Overview
The main research focus of the department is to understand the effects of contaminants and environmental stressors on human health and ecosystem function. The Department pursues research on a broad range of topics such as the biodegradation of toxic pollutants, the development of novel molecular tools for the detection of pathogenic bacteria, microbial ecology of contaminated ecosystems, geo-microbiology, soil nutrient cycling, and development of sustainable waste management and agriculture practices. Conventional microbiological tools along with the most advanced molecular tools (metagenomics and metatranscriptomics) are being employed to understand the diversity, distribution, and ecophysiology of archaea in the environment and their implications for public health. The research mission and goals of DEHT possibly identify and understand the key processes that affect public health and the environment, and help the government agencies to evaluate the risk assessment of pollutants. Faculty and students of DEHT seek practical solutions to complex environmental problems by interdisciplinary and integrative approaches.
Thrust Areas
- Risk Assessment of Environmental Contaminants
- Development of Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA) as a Plastic Alternative
- Interaction of Bdellovibrio Predatory Bacterium with Plant Pathogens
- Propagation of Trees and Medicinal Plants in vitro
- Host-microbe Interaction and Environmental Toxicants
- Degradation and Mitigation of Contaminants of Emerging Concern (CEC's) using Biological Agents
- Bioremediation
- Phytoremediation
- Metabolite Analysis
Faculty
Prof. (Dr.) SMITHA HEGDE
- DesignationHOD, Professor and Deputy Director
- Email smitha.hegde@nitte.edu.in
A plant biotechnologist by training, having 30 years of experience in academics and research. I have worked extensively on plant tissue culture, conservation, biodiversity and molecular markers in tree species and Pteridophytes. My team has screened several Pteridophytes for phytoremediation of heavy metals from contaminated soil and liquid systems. My current research interest is in vitro production of secondary metabolites of herbal medicinal plants.
- Doctor of Philosophy (Biosciences), LAB, St. Aloysius College, Mangalore University, 1998
- Master of Science (Zoology), Mumbai University, 1991
- Chief Co-ordinator, Sustainable Development Goals Cell, Nitte (DU), (Dec, 2022- till date)
- Deputy Director, NUCSER (Sept 2021- till date)
- Professor, Nitte Centre for Science Education and Research, Mangalore (April, 2017- till date)
- Associate Professor and research guide, Department of Post graduate studies in Biotechnology, St. Aloysius College, Mangalore (2013-2017).
- Associate Professor and Head, Department of Post graduate studies in Biotechnology, St. Aloysius College, Mangalore (2007 -2013).
- Lecturer, Department of Biotechnology, St. Aloysius College, Mangalore (2002-2007).
- CSIR-RA- Post-Doc, Laboratory of Applied Biology, St. Aloysius College, Mangalore (1999-2002).
- Plant molecular Biology.
- Genetic diversity and distribution studies of Pteridophytes.
- Abiotic and heavy metal stress induced studies in plant systems.
- In vitro propagation of trees and medicinal plants.
- Bioremediation and phytoremediation of toxic pollutants.
- NUCSER Distinguished Researcher Award- 2022
- NUCSER Best Teacher Award - 2021
- Aranya Mitra awarded by the Karnataka State Forest Department, Mangalore during Vrukshotsava 2019, 2019.
- Individual Personality for contribution towards Plantations and Greenery on occasion of World Environment Day 2019, by the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board, Mangalore, 2019
- Certificate of merit for best paper, at the DST sponsored National Teachers Science Congress, Ahmedabad, 2018
- Sofia Lecturing Research Award- 2017, Sofia University, Tokyo, Japan
- Sahyadri Ecologist Award for best paper, International Conference on Conservation and Sustainable management of Ecologically sensitive regions in Western Ghats, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore and Alva's College, Moodabidri, 2016.
- Karnataka State Eligibility for Lectureship (KSET) certificate, 2015.
- SS BIR Gold medal for outstanding work in Pteridology, 2014
- INSA-COSTED Travel fellowship to attend International Pteridophyte symposium, Guildford, UK, 2001.
- CSIR & Costed IBN Travel Grant to attend International Pteridophyte Symposium, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, UK, 1995.
