prasenjit saha

* Field of study: Genetic modification of grasses cell wall for enhanced biofuel production. * Research contributions: * Expression of phenylpropanoid biosynthesis and metabolism related genes during rice development. * Development of overexpression and RNAi constructs of cell wall MYB transcription factors for genetic modification of rice cell wall. * Genotyping of transgenic and activation-tagged lines, and phenotyping for cell wall components using molecular and biochemical techniques. * Transcriptomics and cell wall component analyses of Switchgrass genotypes.

Field of study: Chloroplast engineering to lead project on plant based production of therapeutic and non- therapeutic enzymes and their applications for commercialization. Identification and cloning of genes (5 genes) encoding therapeutic and non- therapeutic enzymes from bacterial and fungal sources and creation of chloroplast transformation vectors (16 constructs) for tobacco and lettuce. Development of transplastomic tobacco and lettuce (marker-free) plants for production of enzymes using biolistic-mediated chloroplast transformation. Characterization of transplastomic plants using molecular analyses and functional evaluation of chloroplast derived enzymes using biochemical assays for commercialization.

* Field of study: Genetic engineering of crop plants for abiotic stress tolerance. * Research contributions: * Development of Agrobacterium-mediated spike-dip transformation of emerging monocot model Green millet (S. viridis). * Agrobacterium-mediated genetic transformation of Peanut and Green millet (S. viridis) using genes and gene combinations to confer tolerance to adverse environmental conditions (drought, salinity, heat). * Biolistic-mediated genetic transformation of Pearl millet (Pennisetum glaucum) using genes and gene combinations to confer tolerance to adverse environmental conditions (drought, salinity, heat).

* Field of study: Deciphering the role of cell wall ‘EXTENSINS’ genes on growth and development of Arabidopsis. * Research contributions: * Understand the molecular mechanism for apparently normal phenotype (ANP) of genetically revertants of an EXTENSIN3 mutant using transcriptomics and proteomics approach. * Reverse genetics of an EXTENSIN18 mutant of Arabidopsis.

* Field of Study: Ecogenomic study to understand the ecology and biodiversity of plant viruses and associated microbes. * Research contribution: * Development of a rapid method for massively parallel 454 pyrosequencing of plant viruses from Total Nucleic Acid and dsRNA. * Sequencing of viromes from 7,500 plant species to understand high incidence of a persistent endornavirus in Capsicum annuum and widespread infection of an acute Zucchini yellow mosaic virus to many wild plants and cultivated crops.

Field of Study: Plant molecular biology and biotechnology. Lectured and monitored theoretical and practical classes of MS students of Botany, Biotechnology, Genetics and Genomics.

* Field of Study: Plant tissue culture of horticultural, ornamental, fruit and multipurpose forest tree plants. * Research contribution: * Development of direct organogenesis protocol for Acacia auriculiformis, Cordyline terminalis, Dalbergi sissoo, Gerbera jamesonii, Musa sp.

* Field of Study: Micropropagation of horticultural and ornamental plants. * Technologies involved: * Micropropagation of Cordyline terminalis and Gerbera jamesonii through direct organogenesis. * Micropropagation of Anthurium sp. and Philodendron sp. Through organogenesis via callus culture and somatic embryogenesis.

* Field of study: Plant molecular biology and biotechnology for climate-resilient crops. * Research contributions: * Analyses of natural variation of Green millet (Setaria viridis) and Peanut (Arachis hypogaea) for drought and heat tolerance. * Analyses of transgenic plants expressing genes and gene combinations to confer tolerance to adverse environmental conditions (drought, salinity, heat) using molecular techniques and physiological measurements. * Transcriptomics, proteomics and metabolomics analyses aimed at understanding the underlying mechanisms of stress tolerance in crop plants.

Ph. D. thesis entitled ‘Development of Insect Resistance in Indica Rice Cultivars: A Crop Management Strategy’. * Determination of entomotoxic effect of mannose-binding plant lectins from monocot plant species and identification of a potent insecticidal gene from garlic. * Constitutive as well as phloem specific expression of mannose-binding insecticidal genes into rice, mustard, chickpea and tobacco to develop insect resistance transgenic plants. * Understand the molecular mechanism of insect resistance by ligand blot and proteomics analyses using brush border membrane vesicle receptor proteins of insect gut.