Research areas:

Photosynthesis, Chlorophyll biosynthesis, Chloroplast biogenesis, protected cultivation, Hydroponics, Tissue culture, Plant-microbe interaction in soil, Drought stress, Oxidative stress in-vitro

Work Experience:Current: Asst Prof, Botany, (Fixed term, since Dec, 2022; Asst Prof, Guest since19, Oct, 2019 to Dec, 2022), Dayalbagh Educational Institute (DEI), Dayalbagh, Agra, UP, India

Worked as Assistant Manager in BBIL, Hyderabad, April 27, 2017 to Sep 26, 2018.

Worked as Research Associate (RA, from Nov 2016 to April, 2017) in the labofProf.BaishnabC.Tripathy, School of Life Sciences, JNU, New Delhi, India.

Worked as Research Associate (RA, Nov 2015 –Oct 2016) in the labof Prof. A. S. Raghavendra(in collaboration with Dr S Rajagopal), Dept.of Plant Sciences, School of Life Sciences, University of Hyderabad (UH), India.

Worked as a postdoc (from 1^st Oct 2012 to 30^th Sep 2015) in the lab of Prof. Zach Adam, at Institute of Plant Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Rehovot, Israel, in collaboration with (co-guide) Prof.Ziv Reich, Dept. of Biological Chemistry, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel.

Employment and Education:

Jan 2008 - Oct 2012:PhD student,Obtained PhD on 5^th June 2012. Co-advisor (Workplace): Prof.Baishnab C. Tripathy, Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), New Delhi, India; registered at Dept. of Biotechnology, MaharshiDayanad University (MDU), Rohtak with Prof. B. K. Behera.

Thesis title: Effect ofdrought stress on chloroplast biogenesis and photosynthesis.

Feb 2007- Oct, 2007:Research Student, Institute of Human Genetics, Georg-August University,

Göttingen, Germany.

Sep 2003- Jan 2007:  Junior Research Fellow (JRF),JNU, New Delhi, India.

Oct 2002 - July 2003:            Junior Research Fellow,Dr. B. R. Ambedkar Centre for Biomedical Research, University of Delhi, India.

Jul 2000- Jan 2002:   MTech, Applied Botany, Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Kharagpur, India;

First Class: 7.88 (CGPA, on 10-point scale).

Jul 1998-Apr 2000:   MSc,Master of Science, Agrochemicals and Pest Management, University of Delhi, New Delhi, India.

Aug 1995-May 1998:BSc,Botany, Honours, Hindu College, University of Delhi, New Delhi, India.

Awards:

1. Passed Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering (GATE), Jun 2000, 98.18 percentile;subject: Life Sciences; All-India Rank: 27.
2. Passed Council of Industrial and Scientific Research (CSIR-JRF-NET) exam, Jul 2001 (conducted by Indian Government for PhD Fellowship and Lectureship Eligibility); availed fellowship during PhD.
3. Graduate Research Aptitude(GRE) exam: V-580 (then 80 percentile); Q-760 (then 84 percentile); AW-4.0 (Dec 2002).
4. Passed Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL): 277/300 (Computer-based test, 2002).
5. Awarded Planning and Budgeting Committee (PBC) fellowship to fund three years’ of postdoctoral studies in Israel, 2012-2015.

DETAILS OF EXPERIENCES:    

Department of Boatny, Dayalbagh Educational Institute, Dayalbagh, Agra, India (Oct 2019 –working)

I am working here on protected cultivation, organic farming, growing lettuce and other salads in Hydroponics system established inside polyhouse. Other areas are photosynthesisand stress physiology.

Postdoc research associate, Department of Plant Sciences, Central University of Hyderabad, India (Nov 2015 –Oct, 2016)

I worked here on a project entitled “Role of proline in protection of photosynthesis from photoinhibition”. The differential protective effect of osmoprotectantproline on reactive oxygen species (ROS; H₂O₂)-induced damage to some enzymes differing in their redox sensitivity (e.g., catalase, horse radish peroxidise, glucose oxidase, carbonic anhydrase, glutamate dehydrogenase, glucose 6-phosphate dehydrogenase, and glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase) was studied in vitro through circular dichroism (CD) and fluorescence (internal flu from Tryptophan etc. and external flu with ANS) spectroscopy, and other biochemical methods such as native/SDS-PAGE.

