide association analysis of desiccation tolerance in Drosophila melanogaster". Molecular Ecology. 27: 3525–3540. doi:10.1111/mec.14809. PMID 30142241.
- Rajpurohit, S.; Zhao, X.; Schmidt, P.S. (2017). "A resource on latitudinal and altitudinal clines of ecologically relevant phenotypes of the Indian Drosophila". Scientific Data. 4 170066. Bibcode:2017NatSD...470066R. doi:10.1038/sdata.2017.66. PMC 5433391. PMID 28509912.
- Rajpurohit, S.; Hanus, R.; Vrkoslav, V.; Behrman, E.L.; Bergland, A.; Petrov, D.; Cvacka, J.; Schmidt, P.S. (2017). "Adaptive dynamics of cuticular hydrocarbon profiles in Drosophila". Journal of Evolutionary Biology. 30: 66–80. doi:10.1111/jeb.12994.
- Rajpurohit, S.; Richardson, R.; Dean, J.; Vazquez, R.; Wong, G.; Schmidt, P.S. (2016). "Pigmentation and trade-off through the lens of artificial selection". Biology Letters. doi:10.1098/rsbl.2016.0625. PMID 28120808.
- Rajpurohit, S.; Schmidt, P.S. (2016). "Measuring thermal behavior in smaller insects: a case study in Drosophila melanogaster demonstrates effects of sex, geographic origin, and rearing temperature on adult behavior". Fly. 10 (4): 149–161. doi:10.1080/19336934.2016.1194145. PMC 5036927. PMID 27230726.
- Rajpurohit, S.; Nedved, O. (2013). "Clinal variation in fitness related traits in tropical drosophilids of the Indian subcontinent". Journal of Thermal Biology. 38: 345–354. doi:10.1016/j.jtherbio.2013.06.002.
- Rajpurohit, S.; de Oliveira, C.C.; Etges, W.J.; Gibbs, A.G. (2013). "Functional genomic and phenotypic responses to desiccation in natural populations of desert drosophilid". Molecular Ecology. 22 (10): 2698–2715. doi:10.1111/mec.12274. PMC 4032119. PMID 23505972.
- Rajpurohit, S.; Nedved, O.; Gibbs, A.G. (2013). "Meta-analysis of geographical clines in desiccation tolerance of Indian drosophilids". Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology Part A: Molecular & Integrative Physiology. 164: 391–398. doi:10.1016/j.cbpa.2012.12.003. PMID 23246501.
References
[edit]- ^ "Thermal Biology Lab – Ahmedabad University". Retrieved 2025-08-03.
- ^ "Subhash Rajpurohit – Google Scholar profile". Retrieved 2025-08-03.
- ^ "Indian researchers bridge science and society". The Hindu. 2024-05-10. Retrieved 2025-08-03.
- ^ "Editorial Board Memberships". Retrieved 3 August 2025.
- ^ "ESEB Equal Opportunities Initiative". Retrieved 3 August 2025.
- ^ "EMBO Fellowship Recipients 2022". 16 March 2020. Retrieved 3 August 2025.
- ^ "Evolution can happen at shorter timescales, a fruit fly study shows". The Hindu. 26 March 2022. Retrieved 3 August 2025.
- ^ "Heat, lack of food evolution fast-forwarded". The Times of India. 24 April 2022. Retrieved 3 August 2025.
- ^ "Educators Newsletter: February 2024". IndiaBioscience. February 2024. Retrieved 3 August 2025.