- Deputy Director, NUCSER (Sept 2021 - till date)
- SDG Cell Chief Co-Ordinator, Nitte (DU) (Dec 2022- till date)
- Student welfare committee in-charge, NUCSER (2017-2019, 2021- till date)
- Member secretary of Nitte University Green Initiative Project (NUGIP)
- Member secretary of Equal Opportunity Cell, Nitte University
- Member secretary of Gender Sensitization Cell, Nitte University.
- Ladies Hostel in-charge, NUCSER, 2017-2019
- Academic committee in-charge, NUCSER, 2019-2021
- Life member, The British Scholars Association India, Mangalore Chapter.
- Life member, St. Aloysius Alumini Association, Mangalore.
- Life member, Association of Microbiologists India
- Life member, Biological Chemists, IISc. Bangalore.
- Life member, Indian Science Congress
- Life member and Vice President, The Indian Fern Society
- Elected Life member, Plant tissue culture association, India (PTCAI)
Undergraduate
Biosafety and bioethics, Fundamental Genetics, Molecular Biology, Environmental Studies
Postgraduate
Medical Genetics, Therapeutic molecules, Plant and Environmental Biotechnology
Currently enrolled PhD students: 5 Completed and awarded PhD students: 8 Guided PG research project students: 108 Guided UG research project students: 7 Patent applied: 2
Selected Journal Publications
- Kushalan, S., Yathisha, U.G., Khyahrii S, A. and Hegde S., Phytochemical and anti-oxidant evaluation of in vitro and in vivo propagated plants of Curculigo orchioides. In Vitro Cell.Dev.Biol.-Plant (2022). 58, 382-391 (2022)
- Paithankar JG, Kushalan S, Nijil S, Hegde S, Kini S, Sharma A. Systematic toxicity assessment of CdTe quantum dots in Drosophila melanogaster. Chemosphere. 2022 May 1;295:133836
- Turner LM, Hegde S, Karunasagar I, Turner R. How university students are taught about sustainability, and how they want to be taught: the importance of the hidden curriculum. International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education. 2022 Apr 12.
- Kushalan S, Khyahrii AS, Kini S, Hegde S. Curculigo orchioides Gaertn.: An Overview of Its Effects on Human Health. Journal of Health and Allied Sciences NU. 2022 Jul 7
- Pulukkunadu Thekkeveedu, R.,and Hegde, S. (2022). Physicochemical properties and homology studies of the floral meristem identity gene LFY in nonflowering and flowering plants. BioTechnologia, 103(2), 113-129.
- Kushalan S, D'Souza LC, Aloysius K, Sharma A, Hegde S. Toxicity Assessment of Curculigo orchioides Leaf Extract Using Drosophila melanogaster: A Preliminary Study. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2022 Nov 18;19(22):15218. doi: 10.3390/ijerph192215218. PMID: 36429955; PMCID: PMC9690535.
- Roshni Pulukkunadu Thekkeveedu & Smitha Hegde (2021) In vitro spore germination and phytoremediation of Hg and Pb using gametophytes of Pityrogramma calomelanos, International Journal of Phytoremediation, 23:3, 307-315, DOI: 10.1080/15226514.2020.1813075
- Hegde, S., Karunasagar, I. (2021) Building Research Competence in Undergraduate Students. Resonance 26, 415-427
- Morajkar S, Hegde S. (2021) Biodiversity, richness and spatial distribution of extant Pteridophytes in Kudremukh National Park, Western Ghats, India. Plant Sci. Today, Aug. 21 8(4):848-858
- Morajkar, S., Hegde, S. (2021) DNA Barcoding Identifies a Potential New Ecotype of Chinese Brake Fern, Pteris vittata L. Nano. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci., India, Sect. B Biol. Sci. 91, 335-341
