Graduation Level Topics 

​​

1. Micropropagation of Banana Plants: Micropropagation protocols allow rapid multiplication of disease-free banana plants using tissue culture. This involves culturing meristem tips on Murashige and Skoog (MS) medium supplemented with growth regulators. It is widely practiced in India to supply uniform and high-yielding planting material.

2. Biocontrol of Plant Diseases Using Trichoderma: Application of Trichoderma harzianum as a biocontrol agent helps suppress soil-borne pathogens. The protocol involves seed treatment or soil application with spore suspension. This eco-friendly practice reduces dependence on chemical fungicides.

3. Bt Cotton Cultivation in India: Bt cotton expresses Bacillus thuringiensis toxin for pest resistance. Students can study the molecular basis of insect resistance and its role in reducing pesticide usage. Field performance in India makes it a model crop for biotechnology adoption.

4. Molecular Detection of GM Crops: PCR-based detection protocols help identify the presence of transgenes in GM crops. This has applications in food safety, regulatory approval, and farmers’ awareness programs.

5. Plant Growth-Promoting Rhizobacteria (PGPR) in Wheat: Protocols involve inoculating wheat seeds with PGPR strains like Pseudomonas fluorescens. This enhances nutrient uptake and protects plants from pathogens. Widely studied in Indian agriculture for sustainable farming.

6. Tissue Culture of Sugarcane: Sugarcane tissue culture is applied to produce disease-free seedlings. The process includes nodal culture, callus induction, and hardening in nurseries. India uses this extensively in commercial sugarcane production.

7. Biofertilizers in Paddy Fields: Azospirillum and Azotobacter inoculation protocols enhance nitrogen fixation in rice. Field trials in India have shown higher yields and reduced chemical fertilizer dependence.

8. Marker-Assisted Selection in Crop Improvement: Students can study the use of molecular markers (SSR, RAPD) for disease resistance breeding. Protocols include DNA extraction, PCR, and gel electrophoresis.

9. Cryopreservation of Plant Germplasm: Protocols include freezing plant tissues using cryoprotectants like DMSO and storing in liquid nitrogen. It ensures long-term conservation of elite plant varieties.

10. Mushroom Cultivation as an Agribusiness: Students can perform spawn preparation and substrate sterilization for oyster and button mushrooms. Mushroom biotechnology provides livelihood opportunities in India.

11. In Vitro Propagation of Orchids: Orchid tissue culture involves seed germination in sterile MS medium with coconut water or banana extract. Students can learn about asymbiotic germination protocols, commonly practiced in North-East India for commercial floriculture.

12. Biofortification of Rice with Zinc: Protocols involve selecting rice lines with enhanced micronutrient uptake and analyzing them with atomic absorption spectroscopy. Biofortified rice varieties are being promoted in India to combat malnutrition.

13. Application of Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi in Maize: Inoculation of maize roots with AM fungi improves phosphorus uptake. Root staining techniques help in quantifying colonization levels. Widely studied for sustainable farming practices.

14. Hydroponic Farming of Lettuce: Hydroponic systems using nutrient film technique (NFT) can be established in labs. Students can analyze plant growth response to nutrient solution variations, now trending in urban agriculture in India.

15. RAPD Analysis of Crop Genetic Diversity: Protocols involve extracting DNA from crop leaves, PCR amplification with random primers, and gel electrophoresis. It is widely used in genetic diversity studies of Indian landraces.

16. Vermicomposting Using Earthworms: Students can learn protocols for setting up vermicompost pits using Eisenia fetida. This biotechnology process converts agro-waste into nutrient-rich compost, a sustainable practice in Indian villages.

17. Molecular Diagnosis of Plant Viruses: Using ELISA or RT-PCR, students can detect plant viruses like Papaya Ring Spot Virus. This is a key protocol for disease management in Indian horticulture.

