Ashutosh Kumar works as an Assistant Professor in Biological and Life Sciences, School of Arts and Sciences, Ahmedabad University, Gujarat, India. He completed his Master’s degree in Applied Microbiology from Vellore Institute of Technology, Vellore and PhD from CSIR-Indian Institute of Toxicology Research/Integral University, Lucknow and was involved in understanding the fate of nanomaterials on biological systems. His current research areas of interest includes, nanomedicines for cancer and arthritis therapy, DNA Biochip for pathogen detection, nanobased drug and gene delivery, nanoemulsions for food industries, environmental nanotechnology and nanotoxicology.
Ashutosh has established several new methods for nanomaterial toxicology in India. He developed a novel method for the detection of uptake of nanoparticles in live bacteria for several generations. He also unravelled the mechanism of metal oxide nanoparticles induced genotoxicity and apoptosis in prokaryotic as well as in eukaryotic cells using the state of art techniques. The work conducted by him is in the frontiers of nanomaterial safety area worldwide. His studies shall have far reaching applications in predicting the adverse health effects of nanoparticles and safe use of ENMs to protect human and environmental health. He has published more than 44 research papers and 16 book chapters in internationally reputed peer reviewed journals.

1. Principal Investigator, Nanosensors for the Detection of Food Adulterants and Contaminants. Funded by Science and Engineering Research Board (SERB),Department of Science and Technology, Government of India, Rs. 40 lakhs (2017-20)
2. Principal Investigator, (DBLS), Advanced nanotracers for product life cycle assessment and product monitoring. (Multi Institutional Project) Funded by IMPRINT- Ministry of Human Resource Development, Government of India,Rs. 24.28 lakhs (2018-21)
3. Principal Investigator, NanoToF: Toxicological evaluation and risk assessment on Nanomaterials in Food. Funded by Department of Biotechnology, Government of India, Rs. 30 lakhs (2015-19)
4. Project Investigator, DNA Biochip for on-site water pathogen detection including viability and antibiotic resistance testing, Funded by Indo-German Science & Technology Cooperation (IGSTC), Rs. 82.9 lakhs (2016-19)
5. Project Investigator, Establishment of a Facility for Environmental Risk Assessment of Chemicals and Nanomaterials. funded by The Gujarat Institute of Chemical Technology, Rs. 43.52 Lakhs (2016-19)
6. Co Investigator, Centre for Nanotechnology Research and Applications. Funded by The Gujarat Institute of Chemical Technology, Rs. 9.15 Crores (2013-16)
7. Co Investigator, Study of Earth Surface Processes at three different Critical Zones with Different Climatic and Geologic Settings in Western India. Funded by Ministry of Earth Sciences, Government of India, Rs 24.99 Lakhs (2016-19)

1. Principal Co-Investigator, Development of low cost devices as an early warning system for prevention of diabetes. Funded by The Gujarat Institute of Chemical Technology, Rs. 85 lakhs (2012-15)
2. Project Participant, Development of reference methods for hazard identification, risk assessment and LCA of engineered nanomaterials (NANOVALID). European Union grant, EU-FP7; Rs. 1.22 Cr. (2011-15)

