Suhail Ashraf – Plant Science -Best Researcher Award

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Suhail Ashraf – Plant Science -Best Researcher Award

Mr. Suhail Ashraf  distinguished academic and researcher in the Plant science.

🌐 Professional Profile

Educations📚📚📚

He earned his MSc in Agricultural Biotechnology from the Department of Plant Biotechnology at Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, India, in November 2022, achieving a CGPA of 8.30 out of 10.00. His thesis, titled “Systematic study on the molecular dynamics of biomolecules produced by bacterial endophytes against Meloidogyne spp. and Pratylenchus spp. infecting banana,” was supervised by Dr. S Nakkeeran. Prior to this, he completed his BSc in Agricultural Sciences from Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences & Technology of Kashmir (SKUAST-Kashmir), India, in May 2020, with a CGPA of 8.39 out of 10.00. During his undergraduate studies, he participated in the RAWE & Experiential Learning Program on Seed Production and Processing under the guidance of Dr. R. R. Mir. Additionally, he obtained a Diploma in Computer Applications, Business Accounting, and Multilingual D.T.P, specializing in Computer and Information Sciences and Support Services, from the National Institute of Electronics & Information Technology (NIELIT), India, in December 2019.

HONORS AND AWARDS

He received the Young Researcher/Scientist Award from the National Academy of Sciences, India (NASI) in 2022. That same year, he also earned the Best Paper Award from the Department of Environmental Science at Indira Gandhi National Tribal University, Amarkantak, India. Demonstrating his academic excellence, he achieved an All India Rank of 23 in the competitive exam for Senior Research Fellow (SRF) in Molecular Biology and Biotechnology, organized by the Indian Council of Agricultural Research in 2022. In 2020, he secured an All India Rank of 59 for the Post Graduate-National Talent Scholarship (NTS) in Biotechnology, also organized by the Indian Council of Agricultural Research. Additionally, he achieved an All India Rank of 2 in a quiz competition on Seed Technology organized by NAHEP-ICAR, India, in 2021. His commendable work in the Experimental Learning (ELP) Module-II (Commercial Agriculture) earned him a Letter of Appreciation.

Research Experiences

He has extensive research experience, having served as a Junior Research Fellow at the ICAR-National Institute for Plant Biotechnology, Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), Delhi, India, from October 2023 to March 2024. In this role, he actively engaged in a cutting-edge research project titled “Identification, Molecular Genetics and Functional Characterization of Key Resistance/Susceptible Determinants for Sclerotinia Stem Rot Disease in Oilseed Brassica.” He utilized Next Generation Sequencing (NGS), molecular cloning, molecular breeding, and CRISPR-Cas technology to develop resistant cultivars of oilseed Brassica against various pathogens, with a primary focus on combatting Sclerotinia. Besides his research responsibilities, he instructed MS and BS students, managed projects, oversaw laboratory setup, and coordinated training programs for external participants, including farmers.

Previously, he was a Senior Research Fellow at the ICAR – National Institute of Veterinary Epidemiology and Disease Informatics, Bengaluru, India, from December 2022 to September 2023. He significantly contributed to the Peste des Petits Ruminants Eradication Program (PPR-EP) by evaluating vaccine efficacy and developing ELISA methodologies for accurate disease detection. Using sophisticated techniques such as western blotting and SDS page analysis, he conducted in-depth protein sample examinations, aiding in vaccine formulation. He also played a crucial role in maintaining and optimizing vero cell cultures for experimental purposes.

He has been involved in various plant science research endeavors, contributing to projects such as the molecular dynamics of nematicidal biomolecules produced by bacterial endophytes against Meloidogyne spp. and Pratylenchus spp. infecting banana, the role of bacterial endophytes and nematicidal biomolecules in mediating immune responses in tomatoes, and the analysis of antimicrobial biomolecules against Fusarium oxysporum using molecular docking and simulation approaches. Additionally, he worked on the development of a CRISPR-Cas system targeting starch branching enzymes in rice and optimized Cordyceps militaris fermentation for enhanced cordycepin production and investigated its antifungal potential through in silico and in vivo analysis.

He completed a 6-month Rural Agriculture Work Experience (RAWE) from SKUAST-K in 2020. From 2020 to 2021, he served as a part-time Biology tutor at Iqbal Coaching Centre in Bandipora, India, and volunteered as a tutor and guide for students in his city, both online and offline. Furthermore, he completed a 3-month internship in the Pan African Bioinformatics Network (H3ABioNet) Introduction to Bioinformatics course (IBT-2022), successfully completing modules on databases and resources, Linux, sequence alignment theory and application, multiple sequence alignment, genomics, and molecular evolution and phylogenetics.

PROFESSIONAL TRAINING AND CONFERENCES

1. One month Course on “Information Handling Skills for Teaching, Learning &
Research” 2021, organized by Professor Jayashankar Telangana State Agricultural
University under ICAR-NAHEP (IG) Sub Project on National Knowledge Management
Centre for Agricultural Education and Research.
2. Two months training on “Organic Agribusiness and management” 2022, Indian Institute
of Plantation Management, Bengaluru and SKUAST-Kashmir.
3. Eight weeks Agmoocs training on “Integrated pest management” and “Fundamentals
Agricultural extension” 2020, followed by 6 weeks training on “Application of statistics
in Agriculture” organized by Common Wealth Learning, Canada.
4. Four weeks training on “Crop pest diagnosis v2.0” 2020, organized by CABI, Nosworthy
Way, Wallingford, Oxfordshire OX10 8DE, UK.
5. Ten days hands on training on “Genomics tools and techniques for crop improvement”
2020, organized by ICAR-NAHEP SKUAST-Kashmir.
6. Seven days’ workshop on “Statistics and Informatics in Experimental Data
Management and Analysis” 2022, for Research Scholars of NARES under CAASTNAHEP ICAR-Indian Agricultural Statistics Research Institute, New Delhi.
7. Three days “Hands on Training Programme in Molecular Diagnosis of pests and
pathogens infecting crops” 2022, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University Coimbatore, India.
8. One month of International workshop on “Plant Genomics and Bioinformatics” – 2022,
organized by Decode life an open organization of life sciences.
9. Four days Hands on training in “Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) Data Analysis”
2022, organized by Tamil Nadu Agricultural University Coimbatore India.
10. Cloud – based Hands-on Workshop on “Molecular Docking, Pharmacophore Modeling
and Machine Learning” 2022, by ICMR – National Institute of Cancer Prevention and
Research, and Schrodinger Inc.
11. One-month industrial training on “Essentials of Bioinformatics” 2021, organized by
ICAR-NAHEP SKUAST-Kashmir. Six days Training Programme on “Conventional and
Molecular Approaches for Crop Improvement under Changing Climatic
Scenario”2020, organized by Dryland Agriculture Research Station (DARS) under IDPNAHEP SKUAST-Kashmir from.
12. One month of International workshop on “Plant Genomics a One-month industrial training
on “MS Azure, Python and R Programming”- 2020, organized by ICAR-National
Agricultural Higher Education Project (NAHEP) in collaboration with SKUAST-Kashmir
and 360DigiTMG.
13. Five days International Workshop on “Quantitative Genetics and Genomics in Plant
breeding”2020, organized by Department of Biotechnology, Vignan’s Foundation for
Science, Technology & Research, AP, India.
14. Certificate courses on “Gene manipulation in plants, Cell signalling and GMO’s”
(https://www.open.edu/openlearn) were earned from the Open Learn University United
Kingdom

📝🔬Publications📝🔬

 

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