Scientist Profile

Dr P.T. Prathima

Dr P.T. Prathima

Principal Scientist (Biotechnology)
Genomics lab, Crop Improvement Division ICAR-Sugarcane Breeding Institute Coimbatore -641007 Mail:prathimasambandam@gmail.com
  • Molecular basis of sucrose accumulation in sugarcane
  • Metabolic engineering of sugarcane for low calorie sugars
  • Life Member of Society for Sugarcane Research and Development, Coimbatore
  • Life member of Society for Sugarcane Research and Promotion, Lucknow
  • Life Member of Society for Plant Biochemistry and Biotechnology, New Delhi
  • Life member of Genome India International, New Delhi
  • Title: Identification and characterization of SWEET genes associated with sugar content and disease susceptibility in sugarcane

Agency: ANRF(DST-SERB)

Amount: Rs. 32 Lakhs

  • Platform integration for high Through-put multi omics data analysis and text processing-(CC-PI)

Agency: DBT

Amount: Rs. 28 Lakhs

  • Genome Editing for high sucrose content in sugarcane

Agency: ICAR-EFC

  • Award for securing highest marks in Pomology subjects, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, 2002
  • Award for securing highest marks in Vegetable crop production, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, 2002
  • CSIR-UGC JRF holder for pursuing PhD (Biotechnology): CSIR, 2004-’09
  • Qualified ICAR- NET certificate in Biotechnology, ASRB, New Delhi 2006
  • Qualified CSIR-NET certificate in Biotechnology, CSIR , 2004
  • Qualified UGC-NET certificate in Biotechnology, UGC, 2004
  • 7. DBT-Jawaharlal Nehru Fellowship holder for pursuing M.Sc(Biotechnology): Jawaharlal Nehru University -DBT, 2002-‘04:
  • Award for securing highest OGPA in the M.Sc(Biotechnology) , Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, 2004
  • Best Ph.D student in Biotechnology, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, 2010
  • Indo-Australian Career Boosting Gold fellowship for pursuing two years of post-doctoral studies at the University of Queensland, Australia from March 2016 to March 2018, DBT, 2016-2018
  • International Travel Grant, DST, 2019
  • Honorary Fellow, University of Queensland, Australia, University of Queensland December 2019- Dec 2022
  • Best research paper award for the year 2014 Society of Sugarcane Research and Development, 2020
  • Member, UG/PG Board of Studies in Biotechnology, PSG-College of Arts and Sciences, Coimbatore (2019-2022)
  • Member, UG/PG Board of Studies in Biotechnology, NGP-College of Arts and Sciences, Coimbatore (2022-2025)
  • Editorial member –Frontiers in Plant Science (Plant Breeding), SugarTech Journal
  • Reviewer– BMC Genomics, Heliyon, Scientific Reports, Frontiers in Plant Science, Functional and Integrative Genomics, Bioinformatics, Plant Cell Reports, Critical Reviews in Biotechnology
  • Number of students guided for M.Sc/ Ph.D: Number of M.Sc/M.Tech students guided: 30; Number of PhD students guiding: 3
  • Recognized guide for PhD programme in Bharathidasan University, Tiruchirapalli ; Bharathiar University, Coimbatore
  • NABL assessor

  • Post-doc: Two years of post-doctoral training in the field of transcriptomics at the University of Queensland, St.Lucia, Brisbane, Australia, under the guidance of Prof. Robert Henry from 2016 -2018 availing the Indo-Australian Career Boosting Gold Fellowship from the Department of Biotechnology, Government of India