Research Articles and Reviews

1. Ashutosh Kumar. Nanobiotechnology and the Environment. Opinion Document - BAOJ Nanotechnology 4: S4: 001 (2018)
2. Violet Aileen Senapati, Ashutosh Kumar. ZnO nanoparticles dissolution, penetration and toxicity in human epidermal cells. Influence of pH.Environmental Chemistry Letters, DOI - https://doi.org/10.1007/s10311-018-0736-5 (2018)
3. Nikita Meghani, Pal Patel, Krupa Kansara, Shivendu Ranjan, Nandita Dasgupta, Chidambaram Ramalingam, Ashutosh Kumar. Formulation of vitamin D encapsulated cinnamon oil nanoemulsion: Its potential anti-cancerous activity in human alveolar carcinoma cells. Colloids and Surfaces B: Biointerfaces, 166: 349–357 (2018)
4. Shivendu Ranjan, Nandita Dasgupta, Chinnappan Sudandiradoss, Chidambaram Ramalingam, Ashutosh Kumar. Titanium dioxide nanoparticle–protein interaction explained by docking approach. International Journal of Nanomedicine,13: 47-50 (2018)
5. Pal Patel, Krupa Kansara, Ragini Singh, Ritesh K Shukla, Sanjay Singh, Alok Dhawan, Ashutosh Kumar. Cellular internalization and antioxidant activity of cerium oxide nanoparticles in human monocytic leukemia cells.International Journal of Nanomedicine,13: 39-41 (2018)
6. Krupa Kansara, Pal Patel, Ritesh K Shukla, Alok Pandya, Rishi Shanker, Ashutosh Kumar, Alok Dhawan. Synthesis of biocompatible iron oxide nanoparticles as a drug delivery vehicle. International Journal of Nanomedicine,13: 79–82 (2018)
7. Violet Aileen Senapati, Krupa Kansara, Rishi Shanker, Alok Dhawan and Ashutosh Kumar. Monitoring characteristics and genotoxic effects of engineered nanoparticle-protein corona. Mutagenesis. 32(5):479-490 (2017)
8. Violet Aileen Senapati, Govind Sharan Gupta, Alok Kumar Pandey, Rishi Shanker, Alok Dhawan and Ashutosh Kumar. Zinc oxide nanoparticle induced age dependent immunotoxicity in BALB/c mice. Toxicology Research 6, 342-352 (2017)
9. Govind Saran Gupta, Ashutosh Kumar, Violet A Senapati, Alok K Pandey, Rishi Shanker, Alok Dhawan. Laboratory scale microbial food chain to study bioaccumulation, biomagnification, and ecotoxicity of cadmium telluride quantum dots. Environmental Science and Technology. 51(3):1695-1706(2017) 
10. Nandita Dasgupta, Shraddha Mundra, Shivendu Ranjan, Chidambaram Ramalingam, and Ashutosh Kumar. Fabrication of food grade vitamin E nanoemulsion by low energy approach, characterization and its application. International Journal of Food Properties. 19: 700-708 (2016)
11. Ashutosh Kumar, Rishi Shanker and Sanjay Singh. Interference of engineered nanomaterials with in vitro toxicity assessment methods. Journal of Translational Toxicology (Article in press)
12. Margit Heinlaan, Marge Muna, Melanie Knobel, david Kistler, Niksa Odzak, Dana Kuhnel, Josefine Muller, Govind Saran Gupta, Ashutosh Kumar, Rishi Shanker, Laura Sigg. Natural water as the test medium for Ag and CuO nanoparticle hazard evaluation: An interlaboratory case study. Environmental Pollution. 216:689-699 (2016)
13. Govind Saran Gupta, Ashutosh Kumar, Rishi Shanker, Alok Dhawan. Assessment of agglomeration, co-sedimentation and trophic transfer of titanium dioxide nanoparticles in laboratory scale predator-prey model system. Scientific Report 6:31422 (2016) 
14. Nandita Dasgupta, Shivendu Ranjan, Bhavapriya Rajendran, Venkatraman Manickam, Chidambaram Ramalingam, Avadhani GS and Ashutosh Kumar. Thermal co-reduction approach to vary size of silver nanoparticle: its microbial and cellular toxicology. Environmental Science and Pollution Research23(5):4149-63 (2016)
15. Shivendu Ranjan, Nandita Dasgupta, Sudandiradoss Chinnappan, Chidambaram Ramalingam, Ashutosh Kumar. A novel approach to evaluate titanium dioxide nanoparticle–protein interaction through docking: An insight into mechanism of action. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, India Section B: Biological Sciences. doi: 10.1007/s40011-015-0673-z, (Article in press)
