Advanced Crop Improvement, Volume 2

Aamir Raina is currently working as Assistant Professor in Department of Botany, at Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh, India. Dr. Raina obtained his Masters in Botany in 2013 with specialization in Genetics and Plant Breeding from the University of Kashmir, Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir, India. Dr. Raina earned the Degree of Doctorate in 2018 for his research work on "Induced Mutagenesis in Cowpea" from the Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh, India. His current research interests are the selection for novel mutations induced by mutagens in pulses, medicinal and aromatic plants and elucidation of physiological and molecular mechanisms in response to mutagens and looking for suitable germplasm donors for breeding purpose. Working on the mutagenesis of plants, Dr. Raina has found a significant role of mutagens in the regulation of plant growth and development and have suggested that mutagens could play an important role in improving the yield and yield attributing traits of crops. Recognizing the contribution of Dr. Raina in the field of mutation breeding, International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Vienna, Austria appointed Dr. Raina as Technical Corporation Expert and Lecturer to conduct National level mutation breeding training in Sudan. The successful conduct of Dr. Raina in different IAEA proj¬ects as an expert supported his research in mutation breeding of crops and proved his ability to work in a multicultural environment. Considering all his achieve¬ments and outstanding contributions in the field of Plant Science, he has been conferred with various research fellowships including CSIR JRF, DBT-SRF, GATE, ICAR NET, JKSET and Nuffic OKP (recieved from Dutch Ministry of foreign Affairs, The Netherlands) and awards including National Environmental Science Academy (NESA) Young scientist and Bharat Vikas Award. He has been recognized as Young Scientist of the Year 2018, receiving theaward from President of NESA, India. Dr. Raina has published more than 40 journal articles and 25 book chapters. Dr. Raina has edited special issues on research topic entitled "Legume Breeding in Transition: Innovation and Outlook" in Frontiers in Genetics and "Emerging Talents in Horticulture Breeding and Genetics 2022" in Frontiers in Horticulture. He is among the editorial board mem¬bers of many scientific journals such as Frontiers in Plant Science, Frontiers in Genetics, Scientific Reports, PLOS One, and BMC Plant Biology. Dr. Raina has par¬ticipated and presented several research papers in dif¬ferent national and international conferences. Dr. Raina has also attended many workshops, trainings, and short courses under scholarships from national and interna¬tional funding agencies.
Mohammad Rafiq Wani is currently working as Assistant Professor (Selection Grade) in the Department of Botany at Abdul Ahad Azad Memorial Degree College Bemina, Cluster University Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir, India. Dr. Wani did his Masters' degree in Botany in 2003 with a specialization in Genetics and Plant Breeding from Aligarh Muslim University (AMU), Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh, India. After obtaining the Degree of Doctorate in 2008 for his research work on "Chemical Mutagenesis in Mungbean" from the same university, he joined the Department of Higher Education, Jammu and Kashmir Government in 2009. He teaches a range of bioscience-related subjects at undergraduate and postgraduate levels. Dr. Wani's research interests are primarily focused on induced mutagenesis and molecular biology in food crops more particularly in pulse crops. As a part of his research endeavor, Dr. Wani has extensively researched and writ¬ten on the issues of induced mutagenesis infood crops, with special reference to pulses. He has published more than 65 research papers in peer-reviewed journals and 20 book chapters in various research-oriented volumes. Dr. Wani, while constantly working for his academic and research interests, has so far edited six volumes of books

Plant Genetic Resources: Conservation, Evaluation and Utilization in Plant Breeding.- Applicability of ISAP and RAPD Techniques for Capsicum Collections Genotyping.- SINE-Markers as a Powerful Tool for Assessing Genetic Diversity to Improve Potato.- Improved breeding of high carotene carrots through marker-assisted paternity selection and Raman spectroscopy.- Traditional and modern molecular cytogenetic approaches to study of mutagen-induced DNA damage - a case of Fagopyrum species.- Improvement of Yield in Cowpea Varieties using Different Breeding Approaches.- Germplasm Diversity and Breeding Approaches for Genetic Improvement of Mungbean.- Mutation Breeding for Adaptation to Climate Change in Seed Propagated Crops.- Induced Mutagenesis-A Reliable Technology to Overcome the Limitations of Low Genetic Variability in Lentils.- Abiotic stress tolerance and nutritional improvement in chickpeas through recombination, mutation, and molecular breeding.- Application of Molecular Markers for Assessing Genetic Diversity in Faba Bean.- Conventional and Molecular Breeding for Genetic Improvement of Maize (Zea mays L.).- Conventional and Molecular Breeding for Sunflower Nutrition Quality Improvement.- Mendelian to Genomics and Bioinformatics Approaches in cytoplasmic male sterility and fertility restoration in Sorghum breeding.- Induced Mutations for Developing New Ornamental Varieties.- In vitro embryo rescue techniques and applications in hybrid plant development.- Proteomic and Biochemical Research for Exploring the Role of Plant-Derived Smoke in Food Crops.- Genome-wide association study (GWAS): concept and methodology for gene mapping in plants.- Tweaking CRISPR/Cas for developing salt and drought tolerant crop plants.- CRISPR/Cas in improvement of food crops for feeding the world into the future.