Some of his significant achievements in the area of Germplasm characterization/ crop improvement/Wildlife-environment conservation are:
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Typing of Indian Basmati varieties and demonstrating them to be different from Texmati’s (TAG 2002); creation of a DNA polymorphism database of scented varieties/land races for ready use to create molecular ID for their protection.
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First work to assign two new genomes in Oryza, based on molecular data (MGG 1997); thus also establishing a new approach for genome assignment.
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First experimental demonstration of common ancestry to the whole genus Oryza and its taxonomy (TAG 1999, 2000).
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Identified many new sources for ENOD-gene homologues in secondary gene pool of rice (BBRC 1999).
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Development of large repertoire of species specific microsatellite markers (coffee and mulberry) for use in genetic/linkage analysis (MEN 2003, 2004, 2005; TAG 2007; BMC PB 2008) .
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DNA polymorphism database of hundreds of genotypes and all the species available in India of coffee and mulberry and development of a reference database resource useful for genotype individualization, IPR protection etc.
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Creation of a Molecular linkage map of coffee with >375 mapped markers including >70 genomic/EST-SSRs, first ever such map developed for a tree species in India (see : ‘Genomics-Assisted crop improvement, Vol 2: Genomics applications in crops’, Chapter 15, pp 399-434, Springer, DOI: 10.1007/978-1-4020-6297-1).
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Most importantly, first effort in India to conceptualize and develop prototypes of web-enabled databases of coffee/mulberry housing all the information on DNA polymorphisms/ typing, markers, genomic sequences for ready use by others. Three such prototype trial version databases are made available on CCMB homepage.
On coffee germplasm/coffee species
http://www.ccmb.res.in/coffeegerm/fp_db_index.htm
http://www.ccmb.res.in/coffeegerm/cof_species_ver1/INDEX_sp.htm
On mulberry genomics
http://www.ccmb.res.in/mulberry/index.htm
Development of Bio-resources
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Sex, stage and tissue specific cDNA libraries from crocodilian embryos, comprising ~40,000 ESTs, useful for dissecting molecular basis of
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Drought stress specific cDNA library from coffee leaves (>5000 ESTs);
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Leaf/root specific EST libraries of mulberry (>6000 ESTs).
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STS-enriched libraries of mulberry, betelvine, coffee, pearl millet, yam, Dictyostilium, Red Panda, Philautus frog and turtle;
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PCR based multiplex assay for clinical diagnostic of Acanthamoeba keratitis.
Nucleotide sequences in EMBL database
As part of his various research interests, he has carried out an extensive sequencing work comprising thousands of genomic DNA fragments and ESTs. A number of these are already available in the NCBI-GenBank database. Deposited > 1000 nucleotide sequences, comprising:
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specific nuclear and organelle domains of taxonomic/diagnostic importance from bacteria, protozoa, rice, coffee, mulberry, crocodile, lions, wolf, turtles;
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complete cDNA sequence of crocodilian tau-crystallin, cpDmrt1;
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partial sequences of alpha-enolase gene from crocodile;
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complete cytochrome-b gene sequences of Himalayan and Indian gray wolf, Indian jackal.
In addition, > 10000 sequences comprising genomic domains (4000), ESTs (15000), and RGA homologues (70) are sequenced; would be deposited soon in EMBL.
