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{{short description|Molecular parasitologist}}
{{Orphan|date=October 2019}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2023}}
{{Use Indian English|date=January 2023}}
{{Infobox scientist
| name = Rita Tewari
| image = File:Rita Tewari (cropped).jpg
| caption = Rita Tewari speaking at a conference at [[EMBL]]
| birth_place = [[Delhi]], India
| workplaces = [[University of Nottingham]]
}}
'''Rita Tewari''' is an [[Indian people|Indian]] [[parasitologist]] who studies the [[cell and molecular biology]] of [[malaria]]. She currently holds a post as professor at the [[University of Nottingham]].

== Early life and education ==
Tewari was born in [[Delhi]], [[India]], however she moved to the North-East of the country when she was growing up. Her father was a professor in social sciences. Tewari reports having contracted malaria seven times when she was young.<ref name=":3">{{Cite web|url=http://home.bt.com/news/science-news/expert-caught-malaria-seven-times-11363918749679|title=Expert 'caught malaria seven times'|date=10 July 2014|website=BT News|access-date=26 May 2019|archive-date=26 May 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190526201523/http://home.bt.com/news/science-news/expert-caught-malaria-seven-times-11363918749679|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name=":4">{{Cite web|url=http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2014-07/uon-ta070814.php|title=The 'yin and yang' of malaria parasite development|website=EurekAlert!|language=en|access-date=2019-05-26|archive-date=26 May 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190526201528/https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2014-07/uon-ta070814.php|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name=":5">{{Cite web|url=https://www.labnews.co.uk/news/malaria-research-close-to-understanding-parasite-lifecycle-30-07-2014/|title=Malaria research close to understanding parasite lifecycle|last=Admin|date=2014-07-30|website=Laboratory News|language=en-US|access-date=2019-05-26}}</ref> She initially wanted to study [[medicine]] at university but had to read [[zoology]] instead due to a lack of choice in her local area. She returned to the city of her birth for her PhD, studying X-chromosome genetics at the [[University of Delhi]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|url=https://exchange.nottingham.ac.uk/blog/dr-rita-tewari/|title=Profile: Dr Rita Tewari – Campus News|language=en-US|access-date=2019-05-26|archive-date=26 May 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190526193431/https://exchange.nottingham.ac.uk/blog/dr-rita-tewari/|url-status=dead}}</ref>

== Career ==
Tewari held a number of research posts across Europe after completing her PhD in 1989. In chronological order these included a postdoc at the [[Institut national de la recherche agronomique]], [[France]], senior research associate positions at the [[National Institute for Medical Research]]/[[University of Cambridge]] and [[Erasmus University Rotterdam]], and as a senior scientist at the [[Sars International Centre for Marine Molecular Biology]], [[Norway]].<ref name=":1">{{Cite web|url=https://www.nottingham.ac.uk/life-sciences/people/rita.tewari|title=Rita Tewari - The University of Nottingham|website=www.nottingham.ac.uk|access-date=2019-05-26}}</ref> In 1999 she was hired as a research lecturer at [[Imperial College London]], where she first began working on malaria using mice models.<ref name=":0" /> She remained here for nine years, notably contributing to research into the role of a [[calcium-dependent protein kinase]] in the life cycle of ''[[Plasmodium berghei]]'' with the lab of [[Oliver Bilker|Oliver Billker]].<ref name=":2">{{Cite web|url=https://www.imperial.ac.uk/college.asp?P=5272|title=Reporter - Key life cycle switch in malaria parasite|website=www.imperial.ac.uk|access-date=2019-05-26}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Brinkmann|first1=Volker|last2=Franke-Fayard|first2=Blandine|last3=Wenig|first3=Gerald|last4=Tewari|first4=Rita|last5=Dechamps|first5=Sandrine|last6=Billker|first6=Oliver|date=2004-05-14|title=Calcium and a Calcium-Dependent Protein Kinase Regulate Gamete Formation and Mosquito Transmission in a Malaria Parasite|journal=Cell|language=en|volume=117|issue=4|pages=503–514|doi=10.1016/S0092-8674(04)00449-0|issn=0092-8674|pmid=15137943|s2cid=15519738|doi-access=free}}</ref> The results demonstrated the importance of the protein and [[calcium]] release in the conversion of sexual blood stage forms of the parasite into reproductive forms upon being taken up by the [[mosquito]].<ref name=":2" />

Tewari became a lecturer at the [[University of Nottingham]] in 2008, and was subsequently promoted to associate professor in 2012, and full professor in 2015.<ref name=":1" />