18. Seed Priming with Biostimulants: Protocols involve soaking seeds with plant extracts or beneficial microbes before sowing. It enhances germination and stress tolerance, tested in Indian millet and pulse crops.

19. Microbial Production of Bio-pesticides:  Bacillus thuringiensis spore formulations can be prepared for field application. Lab-scale fermentation techniques make it a practical training for students.

20. Salt Tolerance Assays in Rice Seedlings:  Protocols involve germinating rice seeds in saline medium and measuring growth parameters. Students can screen tolerant varieties, relevant for coastal agriculture in India.

21. Bioethanol Production from Crop Residues: Protocols involve enzymatic hydrolysis of rice straw and yeast fermentation. This technology is being piloted in Indian biorefineries to reduce stubble burning.

22. Somatic Embryogenesis in Coffee: Coffee explants can be cultured for somatic embryo production. This is practiced in Karnataka’s coffee estates to ensure uniform plant material.

23. DNA Barcoding of Medicinal Plants: Students can extract DNA from leaves and use rbcL/ITS primers for identification. This helps in authenticating herbal plants used in Indian Ayurveda.

24. Isolation of Nitrogen-Fixing Bacteria from Legumes: Protocols include root nodule sampling, YEMA culture, and gram staining. This is highly relevant for Indian chickpea and soybean farming.

25. Protoplast Isolation from Tobacco Leaves: Protocols involve enzymatic digestion of cell walls with cellulase and pectinase. This helps students understand cell fusion experiments in plant biotechnology.

26. Microbial Biodegradation of Pesticides: Students can isolate soil microbes from pesticide-contaminated fields and test degradation ability. This biotechnology application supports cleaner farming in India.

27. Polyhouse Cultivation of Vegetables: Practical protocols involve setting up drip irrigation and fertigation in polyhouses. This is being promoted under government schemes for high-value crops.

28. Extraction of Plant Secondary Metabolites: Protocols involve solvent extraction and TLC analysis of alkaloids and flavonoids. This is widely used in Indian medicinal plants.

29. Development of Bioplastic from Corn Starch: Students can prepare biodegradable plastic films using starch and glycerol. This provides a sustainable alternative to petroleum plastics.

30. Agrobacterium-Mediated Transformation in Tomato (Demonstration): Though simplified at graduation level, protocols demonstrate how Agrobacterium tumefaciens transfers T-DNA into tomato explants. This underpins GM crop research.

31. Drought Stress Assays in Pearl Millet: Students can grow seedlings under water-deficit conditions and measure root-shoot ratio. This has practical application in Rajasthan’s dryland agriculture.

32. Role of Cyanobacteria in Rice Fields: Protocols include mass culturing Anabaena or Nostoc for biofertilizer use. Cyanobacteria enhance nitrogen levels in paddy fields of India.

33. Plant Tissue Culture Media Preparation: Students can learn the exact composition of MS medium and sterilization methods. Media optimization is the first step in plant tissue culture labs.

34. Bioreactor Systems for Plant Cell Cultures: Introduction to small-scale bioreactors for growing suspension cultures. Used in India for producing plant-based pharmaceuticals.

35. Biodegradable Mulch Films in Farming: Protocols involve testing biodegradable polymers in crop cultivation. These reduce plastic waste and are now adopted in Indian horticulture.

36. Clonal Propagation of Teak: Nodal explants of teak can be cultured for clonal forestry programs. This supports afforestation and timber industries in India.

37. Pathogen-Free Potato Seed Production: Protocols include meristem culture, virus indexing, and multiplication. This is being used in Indian seed potato programs.

38. RNA Extraction from Plant Tissues:  Students can use CTAB or TRIzol protocols to isolate RNA. Useful for understanding gene expression analysis in plants.

39. Biodegradable Pesticide Formulation: Neem-based pesticide formulations can be prepared and tested for efficacy. India is a leader in neem bioproducts.

