Dayakar Badri , PhD.

Colorado State University
Department of Horticulture and Landscape Architecture
217 Shepardson, Fort Collins, CO 80523-1173
Phone: (970) 491-1089
Fax: (970) 491-7745
E-mail: dayakar@lamar.colostate.edu

Education:

Ph.D., Plant Pathology, Centre of Advanced Studies in Botany, University of Madras, India. August 1994 – January 1999

M.Phil., Plant Pathology, Centre of Advanced Studies in Botany, University of Madras, India. 1993-1994

M.Sc., Botany, University of Madras, India.1991 – 1993

Professional Experience:

April 2004 to date: Post-Doctoral Research Fellow, Colorado State University.

March 2002 to March 2004: Post-Doctoral Research Fellow, Applied Microbiology Laboratory, National Institute of Agrobiological Sciences, Tsukuba, Ibaraki, Japan.

June 1999 to February 2002: Post-Doctoral Research Fellow, Institute of Botany, Academia Sinica, Taipei, Taiwan.

Awards, Scholarships and Honors:
1. Recipient of Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) Research Fellowship from Japan International Science and Technology centre (JISTEC), Japan, for the year 2002.
2. Recipient of Post-doctoral Research Fellowship from National Science Council (NSC), Taiwan, R. O. C., from June 1999 – February 2002.
3. Recipient of Rockefeller Foundation Rice Biotechnology International Fellowship, from August 1994 – December 1998.
4. Visiting Graduate Research Assistant under Rockefeller Foundation Rice Biotechnology Program at Prof. Sally Leong’s laboratory, Department of Plant Pathology, University of Wisconsin, Madison, USA, from January 1998 to April 1998.
5. Recipient of the Dr. Todla Ekambaram prize for Distinguished Student for the years 1991 - 1993, University of Madras, India.

Research Interests:
Presently, I am working on two projects: (1) The role of (-) catechin as a phytotoxin-mediated signal transduction mechanism, using Arabidopsis as model system, and (2) the role of ribosome-inactivating proteins in defense responses, using Tobacco-TMV as a model system.

(-) Catechin is a phytotoxic compound and kills both Arabidopsis and tobacco plants at 50ug/ml concentration. We identified the Arabidopsis T-DNA mutants which show resistance and hypersensitivity to catechin. Presently, I am trying to clone the gene responsible for catechin resistance and to complement to the mutant to prove that this particular gene plays a role in catechin-mediated phytotoxicity. Once we identify the gene responsible for catechin phytotoxicity, we will further characterize the gene and its role in the signal transduction mechanism. Similarly, we are planning to characterize the gene responsible for catechin hypersensitivity and its role in signal transduction mechanism.

The second project deals with the ribosome-inactivating proteins (RIPs) and their role in defense responses. RIPs are known to depurinate the ribosomes and subsequently stop protein synthesis, leading to cell death. Previously, our group has identified that RIP from tobacco has dual enzymatic activity, showing both depurination and super oxide dismutase activity. I am planning to use Tobacco-TMV as model system to prove that RIP has dual enzymatic activity in vivo and to dissect its two roles in defense responses.

Teaching Experience:
Lecturer in the Department of Botany, Loyola College, Madras, India, from January 1999 to May 1999

Selected Publications:
Dayakar, B. V., Hao-jan Lin, Cheng-hsien Chen, Mang-jye Ger, Bor-heng Lee, Chia-hwei Pai, David Chow, Hsiang-en Huang, Shaw-yhi Hwang, Mei-chu Chung and Teng-yung Feng. 2003. Ferredoxin from sweet pepper (Capsicum annuum L.) intensifying harpinpss- mediated hypersensitive response shows an enhanced production of active oxygen species (AOS). Plant Molecular Biology 51: 913-924.

Manj-jye Ger, Cheng-Hsien Chen, Shaw-yhi Hwang, Hsiang-en Huang, Appa Rao Podile, Dayakar, B.V. and Teng-yung Feng. 2002. Constitutive expression of hrap gene in transgenic tobacco plant enhances resistance against virulent bacterial pathogens by induction of a hypersensitive response. Mol. Plant-Microbe Interact. 15 (8): 764-773.

Dayakar, B. V., Narayanan, N. N., and Gnanamanickam, S. S. 2000. Cross-compatibility and distribution of mating type alleles of the rice blast fungus Magnaporthe grisea in India. Plant Disease Vol. 84(6): 700-704.

Gnanamanickam, S.S., Lavanya Babujee, Brindha Priyadarisini, V., Dayakar, B.V., Leena Kumari, D., Sivaraj, R., Levy, M., and Leong, S.A. 2000. Lineage-Exclusion resistance breeding: pyramiding of blast resistance genes for management of rice blast in India. In: Advances in Rice Blast Research, (eds: Tharreau, D., Lebrun, M. H., Talbot, N. J., and Notteghem, J. L.) Kluwer Academic Publishers, p173-179.

Dayakar, B.V. and Gnanamanickam, S.S. 1996. Biochemical and pathogenic variation in strains of Xanthomonas campestris pv. mangiferaeindicae, from Southern India, Indian Phytopathology 49(3) : 227-233.