  • Aswini, N., Moniusha, J., Keerthana, S., Amaresh, Nandhini, M., Prathima, P. T., … & Manimekalai, R. (2025). Genomic Exploration for the Sucrose Content in Sugarcane. Tropical Plant Biology, 18(1), 44.
  • Venkatesh, Y. N., Ashajyothi, M., Rajarajan, K., Sahu, S., Chaturvedi, V., Prathima, P. T., … & Arunachalam, A. (2024). Transcriptional and physio-chemical responses of Tectona grandis L. triggered by teak defoliator. Plant Stress, 12, 100468.
  • Manimekalai, R., Saranya, J., Saravanakumar, K., Rajagopal, S., Jini, N., Selvi, A., … & Gomathi, R. (2024). Small RNA profiling and co-networking analysis identifies stress-responsive miRNAs involved in sugarcane and its wild species. Plant Physiology Reports, 1-19.
  • Thirugnanasambandam, P. P., Singode, A., Thalambedu, L. P., Athiappan, S., Krishnasamy, M., Purakkal, S. V., … & Henry, R. (2023). Long read transcriptome sequencing of a sugarcane hybrid and its progenitors, Saccharum officinarum and S. spontaneum. Frontiers in Plant Science, 14, 1199748.
  • Swathik Clarancia, P., Naveenarani, M., Ashwin Narayan, J., Krishna, S. S., Thirugnanasambandam, P. P., Valarmathi, R., … & Appunu, C. (2023). Genome-wide identification, characterization and expression analysis of plant nuclear factor (NF-Y) gene family transcription factors in Saccharum spp. Genes, 14(6), 1147.
  • Surya Krishna, S., Harish Chandar, S. R., Ravi, M., Valarmathi, R., Lakshmi, K., Prathima, P. T., … & Appunu, C. (2023). Transgene-free genome editing for biotic and abiotic stress resistance in sugarcane: prospects and challenges. Agronomy, 13(4), 1000.
  • Rajarajan, K., Sakshi, S., Taria, S., Prathima, P. T., Radhakrishna, A., Anuragi, H., … & Arunachalam, A. (2022). Whole plant response of Pongamia pinnata to drought stress tolerance revealed by morpho-physiological, biochemical and transcriptome analysis. Molecular Biology Reports, 49(10), 9453-9463.
  • Senthilkumar, S., Vinod, K. K., Parthiban, S., Thirugnanasambandam, P., Lakshmi Pathy, T., Banerjee, N., … & Govindaraj, P. (2022). Identification of potential MTAs and candidate genes for juice quality-and yield-related traits in Saccharum clones: a genome-wide association and comparative genomic study. Molecular Genetics and Genomics, 297(3), 635-654.
  • Banerjee, N., Kumar, S., Singh, A., Annadurai, A., & Thirugnanasambandam, P. P. (2022). Identification of microRNAs involved in sucrose accumulation in sugarcane (Saccharum species hybrid). Plant Gene, 29, 100352.