- Prabhu, S. G., Srinikethan, G., & Hegde, S. (2020). Pelletization of pristine Pteris vittata L. pinnae powder and its application as a biosorbent of Cd (II) and Cr (VI). SN Applied Sciences, 2(1), 1-9
- Prabhu, S., Srinikethan, G., & Hegde, S. (2019). Efficient biosorption of Pb (II) on Pteris vittata L. from aqueous solution using pulsed plate column technique. Separation Science and Technology, 1-13
- Sajeev, S., Melo, J. S., & Hegde, S. (2018). Gamma radiation-induced in vitro hormetic apogamy in the fern Pityrogramma calomelanos (L.) link. Biosystems. 173, November 2018, Pages 221-224
- Prabhu, S. G., Srinikethan, G., & Hegde, S. (2018). Surface treated Pteris vittata L. pinnae powder used as an efficient biosorbent of Pb (II), Cd (II), and Cr (VI) from aqueous solution. International journal of phytoremediation, 20(9), 947-956
- Pallavi, B., Nivas, S. K., D'souza, L., Ganapathi, T. R., & Hegde, S. (2017). Gamma rays induced variations in seed germination, growth and phenotypic characteristics of Zinnia elegans var. Dreamland. Advances in Horticultural Science, 31(4), 267-273
- Severes, A., Hegde, S., D'Souza, L., & Hegde, S. (2017). Use of light emitting diodes (LEDs) for enhanced lipid production in micro-algae-based biofuels. Journal of Photochemistry and Photobiology B: Biology, 170, 235-240
- Hegde, S., & D'Souza, L. (2016). Auxin transport inhibitor 2, 3, 5 triiodobenzoic acid induced direct shoot morphogenesis in Millingtonia hortensis Lf. Current Science, 111(1), 25-26
Book chapter
- Prabhu, S., & Hegde, S. (2022). Pteridophytes as effective biosorption agents of heavy metals. In: Ferns - propagation, biotechnology, medicinal use and environmental regulation (Eds) Marimuthu, J., Fernández, H., Kumar, A., Thangaiah, S., Springer, Singapore pp. 651-670
- Morajkar, S., Suneetha, C., Harish Kumar, T.G., Hegde, S. (2022). Molecular Markers in Pteridophytes. In: Ferns - propagation, biotechnology, medicinal use and environmental regulation (Eds) Marimuthu, J., Fernández, H., Kumar, A., Thangaiah, S., Springer, Singapore pp. 99-134
- Sudha Sajeev, Roshni PT, Rachel Carmelita Mathias, Smruthi Prabhu, Shaiesh Morajkar, Smitha Hegde (2022) Pteridophytes: effective agents of phytoremediation. In: Ferns - propagation, biotechnology, medicinal use and environmental regulation (Eds) Marimuthu, J., Fernández, H., Kumar, A., Thangaiah, S., Springer, Singapore pp. 627-649
- Suneetha C and Smitha Hegde (2022) Micropropagation of pteridophytes. In: Ferns - propagation, biotechnology, medicinal use and environmental regulation (Eds) Marimuthu, J., Fernández, H., Kumar, A., Thangaiah, S., Springer, Singapore pp. 201-242
- Book on "Birds of the Campus" Jagdish Gopal Painthankar, Vineeth Kumar, Gincy Joseph (2020) Nitte Deemed to be University, Mangalore. (Ed) Smitha Hegde. 100pp, ISBN: 978-81-946311-0-1
- Hegde, S., Nivas, S., & D'Souza, L. (2020). 2.1 Anacardium occidentale Cashew. Biotechnology of Fruit and Nut Crops, CABI, 2020, Page No: 19-26 ISBN:1780648278, 9781780648279
- Sangeeta S & Hegde S (2016). Tree, People and City: A study of green cover of rapidly urbanizing Mangalore City. Proceedings-Lake 2016: Conservation and Sustainable Management of Ecologically Sensitive Regions in Western Ghats, Sahyadri Conservation Series 65, ENVIS Technical Report 120, Environmental Information System, CES, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore
(http://wgbis.ces.iisc.ernet.in/energy/lake2016/proceedings)
Patent applied: 02
Co-PI: DNA barcoding of Ferns of South India for genetic diversity studies, Funded by DST-SERB, 2017-2020.
