Postdoctoral Scholar
The Pennsylvania State University
State College, Pennsylvania
I am currently a Postdoc working with Dr. Surinder Chopra at the Pennsylvania State University. I am interested in understanding the transcriptional regulation of specialized cell development in cereal endosperm. My current research focuses on the potential role of redox and chromatin remodeling mediated transcriptional regulation to initiate differentiation of epithelial cells into basal endosperm transfer cells. This research is a continuation of my PhD research to decipher the role of a newly identified basal endosperm-specific maize gene Zmufo1 (unstable factor for orange1). The presence of Zmufo1 orthologs only in a few Poaceae members and the lack of similarity with any known plant protein rendered its molecular function highly elusive. Apart from addressing the fundamental plant-biology questions, I am also interested in the role of Sorghum and maize flavonoids in plant-insect interaction. Beyond my academic interests, and affection for different microscopy techniques, I am passionate about nature photography and painting.