40. Algal Biofertilizer Production: Protocols involve mass culturing Spirulina and Chlorella for soil application. This supports organic farming initiatives in India.

41. Bioplastic Degradation by Soil Microbes: Protocols involve burying starch-based plastics and monitoring degradation. Students can assess eco-friendliness of biodegradable products.

42. Somatic Hybridization in Plants (Demonstration): Protoplast fusion techniques demonstrate how hybrids can be created. Students can study fusion under microscopes.

43. Cryopreservation of Pollen: Protocols involve using cryoprotectants and liquid nitrogen for long-term pollen storage. Important for hybridization programs in India.

44. ELISA-Based Plant Pathogen Detection: Students can perform indirect ELISA for detecting bacterial wilt in tomato. This diagnostic tool is used in Indian labs.

45. GM Food Testing by PCR: Students can extract DNA from soybean or maize flour and test for GM markers. This is relevant for Indian food safety regulation.

46. In Vitro Conservation of Rare Medicinal Plants: Protocols involve slow-growth tissue culture storage methods. This conserves endangered Indian flora.

47. Biochar Production from Agricultural Waste: Protocols involve pyrolysis of crop residues and soil amendment. Biochar improves fertility and carbon sequestration in Indian soils.

48. Genome Editing Basics Using CRISPR Simulation: Students can learn theoretical protocols for CRISPR-Cas9 targeting. Though demonstration-based, it provides entry into modern biotechnology.

49. Extraction of Antioxidants from Fruits: Protocols involve methanolic extraction and DPPH radical scavenging assay. Relevant for nutraceutical applications in India.

50. Farmer Field Demonstrations of Tissue-Culture Plants: Students can design extension models to demonstrate banana/sugarcane TC plants to farmers. This bridges lab-to-land transfer of biotechnology.

​​

Post-Graduation Level Topics

​​​

1. CRISPR-Cas9 Genome Editing for Rice Blast Resistance: Protocols involve guide RNA design targeting the Pi54 gene in rice, Agrobacterium-mediated transformation, and screening edited lines. Indian ICAR institutes are exploring CRISPR applications for disease-resistant rice varieties.

2. Transcriptome Profiling of Drought-Tolerant Chickpea: RNA-Seq pipelines (Illumina sequencing, differential expression analysis, pathway enrichment) are used to identify drought-responsive genes. Research in Indian drylands uses this for climate-resilient legumes.

3. Genome-Wide Association Studies (GWAS) in Wheat: Protocols involve genotyping-by-sequencing (GBS), population structure analysis, and trait mapping. Indian programs use GWAS to identify loci linked with heat and drought tolerance.

4. Development of Synthetic Seeds for Hybrid Plants: Protocols involve encapsulating somatic embryos in alginate beads for storage and transport. Synthetic seed technology is explored in India for high-value crops like orchids and medicinal plants.

5. Functional Genomics of Salt Tolerance in Rice: Protocols include qRT-PCR validation of candidate genes and transgenic expression studies. This research supports the breeding of rice varieties for coastal saline soils in India.

6. Nanoparticle-Mediated Delivery of DNA in Plants: Agro-nanotechnology protocols include coating gold nanoparticles with plasmids and delivering them via gene gun. This is a frontier technique in plant transformation studies.

7. Genome Editing of Tomato Shelf-Life Traits: CRISPR-based knockout of ripening genes like RIN and NOR enhances post-harvest storage. Indian research groups are focusing on reducing tomato post-harvest losses.

8. Plant-Derived Vaccines for Animal Health: Protocols include transient expression of antigenic proteins in tobacco using viral vectors. This has applications in India’s dairy sector for diseases like foot-and-mouth disease.

9. Epigenetic Regulation of Abiotic Stress in Crops: Protocols involve bisulfite sequencing to study DNA methylation changes under drought/salinity. Epigenomics offers a new layer of crop improvement research.

