Bishal Tandukar is a postdoctoral research fellow in the laboratory of Dr. Hunter Shain within the Department of Dermatology at the University of California, San Francisco. He specializes in skin biology and cancer genomics, applying integrated molecular and computational approaches to investigate the genomic mechanisms driving skin cancer, particularly across diverse populations.
Bishal has extensive hands-on experience with primary cell culture, G&T-seq, spatial transcriptomics, and Next Generation Sequencing (NGS). He also develops and implements innovative wet and dry lab techniques, including robust bioinformatic workflows for high-throughput sequencing data analysis.
His research in the Shain Lab combines pigment cell biology and cancer genomics, focusing on the genomic and transcriptomic characterization of melanocytes, keratinocytes, and fibroblasts. By examining DNA damage and gene expression patterns at single-cell resolution, his work aims to provide comprehensive insights into both normal skin function and tumor progression, with a strong emphasis on demographic variability. Currently, Bishal is primarily involved in the Pre-Cancer Atlas of Skin Cancer as part of the NCI Human Tumor Atlas Network (HTAN) project.
His work has been recognized through multiple awards and featured in leading journals and conferences, including the Melanoma Research Alliance (MRA), Society for Melanoma Research (SMR), International Pigment Cell Conference (IPCC), and the PanAmerican Society of Pigment Cell Research (PASPCR).
In addition to his research, Bishal is engaged in science communication and mentorship. He has served as a reporter and assistant editor for the PASPCR newsletter and has trained students and research assistants in both experimental and computational methodologies.