DEPARTMENT OF BIOSCIENCES

(UGC CENTRE OF ADVANCED STUDY - Phase-1:2013-2018)

Year of Establishment: 1969

Highlights of the Department

• Formar Pofessor of the Department Prof. Sumitra V. Chanda is included in the recently published Subject-wise ranking of top 2% scientist from India by Stanford University. Rank 1476 in Medicinal & Biomedical Chemistry.
• UGC-Center of Advanced Study (CAS : Phase-1, 2013-2018)
• Projects: UGC, DST, SERB, DBT, CSIR, GSBTM, MoES, DRDO, Gujarat Govt.
• Multi-Institutional & Net Working Projects
• National/International Collaborations
• DST-FIST, Women Scientist Projects, International Travel Grants
• Post-Doctoral/PhD Fellowships: UGC, DST, DBT, CSIR, GSBTM, MoES, Gujarat Govt.
• Research Publications and Patents
• International Post-Graduate and Post-Doctoral Fellows

Recent  Publications

1. Vakani, Bhavik & Rahul Kundu (2021): Diversity and distribution of Siphonariid limpets along the coastline of mainland India. J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 118. doi: 10.17087/jbnhs/2021/v118/143634

2. Parin Dal and Varsha Trivedi (2020) Diversity Pattern of Spiders (Araneae) from Two Selected Sites of Mango Orchard, Amreli District, Gujarat, India. Environment and Ecology.38 (4) : 783—791. Accepted 26 July 2020

3. Dwivedi, Purna, Sharma, A. K. and Singh, S.P. 2021. Biochemical properties and repression studies of an alkaline serine protease from a haloalkaliphilic actinomycete, Nocarpdiopsis dassonvillei subsp. albirubida OK-14. Biocatalysis and Agricultural Biotechnology, Accepted. 07 June 2021 (Elsevier; IF: 0.90)

4. Arun Y.Patil, Akash Naik, Bhavik Vakani, Rahul Kundu, N.R.Banapurmath, M.Roseline, Lekha Krishnapillai, Shridhar N.Mathad. (2021). Next Generation Material for Denture Teeth and Denture Base Material: Limpet Teeth (LT) as an Alternative Reinforcementin Polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA). JOURNAL OF NANO-AND ELECTRONIC PHYSICS (ЖУРНАЛ НАНО-ТА ЕЛЕКТРОННОЇ ФІЗИКИ),Vol.13 No 2, 02033(6pp). DOI: 10.21272/jnep.13(2).02033.
5. Kikani, B.A. and Singh, S.P. 2021. Amylases from thermophilic bacteria: Structure and Function Relationship. Critical Reviews in Biotechnology, Accepted, 30 April 2021 (Taylor & Francis; IF: 8.102)Kikani, B.A. and Singh, S.P. 2021. Amylases from thermophilic bacteria: Structure and Function Relationship. Critical Reviews in Biotechnology, Accepted, 30 April 2021 (Taylor & Francis; IF: 8.102)
6. Rathore, D. R., Sheikh, M., Gohel G.D, and Singh, S.P. 2021. Genetic and phenotypic heterogeneity of the Nocardiopsis alba strains of sea water. Current Microbiology, 78: 1377-1387 (Springer; IF: 1.75), DOI: 10.1007/s00284-021-02420-0
7. Vijay J. Lagariya and Mital J. Kaneria (2021). Ethnobotanical Profiling and Floristic Diversity of the Miyawaki Plantation in Saurashtra University Campus, Rajkot. Journal of Drug Delivery & Therapeutics 11(2):87-99. http://jddtonline.info/index.php/jddt/article/view/4606
8. Dalip Singh Rathore and Satya P. Singh. 2020. Kinetics of growth and co-production of amylase and protease in novel marine actinomycete, Streptomyces lopnurensis KaM5. Folia Microbiologica ( Springer; Impact Factor: 1,70), Accepted 07 Dec 2020.
9. Jagruti V. Chauhan, Riddhi P. Mathukiya, Satya P. Singh, Sangeeta D. Gohel. 2020. Two steps purification, biochemical characterization, thermodynamics and structure elucidation of thermostable alkaline serine protease from Nocardiopsis alba strain OM-5. International Journal of Biological Macromolecules (IJBIOMAC) (Elsevier; Impact Factor: 5.16), Accepted 08 Dec 2020.Jagruti V. Chauhan, Riddhi P. Mathukiya, Satya P. Singh, Sangeeta D. Gohel. 2020. Two steps purification, biochemical characterization, thermodynamics and structure elucidation of thermostable alkaline serine protease from Nocardiopsis alba strain OM-5 International Journal of Biological Macromolecules (IJBIOMAC) (Elsevier; Impact Factor: 5.16), Accepted 08 Dec 2020.
10. Raiyani, Nirali and Singh S.P. 2020, Extraction of environmental DNA, construction of metagenomic libraries and functional screening of enzymes from salt pan soil, Indian Journal of Geo-Marine Sciences, Accepted (NISCARE, CSIR, IF 0.50)
11. Sharma, A.K. Kikani, B.A. and Singh S.P. 2020, Diversity and Phylogeny of Actinomycetes of Arabian Sea along the Gujarat Coast. Geomicrobiology Journal (Taylor & Francis, IF 1.90), Accepted and In Press
12. Nirajkumar, Sojitra, Singh, S. P. and Georrge J. and, 2020. “In Silico Identification of Drug Targets and Drug-Like Molecules against Vibrio splendidus LGP2, Chapter-, P.401-414, in “ Marine Niche:Applications in Pharmaceutical Sciences”, Edited by Nathani N.M., Mootapally C., Gadhvi I.R., Maitreya B., Joshi C.G., Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-5017-1_22, Print ISBN  978-981-15-5016-4, Online ISBN 978-981-15-5017-1
13. Dave G, Rakholiya K, Kaneria M, Galvadiya B, Vyas SR, Kanbi VH and Patel MP (2020). High affinity interaction of Solanum tuberosum and Brassica juncea residue smoke water compounds with protein involved in coronavirus infection. Phytotherapy Research   (IF: 4.087) [ISSN: 1099-1573].  DOI: 10.1002/ptr.6796
14. Trivedi, V. & S. Vaghela (2020). Avifauna of Saurashtra University Campus, Rajkot, Gujarat, India. Journal of Threatened Taxa 12(13): 16764–16774. https://doi.org/10.11609/jott.5113.12.13.16764-16774
15. Raiyani, Nirali and Singh S.P. (2020).Taxonomic and functional profiling of the microbial communities of Arabian Sea: A Metagenomics approach, Genomics (Elsevier, IF 6.20) , Accepted (11 July 2020)