16. Shivendu Ranjan, Nandita Dasgupta, Bhavapriya Rajendran, Ganesh S Avadhani, Chidambaram Ramalingam, Ashutosh Kumar. Microwave-irradiation-assisted hybrid chemical approach for titanium dioxide nanoparticle synthesis: microbial and cyto-toxicological evaluation. Environmental Science and Pollution Research. 23(12):12287-302 (2016)
17. Pal Patel, Krupa Kansara, Violet Aileen Senapati, Rishi Shanker, Alok Dhawan and Ashutosh Kumar. Cell Cycle Dependent Cellular Uptake of Zinc Oxide nanoparticles in Human Epidermal Cells. Mutagenesis. 31(4): 481-90 (2016)
18. Nandita Dasgupta, Shivendu Ranjan, Dhabaleswar Patra, Priyanka Srivastava, Ashutosh Kumar, Chidambaram Ramalingam. Bovine serum albumin interacts with silver nanoparticles with a “side-on” or “end-on” conformation. Chemico-Biological Interactions. 25 (253):100-11 (2016)
19. Rahul Purohit, N V Srikanth Vallabani, Ritesh K Shukla, Ashutosh Kumar and Sanjay Singh. Effect of Gold Nanoparticle Size and Surface Coating on Human Red Blood Cells. Bioinspired, Biomimetic and Nanobiomaterials 5(3):121-131 (2016)
20. Sanjay Singh and Ashutosh Kumar. Engineered Nanomaterials: Safety and Health Hazard. International Journal of Nanotechnology & Nanomedicine. 1: 1-23 (2016)
21. Krupa Kansara, Pal Patel, Darshini Shah, Ritesh K Shukla, Sanjay Singh, Ashutosh Kumar* and Alok Dhawan. TiO2 Nanoparticles induce DNA double strand breaks and cell cycle arrest in human alveolar cells. Environmental and Molecular Mutagenesis. 56:204-217 (2015)
22. Ashutosh Kumar, Mojgan Najafzadeh, Badie K Jacob, Alok Dhawan and Diana Anderson. Zinc oxide nanoparticles affect the expression of p53, Ras p21 and JNKs: An ex vivo/in vitro exposure study in respiratory disease patients. Mutagenesis. 30(2):237-245 (2015)
23. Nandita Dasgupta, Shivendu Ranjan, Deepa Mundekkad, Chidambaram Ramalingam, Rishi Shanker, Ashutosh Kumar. Nanotechnology in agro-food: From field to plate. Food Research International 69: 381–400 (2015)
24. Varun Khanna, Ashutosh Kumar, Rishi Shanker. Identification of novel drug targets and lead compounds in Anthrax and Pneumonia causing pathogens using an In-Silico approach. iMedPub Journals 1(1), 1-10 (2015)
25. Violet Aileen Senapati, Ashutosh Kumar, Govind Sharan Gupta, Alok Kumar Pandey, and Alok Dhawan. ZnO nanoparticles induced inflammatory responseand genotoxicity in human blood cells: A mechanistic approach. Food and Chemical Toxicology 85:61-70 (2015)
26. Reema Savaliya, Darshini Shah, Ragini Singh, Ashutosh Kumar, Rishi Shankar, Alok Dhawan and Sanjay Singh. Nanotechnology in Disease Diagnostic Techniques, Current Drug Metabolism, 16(8):645-61 (2015)
27. Ashutosh Kumar, Sajid Khan, Alok Dhawan. Comprehensive molecular analysis of the responses induced by titanium dioxide nanoparticles in human keratinocyte cells. [Published on Cover Page of the journal] Journal of Translational Toxicology, 1: 28-39 (2014)
28. Zuzana Magdolenova, Andrew Richard Collins, Ashutosh Kumar, Alok Dhawan, Vicki Stone, Maria Dusinska. Mechanisms of Genotoxicity: Review of recentin vitro and in vivo studies with engineered Nanoparticles. Nanotoxicology, 8(3):233-78 (2014)
29. Ritesh K. Shukla†, Ashutosh Kumar†, N.V. Srikanth Vallabani, Alok K Pandey and Alok Dhawan. Titanium dioxide nanoparticle induced oxidative stress triggers DNA damage and hepatic injury in mice. Nanomedicine, 9(9):1423-1434 (2014) †equal contributor.
