Who is Kamal Ranadive and why is Google celebrating her 104th birthday?

New Delhi: Google Doodle on Monday celebrated Indian cell biologist Kamal Ranadive, who is best known for her groundbreaking cancer research and devotion towards creating a more equitable society.

As the director of the Indian Cancer Research Center (ICRC) and a pioneer in animal modeling of cancer development, she was among the first researchers in the nation to propose a link between breast cancer and heredity and to identify the links among cancers and certain viruses.

On her 104th birthday, the doodle showed Ranadive looking through a microscope.

Ranadive whose real name is Kamal Samarath was born on November 8, 1917, in Pune, Maharashtra. Although her father encouraged her to take up medical education and become a doctor, it was biology which attracted her more.

While working as a researcher at the Indian Cancer Research Center (ICRC), in 1949, she received a doctorate in cytology.

Ranadive had established the country’s first tissue culture laboratory, ICRC, after completing a fellowship at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland, US, and returning to Mumbai (then Bombay).

Ranadive also studied Mycobacterium leprae, the bacterium that causes leprosy, and aided in developing a vaccine. In 1973, she and her 11 colleagues founded the Indian Women Scientists’ Association (IWSA) to support women in scientific fields.

“Ranadive fervently encouraged students and Indian scholars abroad to return to India and put their knowledge to work for their communities. After retiring in 1989, Ranadive worked in rural communities in Maharashtra, training women as healthcare workers and providing health and nutrition education.

"The IWSA now has 11 chapters in India and provides scholarships and childcare options for women in science. Ranadive’s dedication to health justice and education remains influential to her students who work as scientists today,” Google said in a post.