16. Varsha Trivedi (2020). A comparative anatomy of the lingual apparatus of Indian doves (genus: Streptopelia and Stigmatopelia), Aves: Columbidae. The Journal of Basic and Applied Zoology, 81:37:1-15. https://doi.org/10.1186/s41936-020-00145-3. Springer

17. Bhatt, H.B. and Singh S.P. (2020).  Cloning, Expression and structural elucidation of a biotechnologically potential alkaline serine protease from a newly isolated Haloalkaliphilic Bacillus lehensis JO-26, Frontiers in Microbiology (IF 4.25), Electronic ISSN: 1664-302X, (in press).

18. Majithiya V., Gohel S.D. Diversity, Distribution and Biotechnological Potential of Marine Actinobacteria. In “Current Trends in Marine Biology” Editors: Vala A.K., Kumar S.K. Cambridge Scholar publications, UK. (in press)

19. Sharma, A.K. Kikani, B.A. and Singh S.P. (2020). Biochemical, thermodynamic and structural characteristics of a biotechnologically compatible alkaline protease from a haloalkaliphilic, Nocardiopsis dassonvillei OK-18 International Journal of Biological Macromolecules (IJBIOMAC), 153:680-696, ISSN: 0141-8130 , DOI: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2020.03.006  (IF 4.78)

20. Bhavik Vakani, Tomoyuki Nakano & Rahul Kundu (2020). Diversity and taxonomy of the intertidal Patellogastropod limpets of the mainland Indian coastline. ZooTaxa, 4728 (2): 211–226. DOI: https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.4728.2.3

21. Anjali Joshi, Jalpa Rank, Ankit Hinsu, and Ramesh Kothari (2020). Decolorization and Biodegradation of Textile Di-azo Dye Acid Blue 113 by Pseudomonas stutzeri AK6. 3Biotech. 10:214, DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1007/s13205-020-02205-5. IF- 2.351.