PI: a. Establishment of Technology Enabling Centre (TEC), Nitte University, funded by DST, 2019-20 (Budget 99.72 lakhs)
b. DST Technology Enabling Centre 2021-22 (Sanctioned Rs. 90,72 Lakhs)
PI: Center of Innovative Science and Engineering Education (CISEE) grant for the development of a "Center for Developing sustainable Technologies for Mitigating Heavy Metal Pollution Under Changing Environment" 2020-2023 (Sanctioned Rs. 25.0 lakhs)
Research Guide:
- Currently enrolled PhD students: 5
- Completed and awarded PhD students: 5
- Guided PG research project students: 102
- Guided UG research project students: 4
- Patent applied: 2
Dr. ANURAG SHARMA
- DesignationAssociate Professor-Grade I
- Email anuragsharma@nitte.edu.in
Anurag Sharm is working as Assistant Professor at NUCSER, Nitte University. During his Ph.D. he studied the stress response of endosulfan on D. melanogaster, a non-target organism, at sub-organismal as well as organismal level. Further, his studies also highlight the potential of D. melanogaster as an alternative animal model for in-vivo assessment of environmental chemical mediated toxicity, which might have relevance to higher organisms. Later, he joined CNRS-Centre de Biologie du Développement, Toulouse, France as a postdoctoral researcher and worked on deciphering the function of the Drosophila hematopoietic niche to maintain blood cell homeostasis. Presently, he is engaged in the following areas-a) Development of an in vivo Drosophila model to study toxicant/radiation induced hematopoietic perturbations and b) Host-Microbe interaction and environmental toxicants.
Doctor of Philosophy (Cellular and Molecular toxicology), CSIR-IITR Lucknow and Jamia Hamdard, 2012
Master of Science (Biotechnology), Jiwaji University, 2005
- Associate Professor, Nitte University Centre for Science Education and Research (August 2022-till date)
- Assistant Professor, Nitte University Centre for Science Education and Research (May 2016- August 2022)
- Postdoctoral Fellow (Developmental Biology), Centre de Biologie du Développement (CBD), Toulouse, France (2012 - 2016)
Cellular and Molecular toxicology
Cellular immune response
Cellular and molecular stress response
DST-SERB Young scientist start-up grant award, 2017
Japan-Asia Youth Exchange program in Science (SAKURA exchange) awardee, 2018
In-charge, Lab Resource Committee, NUCSER
Member Secretary, Institutional committee against sexual harassment, NUCSER
Member, Institutional committee against substance abuse, NUCSER
Undergraduate-
Principles of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Cancer Biology, Cell Based Assays in Biomedical Research, Methods in Ecotoxicology
Postgraduate-
Toxicology, Cell and Molecular Biology
PhD students: 03 (ongoing) CSIR-RA: 01 (completed) PG students: 07 (completed)
- Paithankar JG, Gupta SC, Sharma A. Therapeutic potential of low dose ionizing radiation against cancer, dementia, and diabetes: evidences from epidemiological, clinical, and preclinical studies. Molecular Biology Reports. 2023 Jan 3:1-2.
- Vimal D, D'Souza LC, Rai V, Lal S, Sharma A*, Gupta SC*. Efficacy of cannabis and its constituents in disease management: Insights from clinical studies. Current Medicinal Chemistry. 2023 Jan; 30(2):178 -202. *Corresponding author
- D'Souza LC, Kuriakose N, Raghu SV, Kabekkodu SP, Sharma A. ROS-directed activation of Toll/NF-κB in the hematopoietic niche triggers benzene-induced emergency hematopoiesis. Free Radical Biology and Medicine. 2022 Nov 20;193:190-201.
- Kushalan S, D'Souza LC, Aloysius K, Sharma A*, Hegde S*. Toxicity Assessment of Curculigo orchioides Leaf Extract Using Drosophila melanogaster: A Preliminary Study. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2022 Nov 18;19(22):15218. *Corresponding author
- D'Souza LC, Shekher A, Challagundla KB, Sharma A*, Gupta SC*. Reprogramming of glycolysis by chemical carcinogens during tumor development.Seminars in Cancer Biology 2022 Dec;87:127-136 . *Corresponding author
- D'Souza LC, Dwivedi S, Raihan F, Yathisha UG, Raghu SV, Mamatha BS, Sharma A. Hsp70 overexpression in Drosophila hemocytes attenuates benzene‐induced immune and developmental toxicity via regulating ROS/JNK signaling pathway. Environmental Toxicology. 2022 Jul;37(7):1723-1739.
- Paithankar JG, Kushalan, S, Nijil, S, Hegde, S, Kini, S*, Sharma A* (2022) Systematic toxicity assessment of CdTe quantum dots in Drosophila melanogaster. Chemosphere. 1;295:133836. *Corresponding author
- Diwivedi S, D'Souza LC, Shetty NG, Raghu, SV, Sharma A* (2022) Hsp27, a potential EcR target, protects nonylphenol-induced cellular and organismal toxicity in Drosophila melanogaster. Environmental Pollution 293: 118484.
- Dwivedi S, Kushalan S, Paithankar JG, D'Souza LC, Hegde S, Sharma A. Environmental toxicants, oxidative stress and health adversities: interventions of phytochemicals. Journal of Pharmacy and Pharmacology. 2022 Apr;74(4):516-36.
- Paithankar JG, Saini S, Dwivedi S, Sharma A*, Chowdhuri DK*(2021) Heavy metal associated health hazards: An interplay of oxidative stress and signal transduction. Chemosphere 262:128350. *Corresponding author
- D'Souza LC, Mishra S, Chakraborty A, Shekher A, Sharma A*, Gupta SC* (2020) Oxidative stress and cancer development: Are non-coding RNAs the missing links? Antioxidants & Redox Signaling 10;33(17):1209-1229. *Corresponding author
- Louradour I, Sharma A, Morin-Poulard I, Letourneau M, Vincent A, Vanzo N, Crozatier M (2017). Reactive oxygen species-dependent Toll/NF-κB activation in the Drosophila hematopoietic niche confers resistance to wasp parasitism. Elife doi: 10.7554/eLife.25496.
- Letourneau M, Lapraz F, Sharma A, Vanzo N, Waltzer L, Crozatier M (2016). Drosophila hematopoiesis under normal conditions and in response to immune stress. FEBS Letters 590: 4034-4051.
- Morin-Poulard I, Sharma A, Louradour I, Vanzo N, Vincent A, Crozatier M (2016). Vascular control of the Drosophila hematopoietic niche: role of Slit/Robo signaling. Nature Communications 11634.
- Sharma A, M Mishra, AK Shukla, R Kumar, MZ Abdin, Chowdhuri DK (2012). Organochlorine pesticide, endosulfan induced cellular and organismal response in Drosophila melanogaster. Journal of Hazardous Materials 221-222, 275-287.
- Sharma A, Mishra M, Ravi Ram K, Kumar R, Abdin MZ, Chowdhuri DK (2011). Transcriptome analysis provides insights for understanding the adverse effects of endosulfan in Drosophila melanogaster. Chemosphere 82: 370-376.
- Sharma A, Mishra M, Shukla AK, Chowdhuri DK (2011). Validation and application of Drosophila melanogaster as an in vivo model for the detection of double strand breaks by neutral Comet assay. Mutation Research/Genetic Toxicology and Environmental Mutagenesis 721: 142-146.
Book Chapters
- Souza LC, Paithankar JG, Siddique HR, Sharma A (2021) Future of herbal medicines in assisted reproduction. In: Herbal Medicines, A Boon for Healthy Human Life. Siddique H, Sarwat M (eds), 1st Edition. Elsevier Academic Press, ISBN: 9780323906999
- Saini S, Paithankar JG, Sharma A, Chowdhuri DK. (2021) Environmental Toxicants and Carcinogenicity: Role of Oxidative Stress. In Handbook of Oxidative Stress and Cancer. S. Chakraborti et al. (eds.). Springer Nature Singapore, in press
- Awasthee N, Shekher A, Rai V, Baruah PK, Sharma A, Challagundla KB, Gupta SC (2021). Clinical significance of long non-coding RNAs in breast cancer patients. In: Clinical applications of non-coding RNAs in cancer. Gupta SC, Challagundla KB (eds). Elsevier Inc Cambridge, MA, USA, 2021, ISBN: 9780128245507
- Chaouhan HS, Rai, Kini, S, Shekher A, Sharma A, Gupta SC. (2021) Potential of Long Non-coding RNAs in the Diagnosis and Therapy of Melanoma Skin Cancer. In: Skin Cancer: Pathogenesis and Diagnosis. Dwivedi A., Tripathi A., Ray R.S., Singh A.K. (eds). Springer, Singapore. ISBN: 9811603634
- Kini S, Badekila AK, Barh D, Sharma A. (2020) Cellular and Organismal Toxicity of Nanoparticles and Its Associated Health Concerns. In: NanoBioMedicine. Saxena S., Khurana S. (eds). Springer, Singapore. ISBN: 9789813298972
- Sharma A, D'Souza C, Rai V, Gupta SC. (2019) Evaluation of Safety and Efficacy of Nutraceuticals Using Drosophila as an in Vivo Tool. In: Nutraceuticals in Veterinary Medicine. Gupta R, Srivastava A, Lall R. (eds) Springer, Cham. ISBN 9783030046248.