Tewari and her lab have focused on studying the molecular players in malaria transmission and development, using the rodent malaria ''[[Plasmodium berghei|P. berghei]]'' as a model, in the hope of discovering new targets for drugs.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.nottingham.ac.uk/news/pressreleases/2013/february/malaria-on-the-shelph.aspx|title=Putting malaria on the SHELPH - The University of Nottingham|website=www.nottingham.ac.uk|access-date=2019-05-26}}</ref> A 2012 study published by the group identified a malarial [[Phosphatase|phosphotase]] essential for the parasite to become and function as the [[ookinete]] form, which spreads the parasite through the mosquito.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.crick.ac.uk/news/2012-09-20-enzyme-discovery-may-lead-to-new-ways-to-fight-malaria|title=Enzyme discovery may lead to new ways to fight malaria|website=Crick|language=en|access-date=2019-05-26}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Tewari|first1=Rita|last2=Holder|first2=Anthony A.|last3=Tobin|first3=Andrew B.|last4=Sinden|first4=Robert E.|last5=Green|first5=Judith L.|last6=Solyakov|first6=Lev|last7=Straschil|first7=Ursula|last8=Patzewitz|first8=Eva-Maria|last9=Brady|first9=Declan|date=2012-09-20|title=A Unique Protein Phosphatase with Kelch-Like Domains (PPKL) in Plasmodium Modulates Ookinete Differentiation, Motility and Invasion|journal=PLOS Pathogens|language=en|volume=8|issue=9|article-number=e1002948|doi=10.1371/journal.ppat.1002948|issn=1553-7374|pmc=3447748|pmid=23028336 |doi-access=free }}</ref> A year later they helped discover a calcium transporter also essential for growth of the parasite.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.sgul.ac.uk/news/news-archive/malaria-parasite-protein-identified-as-potential-new-target-for-drug-treatment|title=Malaria parasite protein identified as potential new target for drug treatment|website=www.sgul.ac.uk|language=en-gb|access-date=2019-05-26}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Staines|first1=Henry M.|last2=Tewari|first2=Rita|last3=Krishna|first3=Sanjeev|last4=Soldati-Favre|first4=Dominique|last5=Wheatley|first5=Sally P.|last6=Slavic|first6=Ksenija|last7=McFarlane|first7=Leon R.|last8=Poulin|first8=Benoit|last9=Frénal|first9=Karine|date=2013-02-28|title=The Plasmodium berghei Ca2+/H+ Exchanger, PbCAX, Is Essential for Tolerance to Environmental Ca2+ during Sexual Development|journal=PLOS Pathogens|language=en|volume=9|issue=2|article-number=e1003191|doi=10.1371/journal.ppat.1003191|pmid=23468629|pmc=3585132|issn=1553-7374 |doi-access=free }}</ref> In 2014 Tewari's group published a genetic screen of [[phosphatase]]s identified across the ''[[Plasmodium berghei|P. berghei]]'' genome.<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":4" /><ref name=":5" /><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://mrc.ukri.org/news/browse/the-yin-and-yang-of-malaria-parasite-development/|title=The 'yin and yang' of malaria parasite development|last=Medical Research Council|first=M. R. C.|date=2019-01-14|website=mrc.ukri.org|language=en|access-date=2019-05-26}}</ref> A genetic knock-out could not be generated for half of the genes, suggesting a potentially essential function in the life of the parasite, and six others were found to play important roles in sexual development and transmission.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Tewari|first1=Rita|last2=Pain|first2=Arnab|last3=Wickstead|first3=Bill|last4=Holder|first4=Anthony A.|last5=Tate|first5=Edward W.|last6=Arold|first6=Stefan T.|last7=Radhakrishnan|first7=Anand|last8=Mohamed|first8=Alyaa M. A. H.|last9=Wright|first9=Megan H.|date=2014-07-09|title=Genome-wide Functional Analysis of Plasmodium Protein Phosphatases Reveals Key Regulators of Parasite Development and Differentiation|url= |journal=Cell Host & Microbe|language=en|volume=16|issue=1|pages=128–140|doi=10.1016/j.chom.2014.05.020|issn=1931-3128|pmc=4094981|pmid=25011111}}</ref> Genomic analysis for [[Sequence homology|protein orthologues]] and genetic manipulation continues to play a major role in Tewari's work, including the 2015 discovery of malarial [[cyclin]]s and their importance in development of the oocyst form in the mosquito.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/health-34808267|title=Scientists find key to malaria growth|date=2015-11-14|work=BBC|access-date=2019-05-26|language=en-GB}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Tewari|first1=Rita|last2=Wickstead|first2=Bill|last3=Pain|first3=Arnab|last4=Holder|first4=Anthony A.|last5=Yamano|first5=Hiroyuki|last6=Wheatley|first6=Sally P.|last7=Guttery|first7=David S.|last8=Brady|first8=Declan|last9=Rchiad|first9=Zineb|date=2015-11-13|title=Plasmodium P-Type Cyclin CYC3 Modulates Endomitotic Growth during Oocyst Development in Mosquitoes|journal=PLOS Pathogens|language=en|volume=11|issue=11|article-number=e1005273|doi=10.1371/journal.ppat.1005273|issn=1553-7374|pmc=4643991|pmid=26565797 |doi-access=free }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.nottingham.ac.uk/news/pressreleases/2015/november/cyclin-out-of-gear-malaria-parasites-grinding-to-a-halt-.aspx|title=Cyclin' out of gear: malaria parasites grinding to a halt - The University of Nottingham|website=www.nottingham.ac.uk|access-date=2019-05-26}}</ref>

Tewari's work has been accomplished in collaboration with many notable [[malariologist]]s including [[Anthony Holder]], [[Robert Sinden]] and [[Maria Manuel Mota|Maria Mota]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.nottingham.ac.uk/news/pressreleases/2017/july/nottingham-research-plays-key-role-in-malaria-breakthrough.aspx|title=Nottingham research plays key role in malaria breakthrough - The University of Nottingham|website=www.nottingham.ac.uk|access-date=2019-05-26}}</ref>

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

{{authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tewari, Rita}}
[[Category:Indian women molecular biologists]]
[[Category:Indian women microbiologists]]
[[Category:Indian parasitologists]]
[[Category:Delhi University alumni]]
[[Category:Year of birth missing (living people)]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Women parasitologists]]
[[Category:Malariologists]]

Rita Tewari - Revision history

AngleaDeason621: created a article