Profile
Plants produce tens of thousands of structurally diverse low molecular weight natural products (i.e., specialized metabolites) which are extensively utilized in all sectors of day-to-date life applications. My PhD research in South Korea, the JSPS post-doctoral research in Japan and the INSPIRE Faculty as well as the current research in India are all related to plant specialized metabolites, especially the triterpenoids group in legumes and the phenylphenalenone-type phytoalexins (PPs) group in Musa species. A complete knowledge on biosynthetic genes is the prerequisite cornerstone for mass production or engineering the pathway for human benefits, through environmentally sustainable methods, of any beneficial specialized metabolites including triterpenoids and PPs. Hence, my current research aims to decipher the biosynthesis pathway of triterpene glycosides in legumes and phytoalexins in Musa species. Besides, I study gene (super)families in plants to unravel their species composition/ functional evolution, and its association in specialized metabolism.
Current Focus Areas
Discovering the biosynthesis genes of phenylphenalenone-type phytoalexins in banana to engineer the plant’s natural chemical defense against multiple pathogens
Development of new soybean culivars with improved taste and nutritional characters
Establishment of the kingdom-level gene superfamilies classification database using phylogenomics and synteny
Selected Publications
Krishnamurthy P, Fujisawa Y, Takahashi Y, Abe H, Yamane K, Mukaiyama K, Son HR, Hiraga S, Kaga A, Anai T, Tsukamoto C, Ishimoto M (2019) High–throughput screening and characterization of a high-density soybean mutant library elucidate the biosynthesis pathway of triterpenoid saponins. Plant Cell Physiol. 60(5):1082–1097
Krishnamurthy P*, Ravikumar MJ, Palanivelu SA, Pothiraj R, Suthanthiram B, Subbaraya U, Morita H (2023) Phenylphenalenone-type phytoalexins in banana (Musa species): a comprehensive review for new research directions. Phytochem Rev. 22: 187–210
Pothiraj R, Ravikumar MJ, Suthanthiram B, Subbaraya U, Krishnamurthy P* (2021) Genome-scale analyses of polyketide synthases in banana: phylogenetics and expression profiling forecast their candidacy in specialized metabolism. Gene 778: 145472
Nimmy MS, Kumar V, Suthanthiram B, Subbaraya U, Nagar R, Bharadwaj C, Jain PK, Krishnamurthy P* (2022) A systematic phylogenomic classification coupled with homology and synteny network unveils the distinct evolutionary trajectories of MATE gene family in plants. Front Plant Sci. 13: 774885
Krishnamurthy P*, Pothiraj R, Suthanthiram B, Somasundaram SM, Subbaraya U (2022) Phylogenomics classification and synteny network analyses deciphered the evolutionary landscape of an aldo-keto reductase (AKR) gene superfamily in the plant kingdom. Gene 816: 146169