30. Shivendu Ranjan, Nandita Dasgupta, Arkadyuti Roy Chakraborty, S. Melvin Samuel, Chidambaram Ramalingam, Rishi Shanker and Ashutosh KumarNanoscience and nanotechnologies in food industries: opportunities and research trends. Journal of Nanoparticle Research, 16:2464-2487 (2014).
31. Ashutosh Kumar, Alok Dhawan. Genotoxic and carcinogenic potential of engineered nanoparticles: An update. Archives of Toxicology, 87: 1883 -1900(2013)
32. Ritesh K Shukla†, Ashutosh Kumar†, Deepak Gurbani, Alok K. Pandey, Shashi S. Singh and Alok Dhawan. TiO2 nanoparticles induce oxidative DNA damage and apoptosis in human liver cells. Nanotoxicology, 7: 48-60 (2013), †equal contributor
33. Deepak Gurbani, Santosh Kumar Bharti, Ashutosh Kumar, Alok K. Pandey, Godson R.E.E. Anae, Ambrish Verma, Altaf Husain Khan, Devendra K. Patel, M.K.R. Mudiam, Swatantra K. Jain, Raja Roy, Alok Dhawan. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and their quinones modulate the metabolic profile and induce DNA damage in human alveolar and bronchiolar cells. International Journal of Hygiene and Environmental Health. 216, 553-565 (2013)
34. Deepak Gurbani, Vandna Kukshal, Julian Laubenthal, Ashutosh Kumar, Alok K. Pandey, Sarita Tripathi, Ashish Arora, Swatantra K. Jain, Ravishankar Ramachandran, Diana Anderson and Alok Dhawan. Mechanism of inhibition of the ATPase domain of human topoisomerase IIα by 1,4-benzoquinone, 1,2-naphthoquinone,1,4-naphthoquinone, and 9,10 phenanthroquinone. [Published on Cover Page of the journal] Toxicological Sciences, 126 (2) 372–90, 2012
35. Kajal Kumar Day, Ashutosh Kumar, Rishi Shanker, Alok Dhawan, Meher Wan, Raja Ram Yadav and Avanish Kumar Srivastava. Growth morphologies, phase formation, optical & biological responses of nanostructures of CuO and their application as cooling fluid in high energy density devices. RSC Advances. 2, 1387-03 (2012)
36. Ashutosh Kumar and Alok Dhawan. Nanobiotechnology and the Environment. BT Chronicle (Official magazine of Gujarat State Biotechnology Mission, Department of Science & Technology, Government of Gujarat), 8(3):6-9, (2012)
37. Vyom Sharma, Ashutosh Kumar, Alok Dhawan. Nanomaterials: Exposure, Effects and Toxicity Assessment. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, India, Section B Biological Sciences. 82, 3–11 (2012)
38. Ashutosh Kumar, Alok K. Pandey, Shashi S. Singh, Rishi Shanker and Alok Dhawan. Engineered ZnO and TiO(2) nanoparticles induce oxidative stress and DNA damage leading to reduced viability of Escherichia coli. Free Radical Biology and Medicine. 51(10):1872-81 (2011)
39. Ashutosh Kumar, Alok K. Pandey, Shashi S. Singh, Rishi Shanker and Alok Dhawan. A flow cytometric method to assess nanoparticle uptake in bacteria.Cytometry A, 79(9):707-12 (2011)
40. Ashutosh Kumar, Alok K. Pandey, Shashi S. Singh, Rishi Shanker and Alok Dhawan. Cellular uptake and mutagenic potential of metal oxide nanoparticles in bacterial cells. Chemosphere. 83:1124-32 (2011)
41. Sanjay Yadav, Ankita Pandey, Aruna Shukla, Sarang Talwelkar, Ashutosh Kumar, Aditya B. Pant, Devendra Parmar. MiR-497 and miR-302b regulate ethanol induced neuronal cell death through BCL2 and cyclin D2. Journal of Biological Chemistry. 286(43):37347-57 (2011)
42. Ashutosh Kumar, Rishi Shanker and Alok Dhawan. The Need for Novel Approaches in Ecotoxicity of Engineered Nanomaterials. Journal of Biomedical Nanotechnology. 7, 79-80 (2011)
43. Ashutosh Kumar, Alok K. Pandey, Shashi S. Singh, Rishi Shanker and Alok Dhawan. Cellular Response to Metal Oxide Nanoparticles in Bacteria. Journal of Biomedical Nanotechnology. 7, 102-3 (2011)
44. Ritesh K. Shukla, Ashutosh Kumar, Alok K. Pandey, Shashi S. Singh, and Alok Dhawan. Titanium Dioxide Nanoparticles Induce Oxidative Stress-Mediated Apoptosis in Human Keratinocyte Cells. Journal of Biomedical Nanotechnology. 7, 100-1 (2011)