10. Metagenomic Analysis of Soil Microbiome in Paddy Fields: Protocols include shotgun sequencing of soil microbial DNA and bioinformatics analysis. Indian studies link microbial diversity with sustainable rice cultivation.

11. Marker-Assisted Backcross Breeding in Maize: Protocols involve integrating QTL-linked markers into elite maize lines for downy mildew resistance. This is actively performed in Indian maize breeding programs.

12. Bioinformatics Pipelines for Plant Genomics: Students can learn protocols for genome assembly, annotation, and comparative genomics using NGS datasets. This is a core skill for modern agricultural biotechnology research.

13. Proteomics in Crop Stress Response: Protocols involve protein extraction, 2D gel electrophoresis, and MALDI-TOF-MS analysis. Proteomics studies identify biomarkers for stress resilience in Indian crops.

14. RNA Interference (RNAi) for Insect Pest Control: Protocols include dsRNA design targeting insect gut genes and delivery via artificial diet. This technology is being tested in India against cotton bollworm.

15. Plant-Based Edible Vaccines Against Human Diseases: Protocols include antigen expression in crops like tomato or banana. Edible vaccine research is advancing for polio and hepatitis in India.

16. Genome Editing for Nutritional Enhancement in Wheat: Protocols include CRISPR-mediated targeting of phytic acid biosynthesis genes to improve mineral bioavailability. This supports Indian biofortification programs.

17. Systems Biology of Nitrogen Use Efficiency in Rice: Protocols involve integrating transcriptomics, proteomics, and metabolomics datasets. This holistic approach identifies key regulatory pathways for fertilizer-efficient crops.

18. Precision Agriculture Using IoT and Biosensors: Protocols include real-time soil nutrient monitoring using nanosensors and data analytics. India is adopting IoT-based smart farming for sustainability.

19. Development of GM Mustard for Hybrid Seed Production: Protocols involve barnase-barstar system engineering for heterosis exploitation. India’s GM mustard research is at advanced regulatory stages.

20. Metabolic Engineering of Medicinal Plants: Protocols involve introducing heterologous pathways in plants like Catharanthus roseus for enhanced alkaloid production. This has industrial applications in India’s pharma sector.

21. Artificial Intelligence in Crop Genomics: Protocols include machine learning models trained on genomic and phenotypic datasets. AI-based predictive breeding is gaining momentum in Indian agricultural research.

22. Bioreactor Optimization for Secondary Metabolite Production: Protocols involve scaling up plant cell cultures in airlift or stirred tank bioreactors. Used in India for production of taxol and other plant-derived drugs.

23. Chloroplast Transformation in Tobacco Plants: Protocols include particle bombardment and homologous recombination. Chloroplast engineering is a frontier field for biofortified crops.

24. Genome Editing of Oil Palm for Higher Oil Yield: Protocols involve CRISPR-mediated editing of fatty acid desaturase genes. This is being studied in Southeast Asia, with potential applications in India’s palm oil industry.

25. Functional Validation of Candidate Genes Using VIGS: Virus-Induced Gene Silencing (VIGS) protocols involve TRV vectors to transiently knock down target genes in crops. This is a rapid functional genomics tool.

26. Development of Drought-Tolerant Maize via QTL Pyramiding: Protocols involve crossing multiple QTL donor lines and marker-assisted selection. CIMMYT and Indian institutes collaborate on climate-smart maize.

27. CRISPR-Cas12a Applications in Plant Genome Editing: Protocols involve designing crRNA and multiplex genome editing. Cas12a offers higher precision and is being tested in Indian rice and tomato programs.

28. Multi-Omics Integration for Crop Improvement: Protocols involve combining genomics, metabolomics, and phenomics datasets. This systems approach supports next-generation crop breeding.

29. High-Throughput Phenotyping Using Drones: Protocols include UAV-based imaging, thermal sensing, and crop growth analytics. Indian agricultural universities are deploying drones for field phenotyping.

