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Green Guru Gatherings S1E4: In Conversation with Dr Taruna Singh

Dr Taruna Singh, Assistant Professor, Miranda House


Dr Taruna Singh is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Chemistry at Miranda House since 2023. She has completed her Ph.D. on the topic “Preparation, Characterization and Biomedical Studies of Metal Containing Matrix” from Department of Chemistry, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi. She was a Post Doc Fellow in Department of Chemistry, University of Delhi under the project sanctioned by DST (Women Scientist B Scheme) on the topic entitled “Physicochemical interactions of MnO2 nanoparticles with Poly pyrrole nanotube towards improved performance in super capacitor electrodes” She has more than 7 years of teaching experience at the undergraduate level. Her academic interests are Coordination Chemistry, Organometallic Chemistry and Bioinorganic Chemistry. She has various Research Publications, Book Chapters and Conference Proceedings which are published in International Journals. She has presented her research work at various National and International conferences and Seminars. She has contributed and participated in various National and International Seminars/workshops/conferences. She has been a Mentor for various Pathfinder and DSKC Research Projects at Undergraduate level, University of Delhi.


 

Ques 1- First question, would you mind introducing yourself to our gripping onlookers?

Ans- Myself Dr Taruna Singh I am working as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Chemistry, Miranda House since 2023. I did my graduation from Acharya Narendra Dev College, University of Delhi. I did my MSc. in Inorganic Chemistry from Jamia Millia Islamia University. I did my Ph.D. from Jamia Milia Islamia. I have worked as Post Doc Fellow in Department of Chemistry, University of Delhi under the project sanctioned by DST.


Ques 2- Could you provide some insight into your academic areas of specialization and share what inspired your pursuit of them?

Ans-I have completed my Ph.D. on the topic “Preparation, Characterization and Biomedical Studies of Metal Containing Matrix” from Department of Chemistry, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi. I was a Post Doc Fellow in Department of Chemistry, University of Delhi under the project sanctioned by DST (Women Scientist B Scheme) on the topic entitled “Physicochemical interactions of MnO2 nanoparticles with Poly pyrrole nanotube towards improved performance in super capacitor electrodes". I have more than 7 years of teaching experience at the undergraduate level. My academic interests are Coordination Chemistry, Organometallic Chemistry and Bioinorganic Chemistry. I have various Research Publications, Book Chapters and Conference Proceedings which are published in International Journals. I have presented my research work at various National and International conferences and Seminars. I have also participated in various National and International Seminars/Workshops/Conferences. I have been a Mentor for various Pathfinder and DSKC Research Projects at Undergraduate level, University of Delhi.


Ques 3- How do metal-containing matrices used in biomedical studies impact the environment, considering factors such as disposal and long-term effects?

Ans- In Biomedical studies, the use of metal-containing matrices can have an impact on the environment in terms of disposal and long-term effects. However, the metal-containing polymers that we had synthesized were made from renewable resources, specifically natural oils. As oil is a plant-based product I had used natural oils such as sunflower oil and soybean oil during my research. I had incorporated biologically active metals such as nickel, cobalt, zinc, and copper into the polymers and tested their biological activities as an alternative to Fluconazole therapy.

 

Ques 4 - Are there sustainable practices or alternative materials being explored in your research to minimize the environmental footprint of metal-containing matrices?

Ans- The products which we had synthesized were biodegradable and through microwave assisted synthesis. We had also found out through the studies that these were biodegradable in nature and thus the synthesized products were environment friendly.

During my classes, I always motivate my students to follow greener approach for preventing our environment. Like in labs, I always tell them not to waste chemicals and try to take minimum amount of chemicals while performing any test. During my research work we had worked on microwave assisted synthesis. Asif you synthesize polymers through conventional methods it takes almost 20 hours. However, through microwave assisted synthesis of polymers it tookaround3 to 4 minutes only. Hence it reduces time, solvent and energy production and hence is an environment friendly approach.

 

Ques 5-Can you discuss any ethical considerations related to the use of metal-containing matrices in biomedical applications, especially in relation to environmental concerns?

Ans- The metal containing polymers which we had synthesized were anticandidal,  synthesised product can be a substitute of antifungal drugs like fluconazole. We had synthesized renewable sources which were biodegradable in nature and a substitute of chemical-based product through microwave assisted synthesis using minimum amount of solvent, was an approach towards Green Chemistry. We had also worked on synthesis of antifouling paints using tin containing oil-based polymer as an ingredient. These were some of the approaches which we have taken towards protection of our environment.