• Ashutosh Kumar, Alok K. Pandey, Rishi Shanker and Alok Dhawan. Microorganisms: A versatile model for toxicity assessment of engineered nanoparticles. In Nano - antimicrobials: Progress and Prospects. Eds: Dr. Nicola Cioffi and Dr. Mahendra Rai. Publisher: Springer Verlag, GmbH, pp 497-524, (2012)
• Mahima Bajpayee, Ashutosh Kumar, Alok Dhawan. The comet assay: Assessment of in vitro and in vivo DNA damage. In Genotoxicity assessment: Methods and protocol. Methods in Molecular Biology, Eds: Professor Alok Dhawan, Ed: Dr. Mahima Bajpayee. Publisher: Humana Press, pp 325-345,(2013)
• Ashutosh Kumar, Vyom Sharma and Alok Dhawan. Methods for detection of oxidative stress and genotoxicity of engineered nanoparticles. InOxidative Stress and Nanotechnology. Methods in Molecular Biology, Eds: Dr. Donald Armstrong, Ed: Dr. Dhruba J. Bharali. Publisher: Humana Press, Volume 1028, pp 231-246 (2013)
• Ashutosh Kumar and Alok Dhawan. Nano-safety, Standardization and Certification. In Manual on Critical Issues in Nano-technology R&D Management: An Asia-Pacific Perspective. A United Nations Document, pp. 1-40, (2013) http://nanotech.apctt.org/Nanotech%20Manual%20-%20Chapter%201.pdf
• Ashutosh Kumar, Rishi Shanker and Alok Dhawan. Nanotoxicity: Aquatic organisms and ecosystems. In Aquananotechnology: Global Prospects. Eds: Professor David E. Reisner and Professor T. Pradeep. Publisher: CRC Press, Taylor and Francis Group, pp 97-106 (2014)
• Ashutosh Kumar, Sajid Khan and Alok Dhawan. Metal Oxide Nanoparticles Elicit Genotoxic Responses in Mammalian Cells: A Critical Review. InNanoscience and Technology for Mankind. Ed: Professor Ashok Misra and Professor Jayesh Bellare. Publisher: Humana Press, pp 160-194 (2014)
• Ashutosh Kumar, Mahima Bajpayee, Alok Dhawan. Detection of DNA damage in Drosophila. In Comet Assay in Toxicology. Eds. Alok Dhawan and Diana Anderson. Publishers-The Royal Society of Chemistry, Volume 2, pp 177-192 (2016)
• Mahima Bajpayee, Ashutosh Kumar and Alok Dhawan. The Comet Assay: A versatile tool for assessing DNA Damage. In Comet Assay in Toxicology. Eds. Alok Dhawan and Diana Anderson. Publishers-The Royal Society of Chemistry, Volume 2, pp 3-64 (2016)
• Nandita Dasgupta, Shivendu Ranjan, Chidambaram Ramalingam, Ashutosh Kumar. Nano in Nutraceuticals: Are they safe? In Nanotechnology in Nutraceuticals: Production to Consumption. Eds. Shampa Sen, Yashwant Pathak. Publisher – CRC Press, Taylor & Francis Group, pp 317–343 (2016)
• Shivendu Ranjan, Nandita Dasgupta, Chidambaram Ramalingam, Ashutosh Kumar. Nano-Emulsion in food science and nutrition. In Nanotechnology in Nutraceuticals: Production to Consumption. Eds. Shampa Sen, Yashwant Pathak. Publisher – CRC Press, Taylor & Francis Group, pp 135–163 (2016)
• Nandita Dasgupta Shivendu, Ranjan, Arkadyuti Roy Chakraborty, Chidambaram Ramalingam, Rishi Shanker, Ashutosh Kumar. Nano agriculture and water quality management. In Nanoscience in Food and Agriculture, Volume 1. Eds. Shivendu Ranjan, Nandita Dasgupta, Eric Lichtfouse. Publisher – Springer International Publishing Switzerland Volume 1, pp 1-42 (2016)
• Govind Sharan Gupta, Rishi Shanker, Alok Dhawan and Ashutosh Kumar., “Impact of nanomaterials on the aquatic food chain” In Nanoscience in Food and Agriculture, Volume 5, Eds. Shivendu Ranjan, Nandita Dasgupta, Eric Lichtfouse.  Publisher - Springer International Publishing Switzerland Volume 5, pp 309-334 (2017)
• Ashutosh Kumar, Sanjay Singh, Rishi Shanker and Alok Dhawan., Nanotoxicology: Challenges for biologists. In Nanotoxicology: Experimental and Computational Perspectives, Eds. Alok Dhawan, Diana Anderson and Rishi Shanker. Publisher - The Royal Society of Chemistry, London, United Kingdom, pp 1-16(2017)
• Ashutosh Kumar, Violet Aileen Senapati and Alok Dhawan., Protocols for In vitro and In vivo toxicity assessment of engineered nanoparticles. In Nanotoxicology: Experimental and Computational Perspectives, Eds. Alok Dhawan, Diana Anderson and Rishi Shanker. Publisher - The Royal Society of Chemistry, London, United Kingdom, pp 94-132(2017)
• Ashutosh Kumar, Rishi Shanker, Alok Dhawan., Detection of Mutation in Prokaryotic Cells. In Mutagenicity: Assays and Applications Eds. Ashutosh Kumar, Vasily N. Dobrovolsky Rishi Shanker and Alok Dhawan. Publisher – Academic Press, London, United Kingdom, pp 35-48 (2018)
• Violet A Senapati, Ashutosh Kumar., Nanoparticles and the Aquatic Environment: Application, Impact and Fate. In Nanobiotechnology: Human Health and the Environment Eds. Alok Dhawan, Sanjay Singh, Ashutosh Kumar, Rishi Shanker, CRC Press, Boca Raton, pp. 299-323 (2018). 