- Gupta SC, Sharma A, Mishra S, Awasthee N. (2019) Nutraceuticals for the Prevention and Cure of Cancer. In: Nutraceuticals in Veterinary Medicine. Gupta R., Srivastava A., Lall R. (eds). Springer, Cham. ISBN 9783030046248.
- Dwivedi S, Verma S, D'Souza, C, Awasthee, N, Sharma A, Gupta SC. (2019) Potential of Small Animals in Toxicity Testing: Hope from Small World. In: Biomarkers in Toxicology. Ramesh C.Gupta (eds) 2nd Edition. Elsevier Academic Press. ISBN: 9780128146569.
All Publications:
Google Scholar: https://scholar.google.fr/citations?user=-TpHINkAAAAJ&hl=en
Research projects
Extramural Funding
- Decoding the molecular mechanism associated with ionizing radiation induced hematopoietic malignancy using Drosophila model system, funded by ICMR , 2022-2024.
- Deciphering the molecular mechanisms involved in hematopoietic perturbation induced by environmental chemical(s) using Drosophila as an animal model, funded by DST-SERB, 2017-2020.
Intramural Funding:
- Elucidating the host-microbiome association in toxicant exposed Drosophila melanogaster
- Niche cues for stress hematopoiesis: insights from Drosophila
Dr. DIVYASHREE M
- DesignationScientist (G-I)
- Email divyashree.m@nitte.edu.in
After competing my Ph.D., I have worked as Research associate and joined NUCSER as Scientist (G-I) in 2019. My research interest includes Infectious Disease Biology (Bacteriology), Antimicrobial Resistance, Food Microbiology and Biopolymers.
- Doctor of Philosophy - Allied Health Sciences (2017) – K S Hegde Medical Academy, NITTE University, Deralakatte
- MSc Microbiology (2009) - Manasagangotri, University of Mysore, Mysore
- Scientist G-I, Center for Science Education and Research, NITTE University, Mangalore (October 2019-till date)
- Research Associate, Center for Science Education and Research, NITTE University, Mangalore (April 2017-October 2019)
- Executive – Quality Control, Agila Specialities Private limited (Sterile Product Division) Bangalore (2010-2011)
- nfectious Disease Biology (Bacteriology)
- Antimicrobial Resistance in hospital and hospital wastewater
- Food Microbiology: gut microbiome, probiotics
- Biopolymer production: Polyhydroxyalkanoates a microbial plastic
- Predatory Bacterium - Bdellovibrio spp.
- SportCo-ordinator, NUCSER
- Member, Student welfare committee, NUCSER
- Member, I-CASA, NUCSER
Undergraduate: Basic Microbiology, Medical Microbiology, Good Laboratory Practices
Post Graduate: Food Microbiology, Environmental Microbiology, Microbial Physiology, Molecular Diagnostics
UG students: 02 completed, PG students: 03 completed, 02 ongoing; PhD: 2 ongoing
- Divyashree M, Shama Prakash K, Veena Shetty A, Karunasagar I. Antibiotic Resistance in Extended-Spectrum Beta-Lactamase-Producing Escherichia coli Isolated from Effluents of Tertiary Care Hospitals (2015). Int J of Health Sci Res, 27-33.
- Veena Shetty, Divyashree M, Deekshit V.K, Avinash Shetty, Indrani Karunasagar. A poster on "Emergence of New Delhi Metallo-β - Lactamase (NDM - 1) - Encoding Gene among Gram Negative Bacteria Isolated from Hospital Effluents" has been published in International conference proceedings ID Week 2015 San Diego, CA.(IF: 3.2)
- M. Divyashree, Malathi Shekar, K. Shama Prakash, M. N. Venugopal, I. Karunasagar and A. Veena Shetty. Characterization of Extended Spectrum -Lactamase Producing and Non- Producing Escherichia coli Isolated from Hospital and Fish Processing Plant Untreated Wastewaters (2015). Int J Curr Microbiol App Sci, 4(10): 179-189.
- Divyashree M, Deekshit V K, Krishna Kumar Ballamoole, Veena Shetty A, Anirban Chakraborty, Indrani Karunasagar. Occurrence of antibiotic resistance among Gram negative bacteria isolated from effluents of fish processing plants in and around Mangalore (2019). Int J of Environmental Health Research.