Postdoc research fellow, Robert H. Smith Faculty of Agriculture, Food and Environment, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel (Oct 2012- Sep 2015)

My investigations here were directed towards understanding chloroplast biogenesis/plastid development in the tomato shoot apical meristem (SAM) through transcriptomics/next-generation sequencing (NGS). Only a few genes are known or proposed to have a role in the biogenesis of chloroplast thylakoid membranes.The SAM contains the Central Zone (CZ) which harbours stem cells in the centre of the L2 layer. These cells reach the peripheral zone in the flanking area of the SAM after a few anticlinal cell divisions and acquire thylakoids during this transition. Therefore, the SAM has cells containing different stages of thylakoid formation, in a sharp gradient, and so is a very good system to study the transcriptional changes responsible for thylakoid biogenesis. The chloroplasts formed in the SAM give rise to all green-tissue chloroplasts in dicot plants.

Differential expression analysis of the transcriptome in various zones of the SAM was achieved by the sequencing of RNA isolated from a small number of cells, using laser micro-dissection, from the tomato SAM, usingChl fluorescence as a guide. RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) was performed and data analyzed.

PhD studies, and Junior and Seniorresearch fellow/Research Associate, Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), New Delhi, India (Sep 2003 - Jan 2007 and Jan 2008 - Oct 2012)

At JNU, I studied the effect of water stress (applied by using polyethylene glycol (PEG)-nutrient solution) on chloroplast biogenesis in the drought-sensitive rice cultivar PB1. My investigations found that under water stress, chlorophyll (Chl) biosynthesis was down-regulated at the early steps of Chl biosynthesis to prevent the accumulation of harmful, singlet-oxygen-generating tetrapyrrole intermediates. Low Chllevels caused a decrease in the assembly of photosynthetic complexes that in turn caused a down-regulation of photosynthetic electron transport (ET). Due to stomatal closure there was a decrease in CO₂ availability and in turn carbon fixation. The rate of ET declined to prevent the over-reduction of photosynthetic machinery that might otherwise result in generation of high amounts of superoxide and other ROS due to low availability of CO₂. Still, excess reduction of the ET chain resulted in an increase in ROS intermediates as well as the induction of the activity of antioxidant enzymes and chemicals due to water stress. Protein contents of rice seedling declined in response to increasing water stress. A global proteomic analysis, using 2-D electrophoresis (2DE), was performed to find proteins that were down/up-regulated in response to water stress. Differentially expressed proteins from Coomassie Brilliant Blue- and silver-stained gels were identified using MALDI-TOF/TOF and LC-MS/MS. These were mainly related to carbon fixation, photosynthetic light reactions, cell homeostasis, and energy balance.

         Chl, carotenoids and various Chlbiosynthesis intermediates studied. To know the reason for the reduced Chl biosynthesis, enzyme activities of some Chl biosynthesis pathway enzymes were measured. Moreover, western blotting and transcript profiling for Chl biosynthesis pathway enzymes and proteins of the photosynthetic apparatus was performed.

         Photosynthetic carbon fixation was measured using an infra-red gas analyser (IRGA). Ultrastructure of chloroplasts and thylakoids was studied by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and was found to be modified under water stress.

         The antioxidant response of rice seedlings was found to be elevated by water stress. This was determined by performing in-gel and/or enzyme assays for superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase, ascorbate peroxidase (APX), and guaiacol peroxidase. The tocopherol contents of seedlings increased and their ratio changed in response to stress which were determined with HPLC.

         Overall, these studies showed that in contrast to mature plants/leaves, wherein photodamage/photoinhibition occurs due to an excess of absorbed light during drought, Chl biosynthesis and the formation of the photosynthetic apparatus is downregulatedin developing rice seedlings to prevent the harmful effects of excess light.

Researcher,Institut Human Genetics, Georg-August University, Göttingen, Germany (Feb 2007-Oct 2007)

My project here was regarding the production of a transgenic mouse model expressing a mutant, non-functional Mecp2 transcription factor gene (the cause of neuro-developmental disease Rett/RTT syndrome), translationally fused with EGFP, to be compared with an already-made RTT syndrome mouse model (with a functional Mecp2 gene fused to EGFP). I employed various techniques including fluorescence activated cell sorting (FACS), neuronal and fibroblast cultures, western blotting, northern blotting and immunostaining. Some of these experiments were conducted to re-check the previous data and were in conformity with previous results.

Junior research fellow,Dr. B.R. Ambedkar Centre for Biomedical Sciences,Delhi University, New Delhi, India (Oct 2002 - Jul 2003)The effects of various solvents on trypsin auto-digestion were studied. Purification of urease enzyme and growth hormone was performed. A hydoxamic acid derivative (urease inhibitor) was synthesized and its structure was analysed with infra-red and mass spectroscopy and by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) studies. The chemical showed some inhibitory activity against urease.

Master degree project,Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Kharagpur, India (July 2001-Dec 2001)

Production of rosmarinic acid (RA; a therapeutic chemical) from solid callus cultures of holy basil (Ocimum sanctum). Enhancement of RA production was achieved through media manipulation and elicitor treatment.

Laboratory Skills:

Genomics: Poly-A- and random primer-based library preparation methods for RNA-seq; use of low-amount and partially-degraded RNA samples for RNA-seq; CEL-seq; Illumina sequencing.

Cell biology and biochemistry:CD and fluorescence spectroscopy;microscopy, including confocal and epifluorescence imaging and TEM; SDS-PAGE and western blotting; immunoassays; FACS scanning;HPLC analysis of tocopherols; enzyme assays as published in PCE journal; native gels for antioxidant enzyme activity analysis; Chl and Chl-intermediates measurement usingspectro-fluorometry; cell culture, including neuronal and fibroblast culture; breeding and genotyping transgenic mice; preparation of bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC) DNA for microinjection to generate transgenic mice; immunohistochemistry of mice brain sections.

Molecular biology, Microbiology and bioinformatics:Cell culture, including neuronal and fibroblast culture; Agarose gel electrophoresis; DNA/RNA isolation; DNA/cDNAcloning; PCR, including qRT- PCR; DNA sequencing; construct preparation; southern blotting (including probe designing, probe labelling); northern blotting; use of DNA/protein databases; use of GO enrichment with Ontologizer; reads/sequence alignment/mapping viewing with Genome View and Integrative Genomics Viewer (IGV).

Physiology and Biophysics: Laser microdissection; measurement of photosynthetic parameters using Walz Dual PAM, Hansatech PEA and IRGA; PSI and PSII activity measurement using an O₂ electrode (Oxylab); TEM; use of a FACE (Free Air CO₂ Enrichment) system.

2DE and proteomics:Immobilized pH gradient (IPG) focusing; silver and Coomassie Brilliant Blue (CBB) staining; LC-MS/MS and MALDI-TOF/TOF for protein identification.

Plant biology:In addition to the various specific techniques mentioned above, I have much experience in plant husbandry, plant physiology, plant genetics, and plant tissue culture, using the following model systems: rice (Oryzasativa), tomato (Solanumlycopersicum), Arabidopsis thaliana, holy basil (Ocimum sanctum).

Lectures in Seminars, Symposia and Conferences:

1. Oral presentation in 3^rd Webinar on Plant Science and Molecular Biology, August 05-06, 2021 organized by Coalese Research Group and Department of Natural compounds and Nutrition MIGAL-Applied Research Institute, Israel, “Plant Science & Molecular Biology” July 29-30, 2021
2. Oral presentation in 1^stWebinar on“International Webinar on Mass Spectrometry & Analytical Techniques” August 05-06, 2021 organized by Coalese Research Group.
3. Oral presentation in National Conference(online) on August 05-06, 2022 organized by ERA University, Farah, U.P.
4. Oral presentation in 3^rd Conference(online) on“Nutrition-2022” Sep 20-26, 2022 organized by Magnus Conferences.
5. Oral presentation in SAF-UGC workshop at Dept of Botany, DEI, Agra, India (March, 2021)

International Seminars, Symposia and Conferences Attended:

1. Poster presentation at International Conference on Plant Science in Post Genomic Era (ICPSPGE-2011), Feb 17-19, 2011, Sambalpur University, JyotiVihar, Odisha, India.
2. Poster Presentation at International Conference on Trends in Cellular and Molecular Biology, Jan 11-14, 2008, JNU, New Delhi, India.
3. Attended 8international conferences during my postdoc studies in Israel:
   1. At Weizmann Institute of Science, Israel
   2. mRNA and Protein Trafficking in Health and Disease: New Insights into an Ancient Relationship, Nov17-20, 2013.
   3. Optogenetics: From Cells to Circuits and Behavior, Jul14, 2013.
   4. Synthetic Life, Oct13-16, 2013.
   5. Proteomics, Metabolomics and Cancer Drug Discovery, Jan 5, 2014.
   6. International Conference on Structural Genomics: Deep Sequencing Meets Structural Biology, Jun7-11, 2015.
   7. At Tel Aviv University / Volcani Institute, Israel
      1. Frontiers in Biology, 2015.
      2. The Biology of Crop Resistance to Stress: Joint Research Workshop of the Israel Science Foundation (ISF) and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC), Nov24-26, 2014.
   8. At The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel

Current Trends in Plant Biology for Crop Yield Enhancement, 2014.

1. Poster Presentation at International Conference at JNU, Feb, 2016, New Delhi, India.
2. Poster Presentation at International Conference at University of Hyderabad, Feb, 2017, HU, Hyderabad, India.

Full Research Articles (10) and Book Chapters (2):

1. Research Article:Dalal, V.K., Tripathy, B.C. “Modulation of chlorophyll biosynthesis by water stressin rice seedlings during chloroplast biogenesis ”(2012)Plant, Cell and EnvironmentVol. 35: 1685-1703.Online ISSN:1365-3040, [Impact factor, 7.947], doi:10.1111/j.1365-3040.2012.02520.x.
2. Book Chapter:Dalal, V.K., Tripathy, B.C. “Modulation of chlorophyll biosynthesis by environmental cues” (2013) (Chapter 27), Vol. 36, pg601-639, of Book Series “Advances in Photosynthesis and Photorespiration”, Springer Publications, Dordrecht, Netherlands.Online ISBN978-94-007-5724-0; doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-5724-0_27
3. Research Article: Dalal V.K., Tripathy, B.C. “Water-stress induced downsizing of light-harvesting system protects developing seedlings from photo-oxidative damage” (2018), 8 (1), 1-16, (doi:10.1038/s41598-017-14419-4). Scientific Reports. [Impact factor, 4.996].ISSN-2045-2322.
4. Research Article: Vijay Dalal, Shlomi Dagan, Gilgi Friedlander, Elinor Aviv, Ralph Bock, Dana Charuvi, Ziv Reich and Zach Adam. “Transcriptome analysis highlights nuclear control of chloroplast development in the shoot apex” (2018) Scientific Reports.8 (1), 1-9, [Impact factor, 4.996].ISSN-2045-2322.
5. Review: Dalal, V.K. “Modulation of Photosynthesis and other proteins during water-stress” (2021)Molecular Biology Reports, 48(1), pg3681-3693; https://doi.org/10.1007/s11033-021-06329-6;[IF 2.742].ISSN: 1573-4978 *Corresponding author.
6. Review: Vijay Kumar D*.(2021).Understanding Acoustic Communication in Plants. J Biomed Res Environ Sci. 2(9): 815-820. doi: 10.37871/jbres1314; ID: JBRES1314. ISSN: 2766-2276*Corresponding author.
7. Research Article: Dalal, VK*,Dhawal P., Biswal A., Rajagopal, S., Raghavendra A.S.(2022).“In vitro stability of various enzymes by proline from H2O2 mediated oxidative damage”  Indian Journal of Biochemistry and Biophysics. 59 (1), 111-125; ISSN 0975-0959.[Impact factor, 1.476]*Correspond author.
8. Review: Phurailatpam L, Dalal VK, Singh N and Mishra S (2022).Heavy Metal Stress Alleviation ThroughOmics Analysis of Soil and Plant Microbiome. Front. Sustain. Food Syst. 5:817932. doi: 10.3389/fsufs.2021.817932; ISSN-2571581X.(Impact Factor5.03).
9. Review: Dalal VK. Impact of Urban Ecology and Related Stresses on Photosynthetic Activities of Plants. J Plant Biol Crop Res. 2021; 4(2): 1044; ISSN 2637-7721*Corresponding author.
10. Book Chapter:Jain, P., Pandey, B., Rathore, S.S., Prakash, A., Singh, P., Sachan, A., Singh, S.P., Dalal, V.K. and Singh,A.K.May 2022,Crop Plants, Abiotic Stress, Reactive Oxygen Species Production, Signaling and their Consequences. In: Ansari, S.A., Ansari, M.I., Husen, A. (eds) Augmenting Crop Productivity in Stress Environment. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-6361-1_7.978; ISBN : 981-16-6360-4
11. Research: Dalal, V.K.* and Dantu P.K. (2022). “Induction of rosmarinic acid in callus cultures of Ocimum sanctum” J Plant Biochem&Biotechnology[IF 1.525]. *Corresponding author.https://doi.org/10.1007/s13562-022-00794-1; Electronic ISSN: 0974-1275
12. Dalal VK*.(2022) Transcriptome of Laser Micro Dissected Tissue from SAM of Tomato Reveals Genes Responsible for Chloroplast Biogenesis, Int J Agri Res EnvSci 2 (2), 1-6.*Correspond author
13. Abhijita, S., Dalal, V.K., Misra, A. N. The Effects of Light Quality and Quantity on Photosynthesis. In: A Closer Look at Photosynthesis, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology in Post Genomic Era. Plant Science Research and Practices, Nova Science Publishers. 2023; pp ; ISBN: 979-8-88697-815-5
14. Dalal, V. K., Chauhan, A. S. The Monitoring and Optimization of Photosynthesis through Technological Interventions and Automation. In: A Closer Look at Photosynthesis, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology in Post Genomic Era. Plant Science Research and Practices, Nova Science Publishers. 2023; pp ; ISBN: 979-8-88697-815-5
15. Dalal, V. K., Singh,J., Soni, S. K.. The Regulation of Photosynthesis by Drought Revealed through Omics Studies. In: A Closer Look at Photosynthesis, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology in Post Genomic Era. Plant Science Research and Practices, Nova Science Publishers. 2023; pp ; ISBN: 979-8-88697-815-5
16. Dalal, V. K.  Lesser-Known Proteins Involved in Chloroplast and Thylakoid Biogenesis. In: A Closer Look at Photosynthesis, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology in Post Genomic Era. Plant Science Research and Practices, Nova Science Publishers. 2023; pp ; ISBN: 979-8-88697-815-5
17. Dalal, V. K., Tripathy, B. C. Alterations of the Chlorophyll Biosynthesis Pathway in Higher Plants in Response to Stress. In: A Closer Look at Photosynthesis, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology in Post Genomic Era. Plant Science Research and Practices, Nova Science Publishers. 2023; pp ; ISBN: 979-8-88697-815-5
18. Jain, P., Pandey, B., Rathore, S.S., Prakash, A., Singh, P., Sachan, A., Singh, S.P., Dalal, V.K. and Singh, A.K. Crop Plants, Abiotic Stress, Reactive Oxygen Species Production, Signaling and their Consequences. In: Augmenting Crop Productivity in Stress Environment. Springer, Singapore. ISBN : 981-16-6360-4; 2022,