22. Kinjal Pabari,Sheetal Pithva, Charmy Kothari, Ravi Kiran Purama, Kanthi Kiran Kondepudi, Bharatkumar Rajiv Manuel Vyas, Ramesh Kothari and Padma Ambalam (2020).  Evaluation of Probiotic Properties and Prebiotic Utilization Potential of Weissella paramesenteroides Isolated From Fruits. Probiotics and Antimicrobial Proteins. Published online, January 2020. 1-13. DOI 10.1007/s12602-019-09630-w. IF- 2.411.

23. Rakholiya KD and Kaneria MJ (2020). “Multielement analysis using ED-XRF and ICP-MS from Couroupita guianensis for sustainable agriculture by soil reclamation”, In: Environmental Concerns and Sustainable Development – Vol. 2: Biodiversity, Soil and Waste management, Ed. by Shukla V. and Kumar N., Springer, 2: 325-335 [ISBN: 978-981-13-6357-3]. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-6358-0_13 

24. Patel RM, Kumar A and Kaneria MJ (2020). “Floristic diversity, distribution and conservation status in the vicinity coal mines of Kachchh district in Gujarat, India”, In: Environmental Concerns and Sustainable Development – Vol. 2: Biodiversity, Soil and Waste Management, Ed. By Shukla V. and Kumar N., Springer, 2: 145-173 [ISBN: 978-981-13-6357-3]. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-6358-0_7

Proceedings of the National Conference on Innovations in Biological Sciences (NCIBS) 2020 : Link

UGC-CAS DEPARTMENT OF BIOSCIENCES : A JOURNEY TO RECOGNITION AND EXCELLENCE

Established by Eminent Ecologist Prof. S.C. Pandeya

Timeline :

• UGC - MAB Project : 1977-1980 : Coordinator - Prof. S.C. Pandeya
• UGC-SAP DRS : 1981-1983 : Coordinator - Prof. S.C. Pandeya
• UGC-SAP DSA Phase-I : 1983-1988 : Coordinator - Prof. S.C. Pandeya
• UGC-SAP DSA Phase - II: 1992-1997 : Coordinator - Prof. Y.D. Singh & Prof. S.M. Pandya
• UGC-SAP DSA Phase - III: 2001 -2006 : Coordinator - Prof. P.P. Sood & Prof. S.P. Singh
• UGC COSIST Programme : 2001 - 2006 : Coordinator - Prof. P.P. Sood & Prof. S.P. Singh
• DST FIST Phase-I : 2006 : Coordinator - Prof. P.P. Sood & Prof. S.P. Singh
• UGC-SAP CAS Phase - I : 2013 - 2018 : Coordinator - Prof. S.P. Singh
• UGC-SAP CAS Phase - II : Applied (2020)

About the Department

• The Department of Biosciences was established in 1969 by Prof. S.C. Pandeya. On the recommendation of the University Grants Commission (UGC), an integrated Post Graduate Course in Biology (M. Sc. Experimental Biology, 1969-1993), first of its kind in the country, was started in this Department. The Department started with its base in Environmental Sciences and in few years it took leadership in the field of ecology under the stewardship of its founder head, late Prof S. C. Pandeya. Gradually, other areas of research such as Plant Physiology, Animal Physiology & Toxicology, Neurobiology, Ornithology, Wildlife Biology and Fisheries were also integrated into the thrust areas. Later on, keeping Integrated Biology as the theme for the first year of the course, the second year was specialized into Plant Sciences (Botany), Animal Sciences (Zoology) and Microbiology (1994-2007). With the advancement of Biology and looking at the need of its teaching for Human Resource Development, M.Sc. Programme in Biotechnology was initiated from the year 2004. Today the department is progressing with the major theme of Integrated Biology in diversified research areas. Department of Biosciences is offering degrees in Botany, Zoology, Microbiology and Biotechnology (2007 onwards). Thus, this program aimed to be a platform for Human Resource Development, in the various fields of biological sciences.