- Divyashree M, Madhu K Mani, Dhanasekhar Reddy, Ranjith Kumavath, Debmalya Barh. Clinical Applications of Antimicrobial Peptides (AMPs): where do we stand now? (2019) Protein and Pept Lett. 26, 1-15.
- Divyashree M, Madhu K Mani, Shama Prakash K, Deekshit VK, Veena Shetty A, Avinash K Shetty, Anirban Chakraborty, Indrani Karunasagar. Hospital wastewater treatment reduces NDM positive bacteria being discharged into water bodies (2019). Water Environment Research. 1-7.
- Divyashree M, Madhu K Mani, Mamatha B S, Sudarshan Kini. Algae and cyanobacteria as a source of novel bioactive compounds for biomedical applications. Advances in Cyanobacterial Biology, Elsevier Publication, Chapter 12, 2020.
- Suhan Alva, Divyashree M, Janardhana Kamath, P S Prakash, Shama Prakash K.A study on bicarbonate supplementation effect on the progression of chronic kidney disease (2020) Indian Journal of Nephrology. 30 (2)
- Aditya V, Kotian A, Saikrishnan S, Rohit A, Mithoor D, Karunasagar I, Deekshit VK. Effect of ciprofloxacin and in vitro gut conditions on biofilm of Escherichia coli isolated from clinical and environmental sources. J Appl Microbiol. (2021) 132.2 (2022): 964-977.
- Divyashree, M., Madhu K. Mani, and Indrani Karunasagar. "Association of exopolysaccharide genes in biofilm developing antibiotic-resistant Pseudomona s aeruginosa from hospital wastewater." Journal of Water and Health 20.1 (2022): 176-184.
- Ishani Bhat, Saisree Iyer, Venessa Fernandes, Divyashree M, Bangera Sheshappa Mamatha. Challenges in oral Bioavailability of Lutein. What to know about carotenoids. New York: Nova Science Publisher , 2021, 27-66.
- Divyashree, M., and Madhu K. Mani. "Detection and Real-time PCR Assay for the Quantification of Carbapenemase Gene [bla. sub. NDM-1] in Hospital Effluent." Journal of Pure and Applied Microbiology 15.4 (2021): 2403-2409.
- Rai P, Shetty SS, Prabell S, Kuntar A, Pinto D, Kumar BK, Divyashree M, Raj JRM, Premanath R, Deekshit VK, Karunasagar I, Karunasagar I. "Characterisation of broad-spectrum phiKZ like jumbo phage and its utilisation in controlling multidrug-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa isolates." Microbial Pathogenesis 172 (2022): 105767.
Extramural
- Screening and production of Polyhydroxybutyrates (PHB) by bacterial strains isolated from hydrocarbon contaminated soil using metagenomic approach. Principal Investigator, Funded by UGC-Faculty research promotion scheme, Start-up-Grant, 2021-2024
Intramural
- Isolation and activity evaluation of Bdellovibrio for hospital effluent isolates against biofilm forming Pseudomonas aeruginosa . Principal Investigator, funded by Nitte DU, 2021-2023.
DR. NEETHA NIRUPAM JATHANNA
- DesignationWomen Scientist -DBT BioCARe
- Email nirupam.neetha@nitte.edu.in
- Contact No.8496034630
My area of research involves the isolation of novel strains of bacteria from ethnomedicinal plants and their application in the degradation process of various contaminants. Further, I also study the safety of the strain isolated and understand if these endophytic bacterial or fungal strains are safe for the environment.
Environmental biotechnology, Bioprocess technology bioremediation of contaminants, oil degradation, and toxicity assessment using biological systems are my areas of experimentation oriented towards contributing to the UN sustainable goal 3; 6;9;11; 15;13, and 14.
The purpose of my research is oriented towards developing sustainable methods to tackle the upcoming environmental problems concerned with pollutants and their toxicity.
- Doctor of Philosophy (Biotechnology), Visvesvaraya Technological University, Belgaum, Karnataka, April-2021
- Master of Science in biotechnology, Kuvempu University-2012
- Women Scientist -DBT BioCARe; Nitte University Centre for Science Education and Research; 01-01-2024 -2026
- Research Associate; Nitte University Centre for Science Education and Research; 04-11-2021 to 31-12-2023
- Research Coordinator; Sri Dharmasthala Manjunatheshwara College (Autonomous), Ujire; 08-02-2021 to 11-11-2021.
