Syam Somasekharan

Dr. Syam Somasekharan is an assistant professor at the University of British Columbia (UBC) and a senior research scientist at the Vancouver Prostate Centre. Graduating with a PhD in biochemistry at the Indian Institute of Science, Dr. Somasekharan proceeded to do his post-doctoral fellowships at the Department of Cell Biology, University of Geneva and the Department of Pathology, UBC, investigating the molecular mechanisms of apoptosis and mRNA translation. After his post-doctoral research, Dr. Somasekharan received the Early Career Research Award from the Government of India and served as a Ramanujan Fellow at the Indian Institute of Technology, Indore. 

Dr. Somasekharan’s laboratory is located at the Vancouver Prostate Centre and focuses on RNA biology. The laboratory is particularly interested in interdisciplinary research to understand the molecular mechanism of regulation of RNA in health and disease. In 2023, he received federal NSERC Discovery Grant funding for his research investigating the role of RNA-binding motif protein X-linked 2 (RBMX2) in nucleolar phase separation and functions. He is also the recipient of a 2023 Prostate Cancer Research Program Idea Development Award - Established Investigator Award from the U.S. Department of Defense Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs.