Scientific Committee

Biography

Dr. Mugdha Harmalkar is a researcher working at the intersection of phytochemistry, cancer biology, and computational drug discovery. Her research focuses on the anticancer potential of plant-derived bioactive compounds, integrating experimental cell-based assays with AI-assisted molecular docking and in silico modeling to investigate apoptosis and oxidative stress pathways. She has studied medicinal plants such as Bougainvillea, Plumbago, and Clematis, along with phenolic acids including caffeic, sinapic, and vanillic acid. Her work emphasizes sustainable, plant-based therapeutic discovery and the use of computational tools to accelerate and optimize drug development, aligning with emerging trends in innovation-driven biomedical research.

Research interests:

• Sustainable Phytochemical Research
  Exploration of plant-derived bioactive molecules as eco-friendly, cost-effective alternatives in cancer therapeutics and prevention.
• Cancer Biology & Mechanistic Pathways
  Investigation of apoptosis, oxidative stress, and signaling pathways to understand how natural compounds modulate cancer progression.
• AI-Enabled Drug Discovery & Molecular Modeling
  Application of computational tools and molecular docking to predict ligand–protein interactions, for more efficient identification of anticancer compounds.
• Integrated Experimental–Computational Approaches
  Combining wet lab assays with in silico techniques to improve accuracy, efficiency, and reproducibility in biomedical research.
• Translational and Innovation-Driven Research
  Bridging experimental findings with computational insights to develop scalable and impactful therapeutic strategies.