ICGEB New Delhi Group Leader, Dr. Neeti Sanan Mishra, Plant RNAi Biology Group, has been awarded the prestigious SERB-POWER fellowship by the Government of India to support her innovative work on priming thermo-tolerance in rice plants.
On the occasion of the International day of women in science, the Group Leader of the ICGEB New Delhi Plant RNAi Biology Group, Dr Neeti Sanan Mishra, was awarded one of only 13 SERB-POWER fellowships granted by the Government of India’s Department of Science and Technology to outstanding women researchers and innovators working in Indian academic institutions and R&D laboratories. The 3-year fellowship will support Dr. Mishra in her work on the Functional analysis of the miRNA-HSF-HSP module in priming thermo-tolerance in rice plants.
Dr. Sanan-Mishra’s endeavour is to understand and use RNAi based technology for crop improvement and protection. This research area provides new approaches to address the emerging challenges of climate change for sustaining agriculture. Her Group’s primary research interest is towards understanding the miRNA networks involved in regulating plant development in response to virus infection and abiotic stress.
The Group, under her guidance, has designed miRNA molecules for silencing virus genes as effective antiviral strategies, as well as demonstrating the use of a plant miRNA to enhance the yield of rice. These studies have also been useful in understanding the molecular mechanism of host-virus interactions.
The SERB – POWER (Science & Engineering Research Board – Promoting Opportunities for Women in Exploratory Research) programme is formulated to mitigate gender disparity in science and engineering research funding in various S&T programs in Indian academic institutions and R&D laboratories, through the award of grants or fellowships.
ICGEB Women in Science.