Ashutosh have teaching interest in the following subjects:

• Genomics Proteomics and Metabolomics
• Biophysical Instrumentation
• Genetic engineering
• Microbial Bioprocess Technology
• Cell and Molecular Biology
• Genetics
• Flow Cytometry

Member editorial Board:

1. Micro and Nanosystems, Bentham Science Publishers
2. International Journal of Nanotechnology and Nanomedicine
3. Advanced Science, Engineering and Medicine
4. Journal of Research in Nanotechnology

• Mutagenesis
• 3 Biotech
• Drug and Chemical Toxicology
• Science of the Total Environment
• Environmental Chemistry Letters
• Journal of Nanoparticle Research
• EBioMedicine
• Journal of Computational Design and Engineering
• Environmental Research
• Carbohydrate Polymers 
• Chemosphere
• Process Biochemistry

• NASI-Young Scientist Platinum Jubilee Award (2015) in the field of Bio-medical, Molecular Biology and Bio-technology
• INSA Medal for Young Scientist (2014) in the area of Health Sciences
• Excellence in Research Award (2015) Ahmedabad University
• DBT - Young Investigator Award to present the poster on “Bacteria as an early warning system for human risk assessment to engineered nanoparticles” in EU–India Science, Technology and Innovation Days (2013) in Paris, France on 10th and 11th October 2013.
• DST -Young Investigator Award to work with University of Bradford, Bradford, UK under the DST-UKIERI joint project on “Cellular fate of novel nanomaterials for therapeutics and consumer products” on (2010).
• vLife Science Best Publication Award - received vLife Best Publication Award for the outstanding publication in the field of Computer Aided Drug Design on (June 1, 2013) for the paper “Mechanism of inhibition of the ATPase domain of human topoisomerase IIα by 1, 4-benzoquinone, 1,2-naphthoquinone,1,4-naphthoquinone, and 9,10 phenanthroquinone. Toxicological Sciences, 126 (2) 372–390, 2012.
• Prize for Best Oral Presentation (2011) -  International symposium on the safe use of nanomaterials, held at Indian Institute of Toxicology Research, Lucknow, February 1-3, 2011
• Best Poster Award (2014) - International Conference on Translational Nanomedicine (T-NANO 2014), held at Institute of Life Sciences, Ahmedabad, December 15-17, 2014.