Ques 6- In your research, do you investigate methods to optimize the production processes of metal-containing matrices to reduce waste or environmental impact?

Ans- The synthesis of our product was through using greener approach, as the base material which we have used was through renewable source and the synthesised product was also biodegradable. We have used the Sustainable Development approach, as per the Brundtland Commission, we have to think about the future generation by consuming less and saving more for them. I want to explain it with an example. As, if a bunch of people are provided with multiple colours, one slot is of the parents and another slot is of children. Both of the groups have to told to draw a painting The first turn was of parents all the parents have drawn a wonderful painting using multiple colours including green trees, flowers beautiful rivers, mountains etc. Another turn was of children. The task was to use the same colous which their parents have left and the colours which were left for the children was black, grey, white. because their parents had already used all the vibrant colors. And they had to draw their paintings using the same dull colours. Similarly, if we will, not think about our future generation then they will not have ample things to survive. Hence, we have to consume our resources in such a way that there is enough left for the future generation too.


 

Ques 7-  How do you envision the future development of metal- containing matrices in the biomedical field, considering both scientific advancement and environmental sustainability?

Ans-We can take our natural biodegradable polymers as a substitute of non-renewable metal containing polymers. As the synthesised polymer had antibacterial and antifungal properties so these can be a substitute of chemical-based drugs. As the synthesised product was also thermally stable it can also be a substitute of chemical based thermally stable products. Hence, we can say that was an approach towards Greener Chemistry and a step towards sustainable development.


Ques 8-  Apart from being a radiant professor of Miranda House, have you done something radiant to protect the environment as well?

Ans-  Thanks for the compliment and this radiance is just because of my lovely students your smiling faces always give me positive vibes and apart from it I would like to say that the steps which I follow in my life is that I try to reduce the consumption of the non-renewable material. I try to reuse the things. I always carry a cloth bag in my handbag for unplanned shopping. If we go for shopping grocery and vegetables we always carry our shopping bags. If anything comes from the market in any polybag or any plastic bag we reuse it as a garbage bag later. We use dustbin polybags of I generally use glass/steel water bottle/ lunch box in place of plastic bottles and lunch boxes. We always buy paper based or wooden based cutleries for functions at home. I always tell my students to carry one mug, straw and spoon in your bag so that you can reduce the cup, spoon and straw waste of canteen. If you are having tea twice a day or juice once a day and you are keeping mug in your bag then you can reduce the use of disposable glass or cup. If each and every student of the college carry their own mugs, their own spoons or straws, then they will not take that particular straws or spoons from the canteen and hence they can reduce the use of disposable mugs, spoons and. For there are 80 students in ypour class and they are having tea twice a day so 160 cups will be used by your class per day if you are multiplying it with the whole month then it will be 4800 disposable cups per month. And if we calculate it with the students of whole college this use of disposable cups will be in lakhs. So in this ways we can reduce the use of disposable mugs, spoons and straws in a large number.And if the whole college brings their own cups, straws and spoon they can reduce the environmental pollution. These are the tiny steps which each and everyone can take to protect our environment. Reduction of use of any material leads to reduce in its production and hence it is also an approach towards sustainable development because if we are consuming anything  in less amount then there will be less generation of the material and hence less generation of waste. If you are saying thatusing disposable paper mug but this paper mug is also comingfrom plants and trees as the paper is created bycutting of trees. Due to excessive use of paper created by plants, my approach during my research projects with undergraduate students is to synthesise paper using dried leaves, tea extract or vegetable waste. I am planning to implement the ways to generate new things usingorganicwaste.


Ques 9- Lastly, do you love plants and if you were to built a garden of your own, what plants would you choose and why?

Ans- I really love plants and because of my love for plants we bought a house in front of a big park. So, from the window of my house, we can see beautiful plants and trees. Lot of green area give me positive vibes. In my house I don’t have so many plants, but the main ones include Basil plant, curry plant, lemongrass for medicinal use along with few indoor plants like money plant, areca palm, spider plant, snake plant for fresh. As we have a back lobby, we are planning to grow vegetables and fruits there for organic farming. With this we can have fresh and chemicals free vegetables and fruits.



 

Interviewed by: Tanu Dayal and Tanuja (MH Vatavaran Volunteers)

Edited by: Tanu Dayal, Ekanshi and Nandini Kanwar (MH Vatavaran Volunteers)

Compiled by:  Tanuja (MHV Volunteer)

Picture Credit: Aditi Sharma

Recorded by: Nikita Joshi

 

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