Avanish Rai Postdoctoral researcher

Professional experience

RESEARCH ASSOCIATE
National Institute of Plant Genome Research/ New Delhi

Key responsibilities:
Deciphering the role of drought stress in exacerbating dry root rot (DRR) disease caused by Macrophomina phaseolina in chickpea.

Accomplishments
Generation of plasmodesmata and apoplast marker hairy-root lines in chickpea; Functional analysis of a bHLH TF in chickpea to unravel molecular mechanism of DRR disease resistance under combined stress of drought and pathogen.

POSTDOCTORAL FELLOW
VIB-UGent Center for Plant Systems Biology / Ghent University

Key responsibilities:
Method development for protein-protein interaction studies that enabled identification of jasmonate induced remodeling of protein complexes in tomato.

Accomplishments:
Development of a user-friendly platform for protein-protein interaction (PPI) studies using yeast-two hybrid library screening combined with next generation sequencing (Y2H-seq) in tomato; Generation and functional analysis of CRISPR-Cas9 hairy-roots lines of the candidates identified from the PPI screenings.

RESEARCH ASSOCIATE
Repository of Tomato Genomics Resources / University of Hyderabad

Key responsibilities:
Understanding transcriptional networks of carotenoid biosynthesis for improving shelf life and nutritional quality of tomato fruit.

Accomplishments:
Engineered E. coli strains to produce carotenoids; Developed, maintained and genotyped transgenic tomato plants; Bisulphite sequencing to map methylation and demethylation patterns.

Education and Degrees

PhD / BIOTECHNOLOGY

Dissertation: Isoprenyl diphosphate synthases from Catharanthus roseus and their involvement in monoterpene indole alkaloid biosynthesis.
Advisor: Dr. Dinesh A Nagegowda

MSc / BIOTECHNOLOGY
Bundelkhand University

Dissertation: Purification and  characterization of Arsenite oxidase from Arthobacter
Advisor: Prof. Jaishree Paul

BS / CHEMISTRY
University of Lucknow

Prizes, fellowships

POSTDOCTORAL FELLOWSHIP
Ghent University
Advisor: Prof. Alain Goossens

Publications

Rai A, Sivalingam PN, Senthil-Kumar M. 2022. A spotlight on non-host resistance to plant viruses. PeerJ 10:e12996

Vadivelmurugan Irulappan, Manu Kandpal, Kumud Saini, Avanish Rai, Aashish Ranjan, Senjuti Sinharoy, Muthappa Senthil-Kumar* (2021). Drought stress exacerbates fungal colonization and endodermal invasion and dampens defense responses to increase dry root rot in chickpea. Molecular Plant-Microbe Interactions https://doi.org/10.1094/MPMI-07-21-0195-FI

Avanish Rai, Vadivelmurugan Irulappan and Muthappa Senthil-Kumar (2021). Dry root rot of chickpea: A disease favored by drought. Plant disease https://doi.org/10.1094/PDIS-07-21-1410- (2021). Drought stress exacerbates fungal colonization and endodermal invasion and dampens defense responses to increase dry root rot in chickpea. Molecular Plant-Microbe Interactions https://doi.org/10.1094/MPMI-07-21-0195-FI

Avanish Rai, Vadivelmurugan Irulappan and Muthappa Senthil-Kumar (2021). Dry root rot of chickpea: A disease favored by drought. Plant disease https://doi.org/10.1094/PDIS-07-21-1410- (Feature Article)

Erffelinck ML, Ribeiro B, Gryffroy L, Rai A, Pollier J, Goossens A. (2021) The Heat Shock Protein 40-Type Chaperone MASH Supports the Endoplasmic Reticulum-Associated Degradation E3 Ubiquitin Ligase MAKIBISHI1 in Medicago truncatula. Front Plant Sci.

Rai, A. and Nagegowda, D. (2021). Non-radioactive Assay to Determine Product Profile of Shortchain Isoprenyl Diphosphate Synthases. Bio-protocol 11(1): e3874

Kumar, S.R. *, Rai, A*., Bomzan, D.P*., Kumar, K., et al. (2020), A plastid‐localized bona fide geranylgeranyl diphosphate synthase plays a necessary role in monoterpene indole alkaloid biosynthesis in Catharanthus roseus. Plant J, 103: 248-265. *Joint first author