Microbial Endophytes and Plant Growth

Manoj Kumar Solanki is currently employed as a scientist in the Institute of Biology, Biotechnology, and Environment Protection of the Faculty of Natural Sciences at the University of Silesia in Katowice, Poland. In 2006, he received his master’s degree in microbiology from Barkatullah University, and in 2013, he received his Ph.D. in Microbiology from Rani Durgawati University in India. He also served as a research associate in a DBTfunded project at the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) in India. He received a visiting scientist fellowship from the Guangxi Academy of Agriculture Sciences in China from 2013 to 2015, as well as a visiting scientist fellowship from the Volcani Center, Agricultural Research Organization in Israel from 2016 to 2020. He has been involved in numerous research activities on plants-microbes interaction, soil microbiology, plant disease management, enzymology, and microbial genome analysis during his research career, and has published a number of publications in prestigious peer-reviewed international journals and books. He is also expanding his knowledge of agriculturally significant microorganisms, with a focus on soil and crop health management, among other things as well as worked as associate/guest editor for various journals and has sound expertise in editing books and reviewing articles.

Dr. Mukesh Kumar Yadav is working as Professor at the Department of Microbiology, Central University of Punjab, Bathinda, India. Prof. Yadav has more than 15 years of research experience in medical microbiology, particularly in microbial biofilms and host-microbial interactions. Prof. Yadav has published over 110 research articles, garnering more than 7,000 citations, and has authored five books with Elsevier. He has completed eight major research projects funded by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), the Department of Biotechnology (DBT), the Department of Science and Technology (DST), and the National Research Foundation (South Korea). Prof. Yadav's research area focuses on host-microbial interactions and microbial biofilms, including pathogenic and commensal bacteria in the gut. Prof. Yadav's lab is working on understanding microbial biofilms and infections caused by the biofilm mode of growth, as well as antimicrobial resistance (AMR), and identifying suitable strategies to combat AMR and drug resistance. Understanding Commensal Bacterial Interaction and Dysbiosis of Gut Microbiota during Various Metabolic Disorders.

Dr. Singh is working as a Professor and Head, Department of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences at National Institute of Food Technology Entrepreneurship and Management (NIFTEM), Kundli, Haryana, India, and has more than 20 years of experience in applied microbiology with a special focus on endophytic microorganisms and their applications in agriculture and health sciences. Dr. Singh explored the indigenous fermented products of Northeast India and isolated several probiotic strains, and characterized them. Currently, his group is exploring these isolated strains for their potential to synthesize neurotransmitters such as GABA, serotonin, dopamine, and SCFAs, and incorporating these strains into functional beverages by adopting co-encapsulation technology. Dr. Singh has published more than 100 research articles and is a part of the Global Burden of Diseases collaborators. Dr. Singh edited 8 books with Elsevier and Springer on different aspects of applied microbiology.