- Junior Research Fellow (JRF); Clinical Embryology, Kasturba Medical College, MAHE; 02-06-2014 to 02-12-2014
- Phyto-symbionts and their applications
- Bioremediation and assessment of metabolite toxicity
- Anti-bacterial and anti-fungal metabolites of endophytes
AWARD
DST- AWSAR [AUGMENTING WRITING SKILLS FOR ARTICULATING RESEARCH] Topic: "Bacterial Endophytes: Nature's Hidden Battalion against Environmental Pollution"
Fellowship
NITTE TRUST FELLOWSHIP -2015-2018 DBT-BioCARe Women scientist-07-12-2023 (3 years)
• Member of student welfare committee, NUCSER
• Member, Women cell -NUCSER
Undergraduate- Biosafety and Bioethics, Environmental science
Postgraduate- Environmental and plant biotechnology, Bioprospecting and drug discovery, Bioprocess and fermentation technology, Microbial physiology
PhD students: None
PG Students: None
UG Students: 1
- Neetha, J. N*, Girish Kumar Krishnamurthy, Mahendra Gowdru Srinivasa, Bilachi S. Ravindranath, Nidhi G Shetty (2024) Deciphering Phyto-Fungal dye concoction mitigation, degraded metabolite analysis, and assessment of ecotoxicity: Journal of Environmental Chemical Engineering: Impact: 7.7 (Accepted for publication)
- Neetha, J. N*., Kumar, G., Gopal, J., Hegde, S., Concepta, L., Ravindranath, B. S., & Gowdru, M. (2023). Phyto-bacterial biosorption of basic fuchsine : A self-sustainable approach towards biomitigation of contaminant of emerging concern. Journal of Environmental Chemical Engineering, 11(2), 109330. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jece.2023.109330. Impact: 7.7
- Keerthana, S. P. R. K. V, Sangam, P. A., Vinayaka, K. S., & Neetha. (2021). Statistical optimisation of saccharification process using Amorphophallus paeoniifolius tubers into fermentable sugars for bioethanol production in stirred tank batch reactor ( STBR ). Biomass Conversion and Biorefinery, 0123456789. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13399-021-01748-8. Impact: 4.0
- Neetha, J. N*., Ujwal, P., Kumar, K. G., Chidananda, B., & Goveas, L. (2021). Aerobic biodegradation and optimization of 2 , 4-Dichlorophenoxyacetic acid by E . hormaechei subsp . Xiangfangensis and assessment of biodegraded metabolite toxicity. Environmental Technology & Innovation, 24, 1-15. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eti.2021.102055. Impact: 7.1
- Neetha, J. N., Sandesh, K., Kumar, K. G., Chidananda, B., & Ujwal, P. (2019). Optimization of Direct Blue-14 dye degradation by Bacillus fermus (Kx898362) an alkaliphilic plant endophyte and assessment of degraded metabolite toxicity. Journal of Hazardous Materials, 364, 742-751. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2018.10.074. Impact: 13.6
- Neetha, J. N., Ujwal, P., Sandesh, K., Santhosh, H., & Girish, K. (2018). Aerobic biodegradation of Acid Blue-9 dye by Bacillus fermus Isolated from Annona reticulata. Environmental Technology and Innovation, 11, 253-261. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eti.2018.06.007. Impact: 7.7
- Applications Benefitting Health; Editors: K. Arunkumar, A. Arun, Rathinam Raja, Ramasamy Palaniappan; Algae Materials., Chapter 25: Phytoremediation: Algae-based bioremediation. Rachel Carmelita Mathias, Sharanya Kushalan, Himamshu Hegde, Neetha Nirupam Jathanna, Sowmya Sharada P and Smitha Hegde ISBN: 9780443188169. Date of publication: February 17, 2023
Google scholar: https://scholar.google.co.in/citations?user=gxwjfiEAAAAJ&hl=en
Scopus: https://www.scopus.com/authid/detail.uri?authorId=58083481900
Extramural Funding
• DBT-BioCARe- 6th call "Eliciting degradation of contamination of emerging concern (CEC) using a novel endophytic bacterial consortium" 07-12-2023 to 07-12-2026
Intramural Funding
• NUSR-2024