Book chapters

  • Kasirajan, L., Kamaraj, K., Sebastiar, S., Thirugnanasambandam, P. P., & Karpagam, E. (2024). Proteomic Approaches for Ligninolytic Enzymes Production for Enhancing Sugarcane Biomass Conversion Efficiency. In Value Addition and Product Diversification in Sugarcane (pp. 175-200). Singapore: Springer Nature Singapore.
  • Krishnapriya, V., Anusha, S., Vinu, V., Nisha, M., Pazhany, A. S., Prathima, P. T., … & Gomathi, R. (2024). Sugarcane Metabolomics and Its Applications in Value Addition. In Value Addition and Product Diversification in Sugarcane (pp. 109-124). Singapore: Springer Nature Singapore.
  • Namratha, P. M., Thirugnanasambandam, P. P., Swaliha, A., & Kasirajan, L. (2024). A Recent Update on Metabolic Engineering in Plants, Its Futuristic Applications with Special Inference to Sugarcane Value Addition. Value Addition and Product Diversification in Sugarcane, 295-310.
  • Thirugnanasambandam, P. P., Singode, A., Vengavasi, K., & Velayudhan, V. (2022). Genomic designing for abiotic stress resistant sugarcane. In Genomic designing for abiotic stress resistant technical crops (pp. 299-328). Cham: Springer International Publishing.
  • Viswanathan, R., Geetha, N., Anna Durai, A., Prathima, P. T., Appunu, C., Parameswari, B., … & Selvi, A. (2022). Genomic designing for biotic stress resistance in sugarcane. In Genomic designing for biotic stress resistant technical crops (pp. 337-439). Cham: Springer International Publishing.
  • Thirugnanasambandam, P.P., Singode, A., Thalambedu, L. and Shanmugavel, S. (2022). Opportunity and Challenges for High-throughput Genotyping in Sugarcane. In Genotyping by Sequencing for Crop Improvement (eds H. Sonah, V. Goyal, S.M. Shivaraj and R.K. Deshmukh). https://doi.org/10.1002/9781119745686.ch14
  • Viswanathan, R., Geetha, N., Durai, A. A., Prathima, P. T., Appunu, C., Parameswari, B., … & Selvi, A. (2022). Genomic Designing for Biotic Stress Resistant Technical Crops.
  • Ameer, A. A., Thirugnanasambandam, P. P. P., Vannish, M. R., & Basheer, S. (2022). SWEET transporters in plants and their significance in Sugarcane. Journal of Sugarcane Research, 12(2), 112-127.
  • Selvi, A., Devi, K., Manimekalai, R., Prathima, P. T., Valiyaparambth, R., & Lakshmi, K. (2021). High-throughput miRNA deep sequencing in response to drought stress in sugarcane. 3 Biotech, 11(7), 312.
  • Rajarajan, K., Ganesamurthy, K., Raveendran, M., Jeyakumar, P., Yuvaraja, A., Sampath, P., … & Senthilraja, C. (2021). Differential responses of sorghum genotypes to drought stress revealed by physio-chemical and transcriptional analysis. Molecular biology reports, 48, 2453-2462.
  • Selvi, A., Devi, K., Manimekalai, R., Prathima, P. T., Valiyaparambth, R., & Lakshmi, K. (2021). High-throughput miRNA deep sequencing in response to drought stress in sugarcane. 3 Biotech 11 (7): 312.
  • Selvi, A., Devi, K., Manimekalai, R., & Prathima, P. T. (2020). Comparative analysis of drought-responsive transcriptomes of sugarcane genotypes with differential tolerance to drought. 3 Biotech, 10, 1-14.
  • Thirugnanasambandam, P. P., Mason, P. J., Hoang, N. V., Furtado, A., Botha, F. C., & Henry, R. J. (2019). Analysis of the diversity and tissue specificity of sucrose synthase genes in the long read transcriptome of sugarcane. BMC plant biology, 19, 1-14.
  • Devi, K., Prathima, P. T., Gomathi, R., Manimekalai, R., Lakshmi, K., & Selvi, A. (2019). Gene expression profiling in sugarcane genotypes during drought stress and rehydration. Sugar Tech, 21, 717-733.
  • Thirugnanasambandam, P. P., Hoang, N. V., & Henry, R. J. (2018). The challenge of analyzing the sugarcane genome. Frontiers in plant science, 9, 616.
  • Hoang, N. V., Furtado, A., Thirugnanasambandam, P. P., Botha, F. C., & Henry, R. J. (2018). De novo assembly and characterizing of the culm-derived meta-transcriptome from the polyploid sugarcane genome based on coding transcripts. Heliyon, 4(3).
  • Devi, K., Prathima, P. T., Gomathi, R., Ramalashmi, K., & Selvi, A. (2018). Physiological and molecular responses of sugarcane genotypes subjected to hypoxia. ournal of Sugarcane Research, 8(1), 52-65.
  • Thirugnanasambandam, P. P., Hoang, N. V., Furtado, A., Botha, F. C., & Henry, R. J. (2017). Association of variation in the sugarcane transcriptome with sugar content. BMC genomics, 18, 1-22.
  • Hoang, N. V., Furtado, A., Mason, P. J., Marquardt, A., Kasirajan, L., Thirugnanasambandam, P. P., … & Henry, R. J. (2017). A survey of the complex transcriptome from the highly polyploid sugarcane genome using full-length isoform sequencing and de novo assembly from short read sequencing. BMC genomics, 18, 1-22.
  • Kasirajan, L., Aruchamy, K., Thirugnanasambandam, P. P., & Athiappan, S. (2017). Molecular cloning, characterization, and expression analysis of lignin genes from sugarcane genotypes varying in lignin content. Applied biochemistry and biotechnology, 181, 1270-1282.
  • Raj, P., Selvi, A., Prathima, P. T., & Nair, N. V. (2016). Analysis of Genetic Diversity of Saccharum Complex Using Chloroplast Microsatellite Markers (vol 18, pg 141, 2016). SUGAR TECH, 18(2), 149-149.
  • Sobhakumari, V. P., & Prathima, P. T. (2015). Isolation of a novel centromere-associated CENH3 gene and its characterization from sugarcane.  Journal of Sugarcane Research, 2015, Vol. 5, No. 2, 22-29
  • Prathima, P. T., & Meena, S. A. (2015). Structure based comparative in silico analyses of invertase gene families in sugarcane. Journal of Sugarcane Research, 2015, Vol. 5, No. 2, 30-41
  • Ramalashmi, K., Prathima, P. T., Mohanraj, K., & Nair, N. V. (2014). Expression profiling of sucrose metabolizing genes in Saccharum, Sorghum and their hybrids. Applied biochemistry and biotechnology, 174, 1510-1519.
  • Prathima, P., Suparna, T., Anishma, S., Punnya, R., & Ramalashmi, K. (2014). Cloning and characterization of a differentially regulated invertase inhibitor gene during sucrose accumulation in sugarcane. J Sugarcane Res, 4, 21-8.
  • Prathima, P. T., Raveendran, M., Kumar, K. K., Rahul, P. R., Kumar, V. G., Viswanathan, R., … & Balasubramaniam, P. (2013). Differential regulation of defense-related gene expression in response to red rot pathogen Colletotrichum falcatum infection in sugarcane. Applied biochemistry and biotechnology, 171, 488-503.
  • Nivetha, L., Nair, N. V., Prathima, P. T., & Selvi, A. (2013). Identification of microsatellite markers for high fibre content in sugarcane. Journal of Sugarcane Research, 2013, Vol. 3, No. 1, 14-19
  • Prathima, P. T., Suresha, G. S., & Selvi, A. (2011). Expression profiling of genes involved in sucrose metabolism in different Saccharum spp. and commercial sugarcane hybrids. Journal of Sugarcane Research, 2011, Vol. 1, No. 2, 35-42
  • Viswanathan, R., Ramesh Sundar, A., Malathi, P., Rahul, P. R., Ganesh Kumar, V., Banumathy, R., … & Balasubramanian, P. (2009). Interaction between sugarcane and Colletotrichum falcatum causing red rot: Understanding disease resistance at transcription level. Sugar Tech, 11, 44-50.