Research Interests
“Seedlings are subjected to a severe struggle for life, and it appears to be highly important to them that they should adapt themselves as quickly and as perfectly as possible to their conditions.”
- Charles Darwin, The Power of Movements in Plants (1880)
Being sessile organisms, plants have evolved exquisite mechanisms to perceive the dynamic changes in the environment in which they grow. Coordinating these environmental cues with the internal biological processes is essential for survival and fitness. Light is a crucial environmental signal that determines plant growth. During his doctoral research, Yadukrishnan studied how light influences early seedling development under stress. His work identified key molecular players in the light signaling pathway that sensitize seedlings to abscisic acid (ABA), a phytohormone that modulates growth under stress conditions. In his postdoctoral research, he investigated mechanisms governing growth plasticity in dark-grown seedlings, a property essential for successful emergence through the soil. He also studied genetic mechanisms that fine-tune the production of photoprotective flavonoids when seedlings experience sudden excess light upon emergence.
The overarching goal of Yadukrishnan’s research group at BITS Pilani is to understand how environmental signals – especially light and temperature – influence plant growth, development, and metabolism. The group’s current interests focus on the following broad questions:
- How do environmental factors shape cell expansion and growth properties across plant organs?
- How do changes in environmental signals, especially light and temperature, spatiotemporally modulate primary and secondary metabolism in plants?
- How can advances in biotechnology be leveraged to modulate the integration of environmental signals to enhance sustainable plant performance in challenging environments?
The group expects to recruit PhD students shortly. Interested candidates are encouraged to contact Dr. Yadukrishnan at yadukrishnan.p@pilani.bits-pilani.ac.in with their CV and a brief description justifying their interest in the area and the group. Holding a valid national-level fellowship (CSIR-UGC JRF, DBT-JRF, ICMR-JRF, DST-INSPIRE, etc.) is preferred but not mandatory.