30. Synthetic Biology for Nitrogen Fixation in Non-Legumes: Protocols involve engineering cereals with nitrogenase pathways. Though experimental, it has potential to reduce fertilizer dependence in India.

31. Genome Editing of Papaya for Virus Resistance: CRISPR protocols target the coat protein gene of Papaya Ring Spot Virus (PRSV). India is testing this technology for papaya orchards.

32. Production of Plant-Based Antibodies (Plantibodies): Protocols involve transient expression in Nicotiana benthamiana using agroinfiltration. Plantibodies are cost-effective alternatives for diagnostics and therapeutics.

33. Functional Characterization of Long Non-Coding RNAs in Crops: Protocols involve RNA-Seq analysis and CRISPR-based knockout. LncRNAs regulate stress responses and are a hot topic in plant molecular biology.

34. Synthetic Biology of C4 Photosynthesis in Rice: Protocols involve transferring C4 pathway genes into rice using transgenics. IRRI and Indian partners aim to enhance rice productivity.

35. Plant Microbiome Engineering for Disease Resistance: Protocols involve inoculating crops with synthetic microbial consortia. This approach is applied in India to reduce pesticide dependence.

36. Genome Editing for Allergen-Free Peanuts: Protocols include knocking out Ara h1 and Ara h2 allergen genes. This research is relevant for global food safety.

37. Application of CRISPR for Haploid Induction in Maize: Protocols involve editing MATRILINEAL (MTL) gene for doubled haploid production. This accelerates maize breeding cycles in India.

38. Metabolic Engineering of Algae for Biofuel Production: Protocols involve CRISPR editing of lipid biosynthesis pathways in microalgae. India is exploring algae-based renewable energy.

39. Biocontrol Using Engineered Endophytes: Protocols involve engineering endophytes to express antifungal genes and inoculating host plants. This enhances natural disease resistance.

40. Functional Characterization of MicroRNAs in Abiotic Stress: Protocols involve small RNA sequencing and target validation. miRNAs are key regulators of stress adaptation in Indian crops.

41. CRISPR-Based Cisgenesis in Grapevine: Protocols involve editing grape genomes with native genes for mildew resistance. Cisgenesis avoids foreign DNA, easing regulatory concerns.

42. Production of Edible Coatings from Plant Polysaccharides: Protocols involve isolating polysaccharides from guar gum or starch and formulating edible coatings. Indian research uses this to extend shelf life of fruits.

43. Genetic Engineering of Banana for Vitamin A Enhancement: Protocols involve transgenic expression of carotenoid biosynthesis genes. This biofortified banana project is under development in India.

44. Development of Plant-Based Oral Insulin: Protocols involve recombinant insulin production in lettuce or safflower. India is exploring edible plant-based therapeutics for diabetes.

45. Application of CRISPRi for Gene Silencing in Crops: Protocols involve using dCas9 fused to repressors for gene knockdown. This is an advanced functional genomics tool.

46. Development of Heat-Tolerant Wheat Varieties: Protocols involve identifying HSP (Heat Shock Protein) genes and CRISPR-based editing. This addresses India’s heat stress challenge in wheat belts.

47. Synthetic Biology of Terpenoid Pathways in Plants: Protocols involve metabolic engineering of mint and basil for enhanced essential oil production. This has high value in India’s flavor and fragrance industry.

48. Genome Editing of Sorghum for Striga Resistance: CRISPR protocols target susceptibility genes to block parasitic weed infection. This is highly relevant for African and Indian dryland farming.

49. High-Resolution Imaging of Plant Root Systems: Protocols involve X-ray CT scanning or MRI for root phenotyping. This is a frontier tool for studying below-ground traits in Indian crops.

50. Next-Generation Bioreactors for Vertical Farming: Protocols involve integrating hydroponics, LED lighting, and automated bioreactors. Vertical farming is being piloted in Indian urban agriculture startups.