Book chapters/articles currently under review or at advanced stages of preparation:

1. Research Article: Ruhil K., Dalal, V.K., Tripathy, B.C. “Responses of photosynthetic system to elevated CO₂ in Brassica”,  To be submitted to Plant, Cell and Environment [Impact factor, 7.23]
2. Book Chapter:Dalal, V.K., Chauhan, A.S. A review of smart agriculture systems using computational technologies” for the book “Artificial intelligence-enabled real-time environmental monitoring", Springer, Singapore.edited by Dr.BinotaThokchom, Manipur University, Dr RishemjitKaur, CSIR-Central Scientific Instruments Organisation and  Dr.Pardeep Singh, PGDAV College,University of Delhi, India*Correspond author
3. Book Chapter:Dalal, V.K., Chauhan, A.S. A review of smart agriculture systems using computational technologies” for the book “Artificial intelligence-enabled real-time environmental monitoring", Springer, Singapore. edited by Dr.BinotaThokchom, Manipur University, Dr RishemjitKaur, CSIR-Central Scientific Instruments Organisation and  Dr.Pardeep Singh, PGDAV College,University of Delhi, India*Correspond author

Reviewed articles in  Journals:

1. Food & Function (Impact Factor 6.317), ISSN 2042-6496; ISSN (Online) 2042-650x
2. 3 biotech (Impact Factor2.893), eISSN 2190-5738(TWO articles)
3. Photosynthetica; (Impact Factor 2.482);eISSN: 1573-9058
4. Journal of Plant Biochemistry and Biophysics;(Impact Factor 1.54); ISSN 09741275, 09717811(THREE articles)
5. JSM Environmental Science & Ecology; ISSN: 2333-7141.
6. Uttar Pradesh Journal Of Zoology, ISSN: 0256-971X, MB International Media and Publishing House, WB, India and Edinberg, UK.
7. ActaPhysiologiaePlantarum, (Impact Factor 3.14);

Editor:

Book Editor :Dalal, V. K., Misra, A. N. A Closer Look at Photosynthesis, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology in Post Genomic Era. Plant Science Research and Practices, Nova Science Publishers, 2023; A part of JSciMed Central® ISSN Online: 2575-5048; https://novapublishers.com/shop/a-closer-look-at-photosynthesis/