Department  Profile

• Faculty Members: 16
• Non-Teaching-19
• Facilities in the Department: Research Laboratories: 11; Teaching Laboratories: 07; Botanical Garden: 01; Seminar Hall: 01, Meeting Room: 01, Library: 01; General Store: 01; Animal House (CPCSEA approved): 01 (Link); Museum & Herbarium : 01   Details about Departmental Facilities: Link
• UGC-CAS-Thrust Area for Research : Ecology (Arid Zone Biology, Biodiversity & Ecology, Desertification – in different phases)
• Over all Research Areas: Extremophiles & Metagenomics, Bioremediation, Microbial Enzymes & Recombinant Enzymes, Plant Physiology, Plant Molecular Biology, Ecology, Herbal Technology, Marine Biology, Eco-Toxicology, Physiology, Food and Agriculture Microbiology, Avian Biology, Arachnology, Entomology

Academic Programmes :

• M.Sc. Programmes :  Botany, Zoology, Microbiology and Biotechnology (CBCS)
• M. Phil Programme :  Botany, Zoology and Microbiology
• Ph.D. Programmes  :  Botany, Zoology, Microbiology and Biotechnology
• Faculty Members - 16 (Regular - 09, Contractual - 07)
• Post-Doctoral Scientists- 05 (2015-2020)
• Technical & Non-Teaching Staff - 19
• Ph.D. Scholars- 43 (currently working), Details : Link
• M. Phil. Scholars - 11 (2019-2020), Details : Link
• M. Sc. Students- 168 (2019-2020) in all four streams

Post-Doctoral Scientists (2015-2020):

1. Dr. Vikram Raval ( DST Young Scientist, Mentor- Prof. S P Singh)
2. Dr. Aparna Singh ( DST Women Scientist, Mentor- Prof. S P Singh)
3. Dr. Kalpna Rakholiya (DST-National Post Doctoral Fellow, Mentor- Prof. S P Singh)
4. Dr. Ravindra Pal Singh (UGC- Dr. D S Kothari Fellow, Mentor- Prof. R K Kothari)
5. Dr. Kiran Liversage (Univ. of Tartu, Estonia, Europe: 2019-2020. Fellow of Malacological Society of London, UK. Mentor- Prof. Rahul Kundu)

Projects & Financial Support

• UGC: Centre of Advanced Study (CAS)- Phase-I (2013-18)
• UGC: SAP- DSA-Phase-I, II and III (1984-2006)
• UGC: Major Projects
• DST: FIST-Level I ( Completed)
• DST: Women Scientist Projects
• IQAC, Saurashtra University- R&D Projects and Start Up Grants
• DBT: R&D Projects
• DBT: Multi-Institutional project (Saurashtra Uni., IIT Delhi and Delhi University,2007-2012)
• Govt. of Gujarat: Multi-Institutional project
• GSBTM, Govt. of Gujarat: R& D projects
• MoES (Ministry of Earth Sciences, Govt. of India): 2014-2017
• NMEICT: Ministry of HRD, New Delhi, 2012-2014
• DRDE: Ministry of Defense, New Delhi, 2015-17
• IQAC-Saurashtra University, Rajkot, 2016-2018
• ePG Pathshala: UGC, New Delhi, 2012-2014
• UGC: Starup-project, 2015-2017
• DBT-BIRAC-SRISTI Projects, 2017-2018
• DBT: Foldscope Project, 2018-2019
• UGC-BSR Mid-Career Award - 2019
• UGC-BSR Faculty Fellowship Award - 2020

Financial Assistance Received (2015-2020) : 105.96 L

• Central Govt. Funded : Rs. 91.96 Lacs
• State Govt. Funded : Rs. 12 Lacs
• Industries Funded : Rs. 2 Lacs

Interdisciplinary/Multi-Institutional Collabortion

• IIT-Delhi
• DRDE (DRDO), Gwalior
• Delhi University
• Rutgers University, USA
• Anand Agricultural University, Anand
• Junagadh Agricultural University, Junagadh
• University of Tartu, Estonia, Europe
• University of Plymouth, UK
• Kyoto University, Japan
• Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University (JNTU), Hyderabad

Details of Collaboration : Link

Range of h-Index, Citations and Impact Factors (Google Scholar)

Senior Faculty Members

• h-Index : 8- 30
• Citations : 220-3500
• Impact Factors: 0.1-7

Cumulative Impact Factor of all faculties combined, Total IF of 5 year: 140 Avg. 26/year

Ph.D/M.Phil Students/Projects (2015-2020)

• Ph.D : 57
• M. Phil : 85
• Major Research Projects : 18
• Minor Research Projects : 03

Publications (2015-2020)

• Refereed Journals : 237
• Books : 09
• Book Chapters : 56
• Whole Genome sequences : 10
• Data Base Development : 08
• Sequence Submission: : Above 1000 nucleotide sequences in database (NCBI, BOLD, GenBank)

