Professor Alok Dhawan is currently Director of the CSIR-Indian Institute of Toxicology Research (CSIR-IITR), Lucknow. He also served as Founding Director of the Institute of Life Sciences, and the Dean for Planning and Development at Ahmedabad University, Gujarat. Before joining as Director of CSIR-IITR, he held a number of different scientific positions, such as – Scientist, Senior Principal Scientist, Principal Scientist, etc. He obtained his PhD in Biochemistry from the University of Lucknow, India in 1991. He was awarded a DSc (Honorary) by the University of Bradford, UK in 2017, and was a Visiting Scholar at Michigan State University, USA, and BOYSCAST Fellow at the Universities of Surrey, Wales & Bradford, UK. Professor Dhawan started the area of nanomaterial toxicology in India and published a guidance document on the safe use of nanomaterials. His group elucidated the mechanism of toxicity of metal oxide nanoparticles in human and bacterial cells, and his work has been widely cited. He set up a state-of-the-art nanomaterial toxicology facility at CSIR-IITR as well as at the Institute of Life Sciences. Professor Dhawan has won several honours and awards including the INSA Young Scientist Medal in 1994, CSIR Young Scientist Award in 1999, the Shakuntala Amir Chand Prize of ICMR in 2002, and the Vigyan Ratna from the Council of Science and Technology, UP in 2011. His work in the area of nanomaterial toxicology has won him international accolades as well, and he was awarded two Indo-UK projects under the prestigious UK-IERI programme. He was also awarded two European Union Projects under the FP7 and New INDIGO programmes. He founded the Indian Nanoscience Society in 2007. In recognition of his work he has been elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry, UK; the National Academy of Sciences, India; The Academy of Toxicological Sciences, USA; The Academy of Environmental Biology; The Academy of Science for Animal Welfare; The Society of Toxicology, India; The Indian Nanoscience Society; and of The Gujarat Science Academy. He was also Vice President of the Environmental Mutagen Society of India (2006–7), and Member of The National Academy of Medical Sciences; The United Kingdom Environmental Mutagen Society; and The Asian Association of Environmental Mutagen Societies, Japan. He has to his credit over 125 publications in peer-reviewed international journals, 18 reviews/book chapters, four patents, two copyrights and has edited two books. He is the Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Translational Toxicology published by American Scientific Publishers and serves on the Editorial Board of Mutagenesis, Nanotoxicology, Mutation Research Reviews, and other journals of repute.

Professor Diana Anderson currently holds the Established Chair in Biomedical Sciences at the University of Bradford, UK. She obtained her first degree at the University of Wales and second degrees in the Faculty of Medicine, University of Manchester. After tutoring at the University of Sydney, Australia, she became a research worker in the Department of Cancer Studies at the University of Leeds and at the Paterson Laboratories, Christie Hospital, Manchester. In 1974, she was appointed Head of Mutagenesis Studies at ICI's Central Toxicology Laboratory. Professor Anderson joined BIBRA International in 1981 as Head of Genetic and Reproductive Toxicology and became Assistant Director and Group Forum Co-ordinator in 1987. In 1992, she became Senior Associate and Co-ordinator of External Affairs at BIBRA. She has attended various management courses. She has served on the editorial board of 10 international journals, has over 450 publications, has edited/authored 9 books and guest-edited 9 special issues of 4 international journals. She has been/is Series Editor of books in Current Toxicology for John Wiley & Sons, and Issues in Toxicology for the Royal Society of Chemistry. As an active Committee member, she has been Vice-President of the Institute of Biology and was Chair of the Scientific Committee of the International Association of Environmental Mutagen Societies. She is Chief Examiner for the International Diploma in Toxicology under the aegis of the Royal Society of Biology. As a successful supervisor for 28 PhD, 1 MSc and 2 MPhil students, she is currently supervising another 5 PhDs. She has been external examiner for 27 PhDs and was External Examiner for the Department of Genetics at the University of Wales, Swansea. She has been invited to speak at many international meetings and chair many symposia. New research laboratories in India and Korea have been established with her help under the auspices of the British Council and UNIDO. Funded by various international agencies, scientists from America, Australia, the Czech Republic, Italy, India, Iran, Korea, Poland, Serbia, Spain and Turkey have received training under her supervision. She has organized both national and international meetings and was a member of various national (e.g., MRC Advisory Board and Veterinary Products Committee) and international committees, including the European Union Scientific Committee for Animal Nutrition (SCAN). For 2007–10 she won an award as Yorkshire Enterprise Fellow and was nominated for an Albert Einstein Award In Science in 2016. She is a consultant for many international organizations, such as the WHO, NATO, TWAS, UNIDO and the OECD.

Professor Rishi Shanker currently serves as Consultant to CSIR-Indian Institute of Toxicology Research and Advisor to ABC Genomics (India) Private Ltd at Biotechnology Park, Lucknow, India. He has served as Professor & Associate Dean at the School of Arts & Sciences, Ahmedabad University, Gujarat, India (2014–16). Prior to joining Ahmedabad University, he served as Chief Scientist and Area Coordinator of the Environmental & Nanomaterial Toxicology Groups at CSIR-IITR, Lucknow (2001–13). He also served as Principal Scientist at the CSIR-National Environmental Engineering Research Institute, Nagpur and set up a state-of-the-art laboratory in the area of Environmental Biotechnology (1991–2001). He obtained his Masters in Biochemistry from University of Lucknow and a PhD in Environmental Microbiology & Toxicology from CSIR-IITR & CSJM University (1985). Professor Shanker's post-doctoral research addressed methanogen microbiology, deep subsurface microbiology and protein engineering at the University of London and Pennsylvania State University, USA (1987–90).

Professor Shanker's research contributions range from genetically engineered bacteria for bioremediation and molecular probes for pathogen detection to alternate models in toxicity assessment of chemicals and engineered nanomaterials. He has successfully steered over 34 national and international research projects including the Indo-US program: Common Agenda for Environment, the Indo-Swiss Program in Biotechnology, the Indo-German, EU FP7, EU New Indigo & Inno Indigo program and Unilever. He has more than 80 publications and 20 reviews/book chapters to his credit in aforesaid areas. He has mentored 11 PhD students and 20 research projects of Masters’ students in life sciences.

His work on ‘pathogen detection and water quality’ received recognition in form of Vigyan Ratna, conferred by the Government of Uttar Pradesh, India. He was awarded the Visiting Research Fellowship of the Society for General Microbiology, UK at the Anaerobic Microbiology Laboratory, Queen Mary University of London. He has served as Visiting Scientist and Visiting Professor at the University of Washington, Seattle, USA, the Pasteur Institute & CEA, France, the and the Pohang University of Science & Technology, Republic of Korea. He is a Founder Fellow of the Indian Nanoscience Society and a Fellow of the Society of Toxicology, India.