Fellowships (JRF / SRF / RA : 2019-2020) :

UGC/CSIR/DST/DBT/GSBTM/MoES : Total 15, Total Fellowship amount : Rs. 54.55 Lacs

Details : Link

Patents, Copyrights, IPR

Patents-3

1. Rohan Pandya & Prof. Dr. Vrinda S. Thaker: Indian patent 295737, November 23, 2009
2. Madhvi Joshi & Prof. Dr. V. S. Thaker: 144/MUM/2011, 17th Jan 2011
3. Prof. S.P. Singh, Dr. Kalpana Rakholia & Dr. Mital Kaneria, Dept. of Biosciences: E-101/11310/2019-MUM, 8 Aug 2019.

Copyright - 03

MoU

1. Saurashtra University and DRDE (DRDO), Gwalior (2017).  Sharing a common desire to explore, extend and strengthen the functional relationship between the Universities and National laboratories with well established R &D set up(s) in Biological and Chemical science in order to share the facilities and expertise available with each of them.            For Details: Link

2. Department of Biosciences, Saurashtra University and Junagadh Agricultural University, Junagadh (2016). To establish a long-term institutional partnership in the areas of Agricultural Sciences viz. Plant Physiology, Plant Genetics, Soil microbiology and Soil chemistry; Veterinary Sciences, Fisheries Sciences, Microbiology, Biotechnology (Genomic analysis, Metagenomics and Proteomics, Analytical Instrumentation, Bioinformatics, Environmental microbiology, Animal Biotechnology and Nanotechnology); training of students and faculties, Seminar, workshops, etc. with the primary objective of promoting contact and collaboration between faculty, staff and students, explore joint research programmes and exchange experiences in education and research; and the partnership also aims at enhancing the technological, social and cultural ralations.            For Details: Link

3. Saurashtra University Rajkot and Vimal Research Society for Agro-Biotech and Cosmic Powers (VIRASCO) (2019). Rajkot. The MoU is mainly focused on research areas like agriculture modelling, Kirlian Photography, Plant Biotechnology and Plant Tissue Culture.        For Details : Link

Major ongoing areas where linkages with industries have been established

• Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) for Industries like Reliance, Essar, GHCL, Ambuja Cement etc.
• Ecological studies for Industries like Reliance, Essar, GHCL, Ambuja Cement etc
• Water Quality Monitoring for Industries like ESSAR, Dyeing & Printing Industries
• Toxicity Bioassay & Toxicity Testing for Pharma Industries

Consultancy Projects

Various Consultancy Projects from Reliance Petroleum Limited, Jamnagar; ESSAR Oil Limited, Jamnagar; GHCL, Sutrapada; Ambuja Cement, Sikka; Dhanvantri Botanicals, Bangalore; Jetpur Dyeing & Printing Association, Jetpur; Vimal Research Society of Agrobiotech and Cosmic Powers, Rajkot; Agriland Biotech, Baroda.carried out since 1997.

Key Achievements of the Department

❖ UGC-Center of Advanced Study (CAS)
❖ Research outputs: Publications (Books, Book Chapters and Research Papers)
❖ Multi-Institutional projects
❖ Research Projects: 18 Projects with Rs. About 7 Crores
❖ DST-FIST, DST-Women Scientist Project, DST- International Travel Grants
❖ Fellowships: UGC, DST, DBT, CSIR, GSBTM, MoES, Gujarat Govt.
❖ Research Papers: by M.Sc. Students
❖ CSIR- SRF & Research Associate ship (Direct)
❖ NET/SLET/GATE/ICAR-NET Clearance by the students
❖ Acceptance of our students by various sectors for the employment

Future Plans

• Greater applications of audio-visual technologies and online teaching resources.
• The teaching learning processes to be more research oriented at the PG level.
• Research areas to be expanded in: Coastal marine diversity and community ecology, exploration of the interactive associations among different communities of life
• Ecotoxicology & Microplastic Pollution at Coasts 
• Exploration of Medicinal plants & Tissue culture, Plant Molecular Biology
• Microbial diversity of the haloalkanophilic bacteria and actimomycetes
• Metagenomics and Community microbial population dynamics
• Xenobiotic degradation & Bioremediation
• Molecular phylogenetics and evolution
• Exploration of Marine Bioresources

Old Webpage of the Department : https://sites.google.com/sauuni.ernet